• myGriffith
    • Staff portal
    • Contact Us⌄
      • Future student enquiries 1800 677 728
      • Current student enquiries 1800 154 055
      • International enquiries +61 7 3735 6425
      • General enquiries 07 3735 7111
      • Online enquiries
      • Staff phonebook
    View Item 
    •   Home
    • Griffith Theses
    • Theses - Higher Degree by Research
    • View Item
    • Home
    • Griffith Theses
    • Theses - Higher Degree by Research
    • View Item
    JavaScript is disabled for your browser. Some features of this site may not work without it.

    Browse

  • All of Griffith Research Online
    • Communities & Collections
    • Authors
    • By Issue Date
    • Titles
  • This Collection
    • Authors
    • By Issue Date
    • Titles
  • Statistics

  • Most Popular Items
  • Statistics by Country
  • Most Popular Authors
  • Support

  • Contact us
  • FAQs
  • Admin login

  • Login
  • Investigating Input Pathways of Persistent Organic Pollutants to Eastern Antarctica

    Thumbnail
    View/Open
    Wild, Seanan Final Thesis_Redacted.pdf (11.86Mb)
    Author(s)
    Wild, Seanan J.
    Primary Supervisor
    Nash, Susan Bengtson
    Other Supervisors
    Hawker, Darryl
    Cropp, Roger
    Year published
    2016
    Metadata
    Show full item record
    Abstract
    Despite the apparent pristine conditions and remoteness of Antarctica, persistent organic pollutants (POPs) have been detected in the Antarctic ecosystem since the 1960s. Today, a variety of organic pollutants can be found in Antarctica, often concentrated in local biota. In this thesis I investigate four system input pathways for POPs to Australian Antarctic territory, Eastern Antarctica. This work has been conducted with the purpose of contributing to an understanding of the possible impacts of these pollutants under present and projected climate conditions, as well as establishing robust baselines from which to monitor ...
    View more >
    Despite the apparent pristine conditions and remoteness of Antarctica, persistent organic pollutants (POPs) have been detected in the Antarctic ecosystem since the 1960s. Today, a variety of organic pollutants can be found in Antarctica, often concentrated in local biota. In this thesis I investigate four system input pathways for POPs to Australian Antarctic territory, Eastern Antarctica. This work has been conducted with the purpose of contributing to an understanding of the possible impacts of these pollutants under present and projected climate conditions, as well as establishing robust baselines from which to monitor temporal and spatial trends. The first long range environmental transport (LRET) pathway investigated was the introduction of POP via long range atmospheric transport (LRAT). Transport was assessed via high flow-through passive air sampling at Casey Station between 2009 and 2013, with sample changeover every 1 to 3 months. The results of this study present the first continuous, multi-year sampling effort for POPs originating from the Eastern Antarctic sector. The POP profile presented is distinct from other regions and is characterised by a dominance of agricultural, rather than manufacturing, chemicals, particularly hexachlorobenzene (HCB) and endosulfan. The study also presents the first reported occurrence of endosulfan in air masses on the Antarctic continent, providing evidence of the LRAT capabilities of this compound. Whilst a moderate data timespan of four years is presented, it is projected that continual monitoring at the decadal scale would be required to detect a 5% change in levels with 80% confidence, emphasising the importance of long term monitoring efforts.
    View less >
    Thesis Type
    Thesis (PhD Doctorate)
    Degree Program
    Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)
    School
    Griffith School of Environment
    DOI
    https://doi.org/10.25904/1912/855
    Copyright Statement
    The author owns the copyright in this thesis, unless stated otherwise.
    Subject
    Persistent organic pollutants
    Australian Antarctic territory, Eastern Antarctica
    Casey Station
    Long range environmental transport (LRET) pathway
    Pollution, Antarctica
    Publication URI
    http://hdl.handle.net/10072/366687
    Collection
    • Theses - Higher Degree by Research

    Footer

    Disclaimer

    • Privacy policy
    • Copyright matters
    • CRICOS Provider - 00233E
    • TEQSA: PRV12076

    Tagline

    • Gold Coast
    • Logan
    • Brisbane - Queensland, Australia
    First Peoples of Australia
    • Aboriginal
    • Torres Strait Islander