Data from the new ice core array illustrates that Antarctic lead concentrations reached a peak in 1900 and remained high until the late 1920s, with brief declines during the Great Depression and the end of World War II. Concentrations then increased rapidly until 1975 and remained elevated until the 1990s.
Concentrations across the Antarctic continent have since declined, but still are about four-fold higher than before industrialization, despite the phase out of leaded gasoline and other mitigation efforts in many countries in the Southern Hemisphere, the report states.
“Our measurements indicate that approximately 660 tonnes (1.5 million pounds) of industrial lead have been deposited on the snow-covered surface of Antarctic during the past 130 years,” McConnell said. “While recent contamination levels are lower, clearly detectable industrial contamination of the Antarctic continent persists today… so we still have a ways to go.”
Check the following link to read/download the Full Report – “Antarctic-wide Array of High-Resolution Ice Core Records Reveals Pervasive Lead Pollution Began in 1889 and Persists Today”:
http://www.nature.com/srep/2014/140728/srep05848/full/srep05848.html
Source: DRI.
