Recent changes in diatom-inferred pH, heavy metals, and spheroidal carbonaceous particles in lake sediments near an oil refinery at Mongstad, Western Norway

Sediments from two naturally acid lakes have been used to investigate whether there is any local impact of atmospheric pollution from an oil refinery at Mongstad in Western Norway. The refinery started production in 1975 and expanded in 1987. One lake was selected as a reference site as it only receives long-range transported air pollution, whereas a second lake was selected as it was expected to receive both long-range transported and local air pollution from the refinery. Heavy metal (Pb, Ni and Zn) and spheroidal carbonaceous particle (SCP) (> 5 µm in diameter) concentrations and accumulation rates have been estimated and lake-water pH has been reconstructed by weighted averaging and weighted averaging partial least squares regression and calibration from the fossil diatom assemblages.Heavy metals that are in the size range for which atmospheric residence time is greatest do not show any enhanced levels in the sediments after 1975 that could be associated with local impacts from the refinery. SCPs in the sediments that are in the size range thought to be effectively removed by dry deposition, and thus have a more local deposition pattern, show an increase after 1975 and an additional large increase after 1987 that can be explained by impacts from the local oil refinery. After 1975 the SCP diameter distribution changed from being dominated by SCPs with a small diameter in the range 5-10 µm to SCPs with larger diameters. The SO₂ emission from the oil refinery seems to have had no significant effect on lake pH. The reconstructed lake pH history is complex, possibly related to land-use changes and long-range transported air pollution.