Reduction of airborne fluoride emissions from Canadian aluminium smelters as revealed by snow chemistry.
Fluorides in surface snowcover originating from two old Canadian aluminium smelters were studied over an area of 4500 km2, in March 1978 and 1984. During that period, the completion of a depollution programme within the smelters reduced the airborne gaseous emissions from 1.5 to 0.7 kg Ft-1 of metal produced. In 1978, more than 3000 km2 of the regional area was contaminated by industrial fluorides with snowborne concentrations of up to 13 mg l-1. Reduction of the gaseous fluoride emissions, concomitant with a substantial reduction of the total particulate emissions, have greatly decreased the snowborne fluoride contamination so that the maximum concentration of fluorides in snow is now only 1 mg l-1.
INRS-Eau, Université de Québec, Sainte-Foy, Canada.
M
M
Ouellet
D000393:Air Pollutants / Q000032:analysis*; D000397:Air Pollution / Q000517:prevention & control; D005459:Fluorides / Q000032:analysis*; D008669:Metallurgy; D011792:Quebec; D012914:Snow / Q000032:analysis*; D014887:Weather / Q000032:analysis*
D000393:Air Pollutants; D005459:Fluorides