Book Description
The primary objective of this study was to collect and analyse high quality, well-described sediment cores for use in defining the depositional history of sediment-bound contaminants in Lake Athabasca, including those which have atmospheric or upstream sources. The researchers dated the cores using the lead and caesium methods, and used these geochronological results to determine sedimentation rates and time scales, as well as the suitability of the cores for subsequent contaminant analyses. Selected cores were to be analysed for particle size distribution, bulk carbon and nitrogen species, radionuclides, total polychlorinated dioxins and furans, heavy metals, polynuclear aromatic hydrocarbons, fatty acids, and biogeochemical marker parameters derived from alkanes and fatty acids. Results presented include trends in contaminant concentrations over the past century, correlations of observed trends with human activities or natural occurences, and likely sources of sediment contaminants.
