Cheyne, Carol A.L., Alyson M. Thibodeau, Gregory F. Slater, and Bridget A. Bergquist. Lead Isotopes as Particulate Contaminant Tracers and Chronostratigraphic Markers in Lake Sediments in Northeastern North America. Chemical Geology 477 (2018): 47-57. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0009254117306733

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1850 marker using other dating methods span a range of 57 years, emphasizing the importance of the marker as a tie-point for extrapolated dates in the 19th century. Lead isotopes identified leaded gasoline as an important source only in one lake in the second half of the 20th century; its signal was not identified in all other lakes because the lakes were more affected by local and regional inputs. Lead isotopes combined with trace metal fluxes identified a potential marker for coal combustion or urban sources in the second half of the 20th century in southern Ontario, where these sources were significant enough to outweigh leaded gasoline input. The effects of Canadian mining and smelting activities were seen in the trace metal flux profiles of central Ontario lakes; however, these activities were not visible in the Pb isotopes, likely due to mixing of several sources with similar Pb isotopic signatures. This study demonstrates the usefulness of combining lead isotopes and trace metal flux profiles for identifying markers of historical and modern particulate contamination sources, especially in regions where several pollution sources exist.

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