HAZARDOUS POLLUTANTS IN THE NATURAL ENVIRONMENT OF WRANGEL ISLAND

JOURNAL: Volume 16, No. 1, 2026, p. 136-150

HEADING: Regional problems

AUTHORS: Pogojeva, M.P., Chekmeneva, N.A., Dolgova, A.O., Chernogorov, O.E., Kulemeev, P.S., Gruzdev, A.R., Korablev, A.M.

ORGANIZATIONS: N. N. Zubov’s State Oceanographic Institute, Providenskiy Inspection Site of the Center for State Inspection of Small Vessels of the Main Directorate of the Ministry of Emergency Situations of Russia in the Chukotka Autonomous Area, State Natural Reserve “Wrangel Island”, National Park “Gydansky”, Main Command of the Navy

DOI: 10.25283/2223-4594-2026-1-136-150

UDC: 504.75

The article was received on: 11.03.2025

Keywords: heavy metals, environmental monitoring, Arctic zone, pollutants, environmental pollution, persistent organic pollutants, Wrangel Island

Bibliographic description: Pogojeva, M.P., Chekmeneva, N.A., Dolgova, A.O., Chernogorov, O.E., Kulemeev, P.S., Gruzdev, A.R., Korablev, A.M. Hazardous pollutants in the natural environment of Wrangel Island. Arktika: ekologiya i ekonomika. [Arctic: Ecology and Economy], 2026, vol. 16, no. 1, pp. 136-150. DOI: 10.25283/2223-4594-2026-1-136-150. (In Russian).

Abstract:

The research is focused on the study of the content of persistent organic pollutants (POPs) and heavy metals (HM) on Wrangel Island within the framework of the UMKA-2022 expedition. The purpose of the study is to assess the pollution level of abiotic and biotic components of the natural environment, which is important for understanding the environmental situation in the Arctic. Samples of soil, seawater and biota have been analyzed for the presence of POPs and HM using modern analytical methods. The results showed the presence of 69 pollutants of hazard classes 1-3 in all samples, with the highest concentrations in the central part of the island and off the coast of the Chukchi Sea. In the soil, exceedances of maximum permissible concentrations (MPC) have been recorded for chromium, manganese, nickel, cobalt, lead and cadmium. Exceedances of cadmium, lead and nickel have been also detected in surface water. Analysis of pollution data on the island has confirmed a significant level of anthropogenic load and degradation of ecosystems, especially in the areas of Rogers Bay, Somnitelnaya Bay and Cape Hawaii.

Finance info: The work was carried out within the framework of the state task of the IO RAS FMWE-2024-0021 “Structural and functional organization, biological productivity and mechanisms of modern climatic and anthropogenic variability of marine and oceanic ecosystems” and with support of the state research program of the Laboratory of Geoecology of the North, Geography fac., MSU. The authors express their gratitude to the command of the Russian Navy, the Russian Geographical Society, and the Wrangel Island Nature Reserve for their assistance in conducting these studies, and to the Laboratory of Chemical and Analytical Control of the FSBI “27 Scientific Center” of the Ministry of Defense of the Russia for conducting chemical analysis of samples.

References:

1. National Atlas of the Arctic. Moscow, Rosreestr, 2017, 496 p. (In Russian).

2. AMAP, 2017. AMAP Assessment 2016: Chemicals of Emerging Arctic Concern. Arctic Monitoring and Assessment Programme (AMAP). Oslo, Norway, 2016, 353 p.

3. Diagnostic analysis of the state of the environment of the Arctic zone of the Russian Federation. Ed. by B. A. Morgunov. Moscow, Scientific World, 2011, 200 p. (In Russian).

4. Sands P., Peel J. Principles of international environmental law. Cambridge, Cambridge Univ. Press, 2012.

5. Sonne Ch., Dietz R., Jenssen B. M., Su Shiung Lam, Letcher R. J. Emerging contaminants and biological effects in Arctic wildlife. Trends in Ecology & Evolution, 2021, vol. 36, iss. 5, pp. 421—429.

6. Outlook II, Global Chemicals. From Legacies to Innovative Solutions: Implementing the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, 2019, UN Environment Programme.

7. Wang Z. et al. Toward a global understanding of chemical pollution: a ﬁrst comprehensive analysis of national and regional chemical inventories. Environ. Sci. Technol., 2020, 54, pp. 2575—2584.

8. AMAP Assessment 2020: POPs and Chemicals of Emerging Arctic Concern: Influence of Climate Change. Arctic Monitoring and Assessment Programme (AMAP). Tromsø, Norway, 2021, 134 p.

9. Kotova E. I. et al. Suspended sediment composition in the snow cover of the western sector of the Russian Arctic. Ice and Snow, 2025, vol. 64, no. 4, pp. 591—601. (In Russian).

10. AMAP Assessment 2016: Chemicals of Emerging Arctic Concern, Arctic Monitoring and Assessment Programme.

11. Muir D. et al. Identifying further chemicals of emerging arctic concern based on ‘in silico’ screening of chemical inventories. Emerg. Contam., 2019, 5, pp. 201—210.

12. AMAP Assessment 2015: Temporal Trends in Persistent Organic Pollutants in the Arctic. Arctic Monitoring and Assessment Programme. Oslo, Norway, 2015, 71 p.

13. Rigét F. et al. Temporal trends of legacy POPs in Arctic biota, an update. Science of the total environment, 2010, vol. 408, no. 15, pp. 2874—2884.

14. Macdonald R. W. et al. Contaminants in the Canadian Arctic: 5 years of progress in understanding sources, occurrence and pathways. Science of the Total Environment, 2000, vol. 254, no. 2-3, pp. 93—234.

15. Motuzova G. V., Bezuglova O. S. Ecological monitoring of soils. Moscow, 2007, 237 p. (In Russian).

16. Duce R. A., Liss P. S., Merrill J. T. The atmospheric input of trace species to the World Ocean. Global Biogeochemical Cycles, 1991, vol. 5, no. 3, pp. 193—259.

17. Shevchenko V. P. Influence of aerosols on the environment and marine sedimentation in the Arctic. Moscow, Nauka, 2006, 226 p. (In Russian).

18. Lisitsyn A. P. Arid Sedimentation in the World Ocean. Atmospheric dispersed sedimentary matter. Geology and Geophysics, 2011, vol. 52, no. 10, pp. 1398—1439. (In Russian).

19. Golubeva N. I., Burtseva L. V., Ginzburg V. A. Heavy metals in atmospheric precipitation on the coast of the Barents Sea. Meteorology and Hydrology, 2010, no. 5, pp. 60—70. (In Russian).

20. Surkova G. V., Eremina I. D., Mordkovich P. A. About the influence of the large-scale atmospheric transport on the chemical composition and amount of atmospheric precipitation in the center of the European territory of Russia. Meteorology and Hydrology, 2010, no. 4, pp. 36—44. (In Russian).

21. Stanek L. W., Sacks J. D., Dutton S. J., Dubois J. J. B. Attributing health effects to apportioned components and sources of particulate matter: an evaluation of collective results. Atmospheric Environment, 2011, vol. 45, pp. 5655—5663.

22. Wrangel Island State Nature Reserve. Annals of Nature 2017. Pevek, 2018, 275 p. (In Russian).

23. Quality of marine waters by hydrochemical indicators. Yearbook-2021. Under the general editorship of A. N. Korshenko. Moscow, FGBU “GOIN”, 2023, 248 p. (In Russian).

24. Arctic environmental atlas. Kathleen Crane & Jennifer Lee Galasso. Office of naval research, Naval research laboratory, Hunter college. 1999.

25. Nikiforov M. V, Cherkashin S. A. Assessment of the influence of cadmium, zinc and lead on the survival rate of marine fish larvae. Researched in Russia, 2004, vol. 7, pp. 427—444. (In Russian).

26. Fedorov Yu. A. et al. Mercury in bottom sediments of the White Sea: distribution, sources and chronology of burial. Oceanology, 2019, vol. 59, no. 1, pp. 153—162. (In Russian).

27. Pacyna J. M., Keeler G. J. Sources of mercury in the Arctic. Water, Air, and Soil Pollution, 1995, vol. 80, pp. 621—632.

28. Lavrushin V. Y., Gruzdev A. Р. SALT composition of the rivers of Wrangel Island. Lithology and Mineral Resources, 2012, no. 1, p. 3. (In Russian).

29. Pogojeva M. P., Yakushev E. V., Petrov I. N., Yaeski E. A. Experimental study of the impact of permafrost thawing on the content of nutrients and heavy metals in seawater during abrasion of Arctic shores. Arctic: Ecology and Economy, 2021, vol. 11, no. 1, pp. 67—75. (In Russian).

30. Pogojeva M. et al. Experimental study of the influence of thawing permafrost on the chemical properties of sea water. Russian J. of Earth Sciences, 2018, vol. 18, no. 5, С. 1—6.

31. Pogojeva M. et al. Arctic inshore biogeochemical regime influenced by coastal runoff and glacial melting (case study for the Templefjord, Spitsbergen). Geosciences, 2022, vol. 12, no. 1, p. 44.

Download »

DOI 10.25283/2223-4594