Sources and ages of fine-grained sediment to streams using fallout radionuclides in the Midwestern United States

Allen C. Gellis; Christopher C. Fuller; Peter C. Van Metre

doi:10.1016/j.jenvman.2016.06.018

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Sources and ages of fine-grained sediment to streams using fallout radionuclides in the Midwestern United States

Allen C. Gellis·Christopher C. Fuller·Peter C. Van Metre

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Abstract

Fallout radionuclides, 7 Be and 210 Pb ex , sampled in bed sediment for 99 watersheds in the Midwestern region of the United States and in 15 samples of suspended sediment from 3 of these watersheds were used to partition upland from channel sources and to estimate the age or the time since the surface-derived portion of sediment was on the land surface (0–∼1 year). Channel sources dominate: 78 of the 99 bed material sites (79%) have >50% channel-derived sediment, and 9 of the 15 suspended-sediment samples (60%) have >50% channel-derived sediment. 7 Be was detected in 82 bed sediment samples and all 15 suspended-sediment samples. The surface-derived portion of 54 of the 80 (68%) streams with detectable 7 Be and 210 Pb ex were ≤ 100 days old and the surface-derived portion of all suspended-sediment samples were ≤ 100 days old, indicating that surface-derived fine-grained sediment moves rapidly though these systems. The concentrations of two hydrophobic pesticides–DDE and bifenthrin–are correlated with the proportion of surface-derived sediment, indicating a link between geomorphic processes and particle-associated contaminants in streams. Urban areas had the highest pesticide concentrations and the largest percentage of surface-derived sediment. Although the percentage of surface-derived sediment is less than channel sources at most of the study sites, the relatively young age of the surface-derived sediment might indicate that management actions to reduce sediment contamination where the land surface is an important source could have noticeable effects.

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Journal of Environmental Management Article

Source-reported bounding extent: 36.756490329505176° to 45.583289756006316° latitude; -100.04150390625° to -80.83740234375° longitude. This indicates report coverage, not an exact sampling location. View area on OpenStreetMap.

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BibTeX RIS

Allen C. Gellis, Christopher C. Fuller, Peter C. Van Metre. 2017. Sources and ages of fine-grained sediment to streams using fallout radionuclides in the Midwestern United States. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jenvman.2016.06.018

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