Geochemistry of large benthic foraminifera Amphisorus hemprichii as a high-resolution proxy for lead pollution in coastal environments

Netramani Sagar; Aleksey Sadekov; Peter Scott; Talia Jenner; Ashiwin Vadiveloo; Navid R Moheimani; Malcolm McCulloch

doi:10.1016/j.marpolbul.2020.111918

Geochemistry of large benthic foraminifera Amphisorus hemprichii as a high-resolution proxy for lead pollution in coastal environments

Mar Pollut Bull. 2021 Jan:162:111918. doi: 10.1016/j.marpolbul.2020.111918. Epub 2020 Dec 16.

Authors

Netramani Sagar¹, Aleksey Sadekov², Peter Scott³, Talia Jenner⁴, Ashiwin Vadiveloo⁵, Navid R Moheimani⁵, Malcolm McCulloch²

Affiliations

¹ Oceans Graduate School, The University of Western Australia, Perth, Australia; Australian Research Council Centre of Excellence for Coral Reef Studies, UWA, Australia; School of Earth Sciences, The University of Western Australia, Perth, Australia; CSIR-National Geophysical Research Institute, Hyderabad, India. Electronic address: netramani.sagar@research.uwa.edu.au.
² Oceans Graduate School, The University of Western Australia, Perth, Australia; Australian Research Council Centre of Excellence for Coral Reef Studies, UWA, Australia.
³ Oceans Graduate School, The University of Western Australia, Perth, Australia.
⁴ School of Earth Sciences, The University of Western Australia, Perth, Australia.
⁵ Algae R & D Centre, Environmental and Conservation Sciences, College of Science, Health, Engineering and Education School, Murdoch University, Australia.

PMID: 33341078
DOI: 10.1016/j.marpolbul.2020.111918

Abstract

Anthropogenic lead (Pb) contamination resulting from the rapid growth of industrialization in coastal environments poses significant challenges. In this study, we report a novel approach utilising the large benthic foraminifera Amphisorus hemprichii as a biogeochemical archive for monitoring Pb pollution in tropical to warm-temperate coastal waters. Live juvenile specimens of A. hemprichii were cultured in the laboratory for 16 weeks with a range of seawater Pb concentrations. Lead uptake in both newly grown and pre-existing chambers of individual specimens was characterised using the microanalytical technique, Laser ablation-ICP mass spectrometry. We found that Pb concentration in the tests of cultured foraminifera in the laboratory is proportional to seawater [Pb] with the lead partition coefficient (K_D^Pb) of 8.37 ± 0.3. This calibration together with a new biomineralisation model now enables A. hemprichii to be utilised as a naturally occurring bio-archive to quantitatively monitor anthropogenic Pb pollution in coastal waters.

Keywords: Amphisorus hemprichii; Biogeochemical-monitoring; Coastal lead pollution; LA-ICPMS; Large benthic foraminifera; Lead geochemistry.

MeSH terms

Environmental Monitoring
Foraminifera*
Geologic Sediments
Lead
Water Pollutants, Chemical* / analysis

Substances

Water Pollutants, Chemical
Lead