Ombrotrophic peatlands: natural, holistic, integrated, long-term monitoring systems for atmospheric deposition of environmental contaminants to terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems

Sphagnum moss and age-dated peat cores from bogs have long been used to study contemporary and past atmospheric deposition of trace elements (TEs). However, other components of bog ecosystems represent additional scientific opportunities. Snowpack sampling, for example, represents a chance to study winter deposition while providing the perfect matrix for ICP-MS analyses of TEs. The berries that grow in bogs, including blueberry (Vaccinium myrtilloides), cloudberry (Rubus chaemomorus), cranberry (Vaccinium oxycoccus) and lingonberry (Vaccinium vitisidaea), provide insight into the bioavailability of micronutrients (and contaminants) at the surface of the bog, as well as an index of dust deposition onto the fruits themselves. Labrador Tea (Rhododendron groenlandicum) provides similar information, but with greater relevance for Indigenous Peoples, as this is an important medicinal plant for them, along with the Pitcher Plant (Sarracenia purpurea). The acidic, organic-rich waters which represent > 90 % of the mass of these ecosystems, presents an even greater opportunity: the chance to quantify the extent to which aerosols and dusts dissolve, subsequent to deposition from the air. In this study, we present data for TEs in all of these media, with a view to exploring the broader potential of ombrotrophic peatlands as natural, holistic, integrated, long-term monitoring systems. The approach presented here not only addresses our need for information regarding  atmospheric deposition of environmental contaminants to terrestrial ecoystems, but also insight into their release, or potential release, to downstream aquatic ecosystems.