A Case Study in Atmospheric Lead Pollution of North German Coastal Regions

Abstract

The seasonal differences of transport and deposition of atmospheric lead over the coastal zone of northern Germany are investigated. It is shown that marked differences can occur in the effect on the ecologically valuable Wadden Sea areas. Because of the formation of sea-breeze systems in summer, the coastal zone is likely to be less stressed despite the partial trapping of the pollutant in the sea-breeze cell than it is in winter when the pollutant is confined to a shallow layer above ground. The flow and concentration pattern in the summer are sensitive to the proper incorporation of clouds (if there are any). An exact modeling of the temporal emission pattern is found to be of minor importance.