The identification of lead ammunition as a source of lead exposure in First Nations: The use of lead isotope ratios

Tsuji, Leonard J. S.; Wainman, Bruce; Martin, Ian; Sutherland, Celine; Weber, Jean-Philippe; Dumas, Pierre; Nieboer, Evert

doi:10.1016/j.scitotenv.2008.01.022

Cited by 58 publications

(44 citation statements)

References 43 publications

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“…We also tested for an interaction between date and year. We compared lead stable isotope signatures using ( 206 Pb/ 207 Pb and 206 Pb/ 208 Pb ratios) obtained from blood with signatures available in the literature for soils and lichen in Quebec [34], [35] and for lead ammunition [17], [36]. We generated a normal distribution of soil and ammunition isotopic signatures using mean and standard deviations reported in the literature and compared it to the signatures of contaminated and uncontaminated birds using a Kolmogorov-Smirnov tests.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

High Risk of Lead Contamination for Scavengers in an Area with High Moose Hunting Success

et al. 2014

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Top predators and scavengers are vulnerable to pollutants, particularly those accumulated along the food chain. Lead accumulation can induce severe disorders and alter survival both in mammals (including humans) and in birds. A potential source of lead poisoning in wild animals, and especially in scavengers, results from the consumption of ammunition residues in the tissues of big game killed by hunters. For two consecutive years we quantified the level lead exposure in individuals of a sentinel scavenger species, the common raven (Corvus corax), captured during the moose (Alces alces) hunting season in eastern Quebec, Canada. The source of the lead contamination was also determined using stable isotope analyses. Finally, we identified the different scavenger species that could potentially be exposed to lead by installing automatic cameras targeting moose gut piles. Blood lead concentration in ravens increased over time, indicating lead accumulation over the moose-hunting season. Using a contamination threshold of 100 µg.L−1, more than 50% of individuals were lead-contaminated during the moose hunting period. Lead concentration was twice as high in one year compared to the other, matching the number of rifle-shot moose in the area. Non-contaminated birds exhibited no ammunition isotope signatures. The isotope signature of the lead detected in contaminated ravens tended towards the signature from lead ammunition. We also found that black bears (Ursus americanus), golden eagles and bald eagles (Aquila chrysaetos and Haliaeetus leucocephalus, two species of conservation concern) scavenged heavily on moose viscera left by hunters. Our unequivocal results agree with other studies and further motivate the use of non-toxic ammunition for big game hunting.

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Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

High Risk of Lead Contamination for Scavengers in an Area with High Moose Hunting Success

et al. 2014

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“…Because of variations in the initial U-Th content of mineral reservoirs, and the different decay rates of U-Th parent isotopes, crustal material and lead ores display specific lead isotopic ratios. This property has allowed to distinguishing between natural and pollutant Pb sources as well as various industrial and automotive lead sources in blood (Chaudhary-Webb et al, 1998;Glorennec et al, 2010;Gulson, 2008;Gulson et al, 2006;Keinonen, 1992;Kurkjian and Flegal, 2003;Manton, 1973Manton, , 1977Rabinowitz, 1987;Rabinowitz and Wetherill, 1972;Soto-Jimenez and Flegal, 2011;Tsuji et al, 2008;Yaffe et al, 1983). While thousands of Pb B values have been determined within the past 40 years, only a few hundreds of lead isotope imprints have been measured from less than 30 published articles.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Review of pollutant lead decline in urban air and human blood: A case study from northwestern Europe

Petit¹,

Véron

Deboudt

et al. 2015

Comptes Rendus. Géoscience

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International audienceA review of the transient decline of pollutant lead in the air (PbA) and the blood (PbB) has been conducted in order to assess the relationship between these environmental reservoirs. We have demonstrated that PbA decreased 20 to 100 times more than PbB for the past 30 years, suggesting another significant intake besides airborne lead to explain lead accumulated in humans. This trend has also been observed in two blood surveys we have completed in 1976-1978 and 2008-2009 in northern France and Belgium. Nowadays, the mean PbB (1.5-3.5 mu g/dL) remains at least 100 times higher than the estimated non contaminated PbB. Lead isotope imprints in blood could help decipher specific contamination cases, and were coherent with the decline of PbA, but could not help discriminate the source of blood lead owing to the lack of source imprints, especially from dietary intakes. Correlations between recent PbB, isotopic imprints and the age of the subjects suggested that lead released from bones has become a significant source of lead in blood. The significant cause for human exposure to lead may have shifted from direct pollutant lead input accumulated in exogenous reservoirs (air and diet) to endogenous lead release from bone tissues consequential to metabolic calcium homeostasis and bone turnover. (C) 2015 Academie des sciences. Published by Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved

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“…Source apportionment based on blood LIRs has been used in many studies (Gulson et al, 1998a;Kom arek et al, 2008;Liang et al, 2010;Manton et al, 2000;Tsuji et al, 2008). The pollution source and exposure pathways of children's blood lead for the coking site were assessed based on the blood LIR analysis in our previous study (Cao et al, 2014b), which illustrated that lead contamination of children was attributable mainly to coal combustion.…”

Section: The Pollution Source Of Lead In Children's Bloodmentioning

confidence: 99%

Levels and source apportionment of children's lead exposure: Could urinary lead be used to identify the levels and sources of children's lead pollution?

Cao

Duan

Zhao

et al. 2015

Environmental Pollution

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The identification of lead ammunition as a source of lead exposure in First Nations: The use of lead isotope ratios

Cited by 58 publications

References 43 publications

High Risk of Lead Contamination for Scavengers in an Area with High Moose Hunting Success

High Risk of Lead Contamination for Scavengers in an Area with High Moose Hunting Success

Review of pollutant lead decline in urban air and human blood: A case study from northwestern Europe

Levels and source apportionment of children's lead exposure: Could urinary lead be used to identify the levels and sources of children's lead pollution?

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