| Article ID | Journal | Published Year | Pages | File Type |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4436352 | Applied Geochemistry | 2011 | 10 Pages |
Lead concentrations were determined in samples of soil B-horizon (N = 258), forest-floor humus (O-horizon, N = 259), grass (Avenella flexuosa, N = 251) and spruce (Picea abies, N = 253) needles (2nd year) collected at the same locations evenly spread over the territory of the Czech Republic at an average density of 1 site/300 km2. Median Pb concentrations differ widely in the four materials: soil B-horizon: 27 mg/kg (3.3–220 mg/kg), humus: 78 mg/kg (19–1863 mg/kg), grass: 0.37 mg/kg (0.08–8 mg/kg) and spruce needles: 0.23 mg/kg (0.07–3 mg/kg). In the Pb distribution maps for humus, grass and spruce a number of well-known Pb-contamination sources are indicated by unusually high concentrations (e.g., the Pb smelter at Pribram, the metallurgical industry in the NE of the Czech Republic and along the Polish border, as well as the metallurgical industry in Upper Silesia and Europe’s largest coal-fired power plant at Bogatynia, Poland). The ratio 206Pb/207Pb was determined in all four materials. The median value of the 206Pb/207Pb isotope ratio in the soil B-horizon is 1.184 (variation: 1.145–1.337). In both humus and grass the median value for the 206Pb/207Pb isotope ratio is 1.162 (variation: 1.130–1.182), in spruce needles the median ratio is 1.159 (variation: 1.116–1.186). In humus, grass and spruce needles the known contamination sources are all marked by higher 206Pb/207Pb isotope ratios in the maps. Furthermore, the soil B-horizon, humus, grass and spruce needles show distinctly different spatial distribution patterns of the 206Pb/207Pb isotope ratios. The B-horizon does not provide a viable background value for metal concentrations in the O-horizon or plant materials. None of the maps provides evidence for the importance of traffic-related emissions for the observed isotope ratios at the scale of the Czech Republic.
► Pb-concentrations and 206Pb/207Pb isotope ratios are provided for four different sample materials for the Czech Republic. ► The paper demonstrates the local impact of a number of different contamination sources. ► The data provide clear evidence that traffic emissions are no major source of Pb to the Czech environment. ► The data demonstrate that the B-horizon provides no valid “background” for Pb-concentration or the 206Pb/207Pb isotope ratio. ► Pb isotope ratios change during soil weathering and at the interface biosphere/pedosphere.
