Stream water geochemistry from selected catchments on the Kola Peninsula (NW Russia)and in neighbouring areas of Finland and Norway: 1. Elements levels and sources

The pH, electrical conductance and concentration of six anions and 33 cations were determined in stream waters sampled in 1994 from eight arctic catchments on and adjacent to the Kola Peninsula (Russia, Finland and Norway). The catchments are located at various distances (5–300 km) from the major industrial emissions centres of Monchegorsk, Nikel and Zapoljarniy in Russia. The source of the elements can be (1) natural, marine (sea spray), (2) natural, geogenic (blowing soil/dust, till, bedrock), and/or (3) anthropogenic, industrial (emissions from smelters, dust from mining, etc.), each source showing a distinct signature. The median concentration of many contaminants can vary by up to three orders of magnitude from polluted to remote locations, and the concentration ranges observed in different catchments often do not overlap. This implies that contamination falls sharply with distance from source, but is quite profound and lasting close to the emission centres. Elevated trace metal contents in the most polluted streams indicates that deposited contaminants are transferred to the aquatic ecosystem, and eventually can reach the ocean.