Long-term monitoring of atmospheric pollution in the Maritime Antarctic with the lichen Usnea aurantiaco-atra (Jacq.) Bory: a magnetic and elemental study

International audience Antarctica is a natural research laboratory thanks to its unique climate, geography, flora and fauna. The conservation of Antarctica's environment is monitored through the Madrid Protocol; however, there are local pollution problems associated with human activities such a...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Antarctic Science
Main Authors: Carvallo, Claire, Godoy, Nathaly, Aguilar Reyes, Bertha, Egas, Claudia, Fuentealba, Raul, Préndez, Margarita
Other Authors: Sorbonne université - Faculté des Sciences et Ingénierie (SU FSI), Sorbonne Université (SU), Institut de minéralogie, de physique des matériaux et de cosmochimie (IMPMC), Muséum national d'Histoire naturelle (MNHN)-Institut de recherche pour le développement IRD : UR206-Sorbonne Université (SU)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS), Minéralogie et magnétisme de basses dimensionnalités IMPMC (IMPMC_MIMABADI), Muséum national d'Histoire naturelle (MNHN)-Institut de recherche pour le développement IRD : UR206-Sorbonne Université (SU)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS)-Muséum national d'Histoire naturelle (MNHN)-Institut de recherche pour le développement IRD : UR206-Sorbonne Université (SU)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS), Universidad de Chile = University of Chile Santiago (UCHILE), Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México = National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM), Universidad de Talca
Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
Language:English
Published: HAL CCSD 2021
Subjects:
Online Access:https://hal.science/hal-03618960
https://hal.science/hal-03618960/document
https://hal.science/hal-03618960/file/Carvallo_et_al_final.pdf
https://doi.org/10.1017/S0954102021000419
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Summary:International audience Antarctica is a natural research laboratory thanks to its unique climate, geography, flora and fauna. The conservation of Antarctica's environment is monitored through the Madrid Protocol; however, there are local pollution problems associated with human activities such as research and tourism; in particular, there are negative impacts on air quality from the use of fossil fuels. In this work, we studied for the first time the magnetic and elemental characteristics of the lichen Usnea aurantiaco-atra (Jacq.) Bory collected during different years and from various sites in King George Island, Antarctic Peninsula, as well as some samples of its supporting substrate, for long-term monitoring of atmospheric pollution. Several anthropogenic elements (Ni, Pb, Mo, Cd and Zn) have been identified on sites close to human activities, but also on sites far from them. We found that magnetic proxies from U. aurantiaco-atra samples show a spatial correlation with human influence (scientific bases or airstrips). We observed a correlation between magnetic parameters and Ni and, to a lesser extent, with Cr, Co, V and Ag. The results suggest that by using these magnetic and elemental techniques it is possible to implement monitoring with the lichen U. aurantiaco-atra as a bioindicator for some elements of anthropogenic origin