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The chemical composition of atmospheric precipitation from selected stations in Michigan

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Abstract

The pH and amount of rainfall from over 60 selected stations throughout northern and lower Michigan was determined from September 1972 to December 1974. Precipitation pH was determined for each station by calibrated electrode meters.

The seasonal weighted average and median pH from all stations in the study was 5.0 and 6.3, respectively. Daily readings from stations throughout Michigan indicate that pH is dependent on the amount of rainfall and that variations in it are often locally controlled. Collectively the pH values suggest carbonic acid control for most of the state.

Annual median pH varied from a high of 8.45 at Dimondale, a station located 1.5 km from a concrete tile plant in central Michigan to 4.65 at Vassar, a small town located east of several industrial centers in the thumb region of the state.

A comparison of annual nutrient loading for NO −3 , SO =4 , Cl−,PO ≡4 , Ca++, Mg++ Na+ K+ and pH of rainwater from selected stations revealed that the eastern U.S. stations reporting pHs < 4.02 have similar loadings for NO3 but twice the SO4 input found for rural areas of Michigan.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Resource Ecology, School of Natural Resources, University ofMichigan, 48109, Ann Arbor, Michigan, U.S.A.

    C. J. Richardson

  2. Department ofAgricultural Engineering, Michigan State University, East Lansing, Michigan, 48823, U.S.A.

    G. E. Merva

Authors
  1. C. J. Richardson
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  2. G. E. Merva
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Richardson, C.J., Merva, G.E. The chemical composition of atmospheric precipitation from selected stations in Michigan. Water, Air, and Soil Pollution 6, 385–393 (1976). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00182879

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00182879

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