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Geochemical signatures of two different coastal depositional environments within the same catchment

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Abstract

The geochemistry of lake (Renstradträsket) and estuarine (Pieni Pernajanlahti Bay) sediment was investigated in a medium sized watershed draining to the Gulf of Finland, Baltic Sea. Catchment land-use types were compared and found similar. Sediment cores were dated using 210Pb- and 137Cs-chronologies and analyzed for Al, K, Cu, Zn, Fe, Mn, phosphorus fractions, TN, TC and biogenic silica (BSi). Differences between the sediment cores were studied by using linear regression analysis and principal components analysis (PCA). Despite similarities in catchment land-use and history, the sediment geochemical profiles of the sites varied significantly. Some of the differences could be related to differences in chemical sedimentation environment (lacustrine versus estuarine). TP concentration was found to be positively correlated with sediment iron content in estuarine sediment but negatively correlated with Fe in lake sediment. In the estuarine core sedimentary iron was not correlated to lithogenic potassium and aluminum but in the lake core the iron seemed to be lithogenic in origin, as suggested by the strong positive correlations (r 2 = 0.95–0.96) between these three variables. Most similarities among the cores were found in Al concentrations. Estuarine nutrient profiles appeared relatively monotonous compared to the lake core. This is probably due to more vigorous mixing of the sediments that may ensure more rapid and complete consumption of the organic matter deposited on the bottom of the estuary. Therefore the lake sediment appeared to preserve the historical record of eutrophication better. Biologically less active and more particle-bound materials like the trace metals Cu and Zn seemed to retain good records of anthropogenic impact also in the estuarine core. The study highlights the need to take the sedimentation environment into account when interpreting geochemical record.

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Acknowledgements

This study was funded by EC Energy, Environment and Sustainable Development Programme (Contract EVK3-CT-2000-00031 – MOLTEN) and The Academy of Finland – BIREME. We thank Kaarina Weckström and Finn Adser for the teamwork in collecting the sediment cores. Juhani Virkanen and Seija Kultti are greatly acknowledged for their guidance in analytical work. Peter Appleby carried out the radiochemical dating of the cores. We also thank Cathy Jenks for linguistic improvements and Richard Telford for valuable comments and suggestions on the manuscript.

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  1. Environmental Change Research Unit (ECRU), Department of Biological and Environmental Sciences, University of Helsinki, P.O. Box 65, Viikinkaari 1, FIN-00014, Helsinki, Finland

    S. Vaalgamaa & A. Korhola

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  1. S. Vaalgamaa
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  2. A. Korhola
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Correspondence to S. Vaalgamaa.

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Vaalgamaa, S., Korhola, A. Geochemical signatures of two different coastal depositional environments within the same catchment. J Paleolimnol 38, 241–260 (2007). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10933-006-9071-0

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