01946nas a2200205   4500000000100000008004100001260001900042100001400061700001600075700001800091700001900109700001500128700001800143700001600161700001700177245012100194856003900315300002200354520136400376       2015                            d  cJulybSpringer1 aH. Miller1 aI. Croudace1 aJonathan Bull1 aC.J. Cotterill1 aJustin Dix1 aJustin Taylor1 aI. Croudace1 aGuy Rothwell00aModern pollution signals in sediments from Windermere, NW England, determined by micro-XRF and lead isotope analysis  uhttp://eprints.soton.ac.uk/380327/  a423\textendash4423 a<p>High resolution geochemical (Itrax micro-XRF and wavelength dispersive XRF) data, radiochronology (210Pb and 137Cs analyses) and ultra-high precision double-spike lead isotope measurements from lacustrine sediment cores are used in combination with historical research of former mining landscapes to investigate modern pollution signals in sediments from Windermere, the largest lake in the English Lake District. The sediment record suggests that while most element concentrations have been stable, there has been a significant increase since the 1930s in lead, zinc and copper concentrations. Double-spike lead isotope measurements reveal a mixture of natural lead, and three major contributory sources of anthropogenic (industrial) lead, comprising gasoline lead, coal combustion lead (from coal-fired steam ships) and lead derived from Carboniferous Pb?Zn mineralisation (mining activities). A number of up-system sediment traps have limited the amount of mining related heavy metals entering Windermere, and as a result, periods of metal workings do not correlate with peaks in heavy metals. Increases could also be due to flood-induced metal inwash or weathering of bedrock in the catchment. Application of these non-destructive and high precision analytical techniques provides new insights into the pollutant depositional history of Windermere.</p>