Papers dealing with the following subjects are reviewed by the authors: microbial indicators of pollution; methodology; rapid methods; microbial ecology of water; microbiology of river systems to coastal areas; and microbiology of natural lakes and impoundments. (DAD)

Note on the trace metal content of membrane filters

Microbiology of water.

A snow-pit and hand-drilled core have been sampled at Spaatz Island in the Antarctic Peninsula to obtain evidence on the importance of short-term fluctuations of heavy metal (Cd, Cu, Pb, and Zn) concentrations. A programme of air sampling was undertaken at the same time to investigate directly the link between concentrations in air and in snow. The snow samples and air filters have been analysed by atomic absorption spectrometry (AAS) following preconcentration on tungsten wires and by differential pulse anodic stripping voltammetry (DPASV). One sequence of snow samples was preconcentrated in the field and analysed later for Cd in the laboratory. The snow analyses confirm that year-to-year variations in heavy metal concentrations may be comparable with changes due to long-term variations in global emission rates to the atmosphere from industrial sources. The importance of understanding these apparently meteorologically controlled processes is underlined. Averaged data from the combined air/snow sampling programme show a satisfactory linear relationship between concentrations in air and in snow for both the heavy metals and for the cation component of the marine aerosol. The results, considered in the light of Junge's model for static rainout, give a ratio for concentration in air (ng m−3)/concentration in snow (ng g−1) of 0.6±0.3.

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Recent Variations in Heavy Metal Concentrations in Firn and Air From the Antarctic Peninsula

SUMMARY Water samples were collected from fourteen sampling points along the Hunyani River system and subjected to various filtration treatments involving glass fibre filters and 1,2 and 0,45 pm membrane filters. Chemical analyses of the filtered waters showed that nitrogen, phosphorus and iron were lost by different filtration treatments. Filtration by membrane filters led to a reduction of algal growth potential as demonstrated by algal bioassays using Selanastrwn capricornutum Printz as the test alga. Algal bioassays showed that biologically available phosphorus was primarily removed by the 1,2 μm membrane filter while biologically available nitrogen and iron was principally lost by filtration through the 0,25 μm membrane filter. A refined algal bioassay designed to determine the identity of limiting micronutrients found that all essential micronutrients were affected by membrane filtration.

Note on the trace metal content of membrane filters

Citations

Microbiology of water.

Recent Variations in Heavy Metal Concentrations in Firn and Air From the Antarctic Peninsula

Loss of nutrients from water samples by filtration and its affect on algal bioassay procedures

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