Distribution of 90Sr and 137Cs in biotic and abiotic elements of the coastal zone of the King George Island (South Shetland Archipelago, Antarctic Peninsula).

For many years Antarctic ecosystems have been considered pristine, however recent studies, including our results, contradict this assumption. Our comprehensive study on the activity of anthropogenic radioisotopes (137Cs and 90Sr) in the most common species of green algae, bryophytes, lichens, and vascular plants, as well as soil and guano samples collected over a large area on King George Island (South Shetland Archipelago) in the austral summer 2018/2019 clearly indicate the importance of large-scale transport in shaping the level of pollution in areas very distant from potential sources of contamination. Additionally, radioisotope pollution can be measured even after a very long period (>60 years) since their occurrence. The mean activity of 137Cs measured in lichens, bryophytes, vascular plants, green algae, soil, and guano was, respectively: 3.72 Bq kg-1dw, 3.70 Bq kg-1dw, 2.62 Bq kg-1dw, 2.26 Bq kg-1dw, 4.07 Bq kg-1dw and 2.08 Bq kg-1dw. For 90Sr mean activity in lichens, bryophytes, vascular plants, green algae, and soil was, respectively: 1.99 Bq kg-1dw, 3.05 Bq kg-1dw, 2.42 Bq kg-1dw, 1.08 Bq kg-1dw, and 6.43 Bq kg-1dw. Increased activities of 90Sr and 137Cs were observed in species collected in the area influenced by glacier melt and penguin guano.

Assessing the present levels of 137Cs in the remote ecosystem of Bjornoya (South Svalbard).

The remoteness and small size of Bjornoya (S Svalbard) make the island one of the most unreachable places in the Arctic. Limited accessibility contributes to still-existing knowledge gap on isotope accumulation in compartments of its ecosystem. Therefore, in this study we aimed to investigate the current concentration of 137Cs in the terrestrial samples of vascular plants, cryptogams, and soil collected on Bjornoya in 2021. The measured average activity of 137Cs in bryophytes was 56.5 Bq kg-1, lichens 27.6 Bq kg-1, vascular plants 7.26 Bq kg-1, and soil 9.63 Bq kg-1. In the case of bryophytes, 137Cs activity was negatively correlated with δ15N. Our results suggest that bird guano was the main source of nitrogen and 137Cs for vascular plants. For bryophytes, significantly lower values of δ15N than in vascular plants suggests that this group is more sensitive to atmospheric N intake, with fallout being the main source of 137Cs.

Are Natural or Anthropogenic Factors Influencing Potentially Toxic Elements' Enrichment in Soils in Proglacial Zones? An Example from Kaffiøyra (Oscar II Land, Spitsbergen).

Arctic soils may hold potentially toxic elements (PTE); PTE can provide evidence of past or recent pollution. In this study, five soil profiles located on Oscar II Land (Kaffiøyra) were studied to (i) evaluate the ecological status of Kaffiøyra's soils based on the determination of the possible accumulation of PTE using pollution indices; and (ii) determine the possible origin of PTE enrichment (local factors vs. long-range sources) depending on the distance from the sea. The soils were tested with standard soil science methods. The contamination of five soils was assessed by a wide spectrum of pollution soil indices: Enrichment Factor (EF), Geoaccumulation Index (Igeo), Potential Ecological Risk (RI), Pollution Load Index (PLI), and Probability of Toxicity (MERMQ). EF values calculated based on Cd, Cr, Cu, Pb and Zn content indicated an anthropogenic origin of the pollution. Values of Igeo showed the highest pollution with Cd, while CSI and MERMQ values indicated the highest Cd and Pb levels, but only in the soils located closest to the coast. RI values suggested that soils were under a strong or very strong potential ecological risk, whereas PLI confirmed the high probability of soil quality reduction. Enrichment with PTE has been conditioned by both local (natural) and long-distance (anthropogenic) factors. Among the local factors, parent material was highly relevant. The effect of long-distance anthropogenic factors, especially from European, large industrial centres, was manifested by the high content of PTE in soils located closest to the coastlines, delivered by a wet deposition and sea aerosols. The monitoring and assessment of arctic soil quality are useful practices for the verification of the sources of PTE pollution and the development of methods that can contribute to the protection and maintenance of these vulnerable ecosystems.

Organic carbon accumulation in the glacier forelands with regard to variability of environmental conditions in different ecogenesis stages of High Arctic ecosystems.

Recently deglaciated surfaces of glacier forelands are subjected to a variety of biotic and abiotic factors that lead to continuous soil formation. Until now, no attempt has been taken to analyse multiple factors that might affect soil development in the Arctic forelands. The main aim of this research was to determine the factors that influence soil development in the eight forelands of Svalbard. Moreover, the effects of both habitat type (glacier foreland and mature tundra) and geographical location on environmental variables treated as potential factors influencing soil formation were tested. In 2017, at each location a series of 1 m2 plots was established; all 168 plots were investigated in terms of soil properties, spatial data, biological soil crusts (BSCs) properties, percent cover of BSCs and vascular plants. Stepwise multiple linear regression analysis using forward variable selection showed that soil development was significantly associated with six of fifteen analysed factors, i.e. BSC cover, carbon and nitrogen content in BSCs, soil pH, Topographic Wetness Index and foreland location. Two-way analysis of variance followed by Tukey's test revealed significant differences in studied environmental variables between habitat types and studied locations, showing that foreland soils still retain particular initial characters to differentiate them from tundra soil.

A screening of select toxic and essential elements and persistent organic pollutants in the fur of Svalbard reindeer.

Reindeers play an important role in the polar ecosystem, being long-lived sole vegetarians feeding on local vegetation. They can be used as a valuable bioindicator, helping us to understand contaminants' impact on the polar terrestrial ecosystem. Still, scarce data exist from research in which polar herbivores (especially those from the European parts of the Arctic) were a major study subject for trace elements and persistent organic pollutant determination. Here, Svalbard reindeer fur has been used to determine metals, non-metals and metalloids using ICP-MS, and several persistent organic pollutants including polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), organochlorine pesticides (OCPs) and polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) using gas chromatography coupled to a tandem mass spectrometer (GC-MS/MS). Samples were collected from reindeer populations living in the area near Ny-Ålesund and Longyearbyen. Essential elements like Fe, Mg, Zn, K, Ca, Cu predominated in the trace elements profile. Median values of As, Cd, Co, Li, Ni, Se and V were all below 0.5 µg/g dw. Mercury was below detection limit in all samples, while the Pb median varied from 0.35 to 0.74 µg/g dw. Except acenaphthylene and fluorene, PAHs were detectable only in samples collected in the vicinity of Longyearbyen. Of 15 studied pesticides, only DDT and its metabolites were above the detection limit, and, of PCBs, only PCB28.

Evaluation of the use of reindeer droppings for monitoring essential and non-essential elements in the polar terrestrial environment.

Excess or toxic metals, non-metals and metalloids can be eliminated from the organism by deposition in inert tissue (e.g. fur) or excretion with body secretions, urine and faeces. Droppings are one of the main routes for the elimination of multiple elements and they can be collected without direct contact with the animal. Contaminant concentration has been examined in non-lethally collected tissues of several species (especially reptilian, avian and mammalian). However, studies on species residing in polar areas are still limited, especially of mammals from the European Arctic. Reindeers are the only large herbivores living in Svalbard, being an essential part of the Arctic terrestrial ecosystem. Although reindeer presence has a high impact on their surroundings, those huge mammals are rarely part of ecotoxicological studies regarding metal pollution. In this paper, the droppings of Svalbard reindeer were used as a non-invasively collected tissue to examine the excretion pathway of 30 elements. Samples were collected in mesic and moss tundra, representing summer, winter and winter-transitional excretion. For more than a half of the studied elements, significant differences occurred between the samples collected in the two tundra types. The feasibility of older and fresh samples was assessed based on summer droppings, and significant differences were found for K, As, Mn, Na, Ni, and Sb concentrations. No relevant differences in element levels were observed for samples collected from adult females, adult males and calves, except for zinc and potassium. Results show that reindeer droppings are an important vector for the transfer of many metals, non-metals and metalloids including calcium, phosphorus, zinc, aluminium and lead. As a sedentary species, feeding on local food sources, Svalbard reindeer is a valuable indicator of trace element presence in the polar terrestrial ecosystem.

Annual variability of heavy metal content in Svalbard reindeer faeces as a result of dietary preferences.

During both winter and summer, Svalbard reindeer selectively feed on different types of vegetation that are not only a source of nutritional value, but also a place of heavy metal accumulation. In the present study, the content of cadmium, chromium, copper, iron, lead, nickel, manganese, and zinc in reindeer excrement was measured. The main aims were to determine the seasonal content of several heavy metals in Svalbard reindeer faeces, and to compare their values in terms of dietary preferences during the year. Summer and winter reindeer excrement was gathered along a designated linear transect running through Bolterdalen and the vegetation described on 1 m2 plots. All of the analysed heavy metals were detected in the reindeer faeces and this fact seems to be connected with the incomplete content of these elements in an animal's tissue after forage digestion. Analysis showed differences between summer and winter excrement in terms of concentrations of cadmium, chromium, iron, and nickel, but no differences were found for the other four elements analysed (manganese, lead, zinc, and copper). However, concentrations of heavy metals in faeces are rather low in comparison with both the levels in the vegetation that may be grazed by reindeer and in reindeer tissue.