EFFECTS OF ANTIPOLLUTION POLICY ON ANTHROPOGENIC LEAD TRANSFERS IN THE LIGURIAN SEA

As a consequence of the relatively recent introduction of antipollutio n laws concerning the Pb content in gasolines, a significant decrease in atmospheric Pb concentration levels has been observed. With the con tamination of seawater being directly linked to atmospheric flux varia tions, the concentrations of dissolved Pb in surface seawater have als o shown a decrease. Atmospheric and surface marine Pb concentrations t herefore exhibit similar temporal evolutions. At the present time, dee p Ligurian waters are being affected by the decrease in automotive Pb consumption, with the gradient of Pb concentrations with depth being i ndicative of the response time of deep waters to environmental perturb ations. Such observations highlight the effectiveness of international antipollution policies. (C) 1998 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights res erved.