Pb Concentration and Stable PB Isotopes in Dated-Core Sediments in the Ulleung Basin, East/japan Sea

This study investigated temporal and spatial variation of Pb and stable Pb isotopes accumulated in Ulleung Basin core sediments (12) using MC ICP/MS in order to identify the sources of anthropogenic Pb in the East/Japan Sea. Leached (1M HCl) Pb concentration and isotope ratios (207Pb/206Pb and 208Pb/206Pb) ware constant at around 20 mg/kg and 0.845 and 2.092 from 1700 to 1930 year, respectively and increased steadily up to 40 mg/kg and 0.873 to 2.129 at the beginning of 2000s, increased up to twice in concentration and as much as 3.31% and 1.64%. On the other hand, residual Pb concentrations were nearly constant for past 400 yrs. From the vertical profiles of Pb concentration and two end-members mixing model, anthropogenic Pb concentration and isotope ratios were estimated. The transport pathways of anthropogenic Pb could be estimated from 1) the comparison between the inventories of excess 210Pb in each sediment column and the input fluxes from the atmosphere and seawater column, 2) between the accumulation rate of anthropogenic Pb and mass accumulation rate of sediments. From the detailed evaluation for the pathways and isotope ratios of anthropogenic Pb, we proposed probable source of anthropogenic Pb. Pb emission by coal burning from the China and Korea initiated the accumulation of anthropogenic Pb in the sediments of East/Japan Sea from 1930s. The accumulation of Pb increased by the addition of anti-nocking agents from both countries untill beginning of 1990s, but from the middle of 1990s to the present, the phase-out of gasoline additives and the rapid increase of coal burning from China maintained the atmospheric Pb levels in the Ulleung basin nearly similar to before. However the local sources (e.g. ocean dumping) within this basin might take an important role in the rapid increase of anthropogenic Pb accumulation in slope areas from the middle of 1990s.