Can pine needles indicate trends in the air pollution levels at remote sites?
| Authors | |
|---|---|
| Year of publication | 2009 |
| Type | Article in Periodical |
| Magazine / Source | Environmental Pollution |
| MU Faculty or unit | |
| Citation | |
| Field | Air pollution and control |
| Keywords | Pine needle; Passive air sampling; Monitoring; Temporal trends; POPs |
| Description | Data from ten years of integrated monitoring were used here to evaluate whether pine needles are a feasible tool for an assessment of long-term trends of the atmospheric contamination. Pine needles collected once a year were compared to high volume air samples collected for 24 h, every 7 days, and passive air samples integrated over 28-day periods. Results showed the same concentration patterns of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) and organochlorine pesticides (OCPs) captured in needles and high volume samples. Passive air samplers were less efficient in sampling the particle-bound compounds. The most important finding is that in the long term a needle monitoring gives very similar information on temporal trends of the atmospheric pollution as does a high volume air monitoring. Pine needle monitoring is a feasible tool for an assessment of temporal trends in the atmospheric contamination. |
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