LANDSCAPE GEOCHEMICAL TRACERS OF CONTAMINATION IN DELTAS OF RIVERS DISCHARGING INTO THE ARCTIC BASIN

transects across riverbanks and delta islands. In the Yenisei delta and estuary zone, local 137 Cs accumulation was found being associated with operation of the Krasnoyarsk Chemical Combine. The highest 137 Cs were measured at test sites located on islands within the Yenisei delta front, which thus appears to be a natural barrier for riverborne contaminant fluxes into the Arctic basin. Heavy metals (Cu and Ni) in mosses and willow (leaves) species collected on terraces and watersheds in the lower Yenisey showed a slowly increasing trend toward the Norilsk Combine. The measured 137 Cs contamination of the Pechora test sites was within the global background. Relatively high Cu and Zn were revealed in Pechora water sampled 3 km downstream of Naryan-Mar city. These patterns may be used for purposive contamination tracing.