Article ID | Journal | Published Year | Pages | File Type |
---|---|---|---|---|
8849076 | Journal of Great Lakes Research | 2018 | 12 Pages |
Abstract
We calculated the wet and dry deposition, vapor absorption, and volatilization flows (in kg/yr) of seven polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), nine organochlorine pesticides, and two polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) into and out of the Great Lakes during 2010-2015 (inclusive). Particle, vapor, and precipitation concentrations from five rural and remote stations (one site on each lake) and two urban sites, operated by the United States and Canada, were used for the flow calculations. Output from the water to the air was the most important process for PCBs, chlordanes, and p,pâ²-DDE. The flows of endosulfan, p,pâ²-DDT, and phenanthrene were dominated by vapor absorption from the air to the water. The flow of benzo[a]pyrene was controlled by wet and dry deposition to the water. The flows of the hexachlorocyclohexanes (HCHs) into and out of the lakes were about equal, indicating air-water equilibrium for these compounds. Among the lakes, Lakes Superior and Erie had the highest input and output flows. The input and output flows for the five lakes were decreasing with halving times of 1-10Â years and 10-40Â years, respectively. Most chemicals had seasonal variations in their flows, with maximum inputs in the summer and maximum outputs in the fall. The flows of PCBs and PAHs into Lakes Michigan and Erie were associated with Chicago and Cleveland, respectively. Combining our data with previous data over the period 1992-2015, we estimated that the input flows of most of these chemicals have significantly decreased, but the output flows do not show consistent trends.
Keywords
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Physical Sciences and Engineering
Earth and Planetary Sciences
Earth and Planetary Sciences (General)
Authors
Jiehong Guo, Amina Salamova, Marta Venier, Helena Dryfhout-Clark, Nick Alexandrou, Sean Backus, Lisa Bradley, Hayley Hung, Ronald A. Hites,