Human-made Lead Pollution Continues to Invade the Arctic Ocean

A joint German, British, and Canadian research team published findings in Nature Communications revealing that between 1970 and 2015, the Arctic Ocean received a net influx of 75,000 tons of anthropogenic lead from the North Atlantic—a volume equivalent to natural riverine inputs. Currently, the Arctic Ocean receives approximately 611 tons of dissolved lead annually from the North Atlantic—nearly double the 344 tons naturally transported via rivers. Lead isotope analysis traces this pollution to emissions during North America’s industrialization era. The study also indicates that reduced sea ice may accelerate the release of dissolved lead from seafloor sediments, posing threats to benthic organisms and the marine food chain.