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Effects of Lead (Pb) from Smelter Operations in an Urban Terrestrial Food Chain at a Colorado Superfund Site

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Abstract

Lead (Pb) is ubiquitous in urban environments, and it is a risk factor for wildlife. But wildlife are particularly at risk for exposure near smelters in urban areas where higher than safe Pb levels in the soil have the potential to transfer to the food chain. Therefore, we investigated whether wildlife are at risk of Pb exposure and differences in Pb bioaccumulation in trophic levels at a Superfund site in an urban area of Colorado. We sampled soil, vegetation, arthropods, and birds at four sites: two contaminated sites (one at the Superfund site and one near the Superfund site) and two reference sites with low predicted Pb contamination. We found significantly higher Pb levels in the soil at the contaminated Slag pile at the Superfund site, compared to the other sites. At the Slag pile, Pb levels were the highest in vegetation and both arthropods and birds accumulated Pb. However, Pb did not increase between trophic levels in the terrestrial food web at the site. We concluded that smelter operations at the Superfund site resulted in significantly higher levels of Pb in the soil and sublethal accumulation in all taxa studied. This research can be used to mitigate the risks to vulnerable wildlife populations exposed to Pb at the Superfund site. Further examination of Pb toxicity in vulnerable taxa is critical to conserving wild populations and ecosystems near contamination zones.

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Acknowledgements

Financial support for this work was provided by the Colorado State University Pueblo Faculty SEED Grant Program and a Department of Education (DOE) Grant (PR Award# P031C160025-17, Project Title: 84.031 C) to the Communities to Build Active STEM Engagement Program. We would also like to thank Connor Dowd, Natalia Kauffman, and Rocky Spencer for their assistance in the field. We would like to thank Dr. Brian Vanden Heuvel for his advice on plant collection. We thank Clear Springs Ranch and the Environmental Protection Agency for access to their properties to take samples.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Biology, Colorado State University Pueblo, Pueblo, CO, 81001-4901, USA

    Elizabeth K. Peterson, Claire W. Varian-Ramos, Teyah Schiffer, Sean Kyle Staples & Moussa Diawara

  2. CBASE (Communities to Build Active STEM Engagement) Program, Colorado State University Pueblo, Pueblo, CO, 81001-4901, USA

    Elizabeth K. Peterson, James Carsella, Claire W. Varian-Ramos, Teyah Schiffer, Sean Kyle Staples & Moussa Diawara

  3. Department of Chemistry, Colorado State University Pueblo, Pueblo, CO, 81001-4901, USA

    James Carsella

  4. Department of Biological Sciences, Eastern Illinois University, 600 Lincoln Avenue, Charleston, IL, 61920, USA

    Elizabeth K. Peterson

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  1. Elizabeth K. Peterson
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Correspondence to Elizabeth K. Peterson.

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Ethical Approval

This study did not contain any work with human subjects. The authors followed all international, national, and state institutional guidelines for the handling and care of animals in this publication. All trapping and handling of vertebrates in this study were compliant with IACUC standards and authorized by the Colorado State University Pueblo IACUC Council and permitted by the Colorado Parks and Wildlife.

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Peterson, E.K., Carsella, J., Varian-Ramos, C.W. et al. Effects of Lead (Pb) from Smelter Operations in an Urban Terrestrial Food Chain at a Colorado Superfund Site. Bull Environ Contam Toxicol 112, 17 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00128-023-03846-x

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