Recent atmospheric dust deposition in an ombrotrophic peat bog in Great Hinggan Mountain, Northeast China

Recent deposition of atmospheric soil dust (ASD) was studied using 210Pb-dated Sphagnum-derived peat sequences from Great Hinggan Mountain in northeast China. Physicochemical indices of peat including dry bulk density, water content, ash content, total organic carbon and mass magnetic susceptibility were measured. Acid-insoluble concentration of lithogenic metals (Al, Ca, Fe, Mn, V and Ti) were measured using ICP-AES. The basic physicochemical properties were used to assess the peat trophic status and indicated that the sections above 45-60 cm are rain-fed peat. A continuous record of ASD fluxes over the past 150 years was reconstructed based on the geochemical data obtained from the ombrotrophic zone, and the average input rate of ASD is 13.4-68.1 g m− 2 year− 1. The source of soil dust deposited in peat was dominated by the long-range transport of mineral aerosol from the drylands in north China and Mongolia. The temporal variation of ASD fluxes in the last 60 years coincides well with the meteorological records of dust storm frequency during 1954-2002 in north China. This suggests that the reconstructed sequence of atmospheric dust deposition is reliable and we can look back in time at the dust evolution before 1949. Dust storm events were observed occasionally in the late Qing dynasty, and their frequency and intensity were smaller than dust weather occurring in recent times. Four peaks of ASD fluxes were distinguished and correlated with the historical events at that time. This study presents the first atmospheric soil dust data in peat records in northeast China, and complements a global database of peat bog archives of atmospheric deposition. The results reflect the patterns of local environmental change over the past century in north China and will be helpful in formulating policies to achieve sustainable and healthy development.

► Atmospheric dust fluxes are reconstructed from a 210Pb-dated peat archive in NE China. ► Element concentrations suggest atmospheric input of soil dust from northern China and Mongolia. ► A decreasing trend in annual dust fluxes can be observed over the last 60 years in NE China. ► Four peaks of aeolian dust fluxes are observed and are associated with recent historical events. ► The determination of dust fluxes in peat bog allows studying long-term aerosol deposition.