Sedimentary record of black carbon in the Pearl River estuary and adjacent northern South China Sea

The concentrations of black carbon (BC) and δ13CBC were determined in sediments of three dated cores from the Pearl River estuary (core PR-3) and adjacent northern South China Sea (cores SS-30, E2). For comparison, the total organic C (TOC) contents and δ13CTOC in the sediments were also measured. Relatively higher concentrations and fluxes of BC were found in sedimentary core PR-3, taken in the Pearl River estuary. The BC concentration profiles or fluxes correlated well with fossil-fuel usage in the Pearl River Delta. Maximum BC fluxes occurred in the late 1970s to early 1980s as recorded in core PR-3, and in the 1950s (core SS-30), reflecting the maximum BC emission in the Pearl River Delta and Hong Kong region, respectively. After the 1980s, a rapid decrease of BC fluxes and a light δ13CBC excursion were presumably due to improvements in combustion and pollution-control technologies and a shift of energy structure from biomass and coal to a mixture of coal, gas, oil and biomass. The fossil BC that contributed to total BC in core PR-3 increased from 20–30% to 70–80% during the last five decades. The study also shows that BC correlates well with terrestrial organic matter and that the ratio of BC to TOC is a good pollution indicator in relation to anthropogenic activities.