Abstract
Over the past few decades, the Tibetan Plateau (TP) region has become gradually contaminated by persistent organic pollutants (POPs). The picture regarding POPs is clear in the central and southern parts of the TP; however, few observational campaigns have focused on the western TP. To clarify the concentrations, seasonal trends and source regions of POPs in the western TP, a first study of POPs in Muztagh Ata (westerly region) and a long-term (5 years) monitoring program in Ngari (transect region influenced by both the Indian monsoon and westerly climate) were conducted. Except for hexachlorobenzene (HCB) and polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), relatively low POP levels were observed in the western TP. In Muztagh Ata, dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethanes (DDTs) showed higher concentrations in winter and lower ones in summer, whereas at Ngari, higher DDTs and hexachlorocyclohexanes (HCHs) concentrations were observed in summer as compared with winter. Source diagnosis indicated that Xinjiang and central Asia were the main source regions for POPs in Muztagh Ata and that westerly winds play a key role in transporting POPs from central Asia. No correlation was found between the height of the atmospheric boundary layer and the concentrations of POPs over the TP.
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Acknowledgements
The authors would like to thank all the staff at the Muztagh Ata Station for Westerly Environment Observation and Research, Ngari Station for Desert Environment Observation and Research, Mount Everest Station of Atmospheric and Environmental Observation and Research, Nam Co Station for Multisphere Observation and Research, and the South-East Tibetan Plateau Station for Integrated Observation and Research of Alpine Environment for their help with the field sampling and meteorological data acquisition.
Funding
This work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (41671480and 41571463) and the International Partnership Program of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (Grant No. 131C11KYSB20160061).
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Zhang, J., Wang, X., Gong, P. et al. Seasonal variation and source analysis of persistent organic pollutants in the atmosphere over the western Tibetan Plateau. Environ Sci Pollut Res 25, 24052–24063 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-018-2221-x
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-018-2221-x