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Heavy Metals of the 20th Century Recorded in Oak Tree Rings
Author(s) -
Jonsson Arne,
Eklund Mats,
Håkansson Karsten
Publication year - 1997
Publication title -
journal of environmental quality
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.888
H-Index - 171
eISSN - 1537-2537
pISSN - 0047-2425
DOI - 10.2134/jeq1997.00472425002600060025x
Subject(s) - quercus robur , dendrochronology , environmental science , metal , tree (set theory) , atomic absorption spectroscopy , environmental chemistry , diffusion , soil science , chemistry , forestry , geology , geography , mathematics , physics , paleontology , mathematical analysis , organic chemistry , quantum mechanics , thermodynamics
Tree rings from 23 oak trees ( Quercus robur L.) were used to monitor historical heavy metal emissions from anthropogenic sources on a regional scale. The concentrations of Cd and Pb in the tree rings were analyzed using atomic absorption spectrophotometry. From the results, chronologies were constructed representing the heavy metal background load of the 20th century. The chronologies were compared with calculated estimates of the accumulation of these metals in soil. The method of tree‐ring analysis proved to be useful for monitoring Cd and Pb emissions from diffuse sources when applied as a complement to other methods, in this case calculated accumulation. This study also indicates that no radial transport occurs in the inward direction, from sapwood to heartwood, but that outward diffusion to some extent might occur at least within the sapwood. The conspicuous difference between the soil/wood ratios for Cd and Pb implies that a larger proportion of the soil Cd is taken up by the tree than is the case for Pb.