A Study on the Spatial and Historical Variations of Chromium in Sediments of the Great Lakes

오대호 퇴적물에 포함된 크롬의 시공간적 변화에 관한 연구

The vertical concentration profiles of chromium in sediment cores were measured from Lakes Superior, Michigan, and Ontario in an attempt to determine spatial and historical variations. Pre-industrial concentrations of chromium are typical for soils in the Great Lakes region. Only Lakes Ontario and Michigan exhibit anthropogenic enrichments of chromium in the sediments. Sediment profiles in Lakes Ontario and Michigan indicate that the rates of anthropogenic chromium loading to the Great Lakes region are decreasing. Focusing corrected inventories are similar within each lake and those are higher in Lake Ontario than Lake Michigan. The results are interpreted to indicate that there is a small atmospheric component to chromium inputs to the Great Lakes and that the relative importance of this input decreases from Lake Superior to Lake Ontario.