Contribution of dust transport and resuspension to particulate matter levels in the Mediterranean atmosphere

A sampling site at Herceg-Novi (Montenegro) is included in the network for the monitoring of airborne pollutants along the Mediterranean coast. The 24-h concentrations of total suspended particles (TSP) were measured by a standardized gravimetric method in a 1-in-6 day schedule program. The available data set from the period 1995-2000 was chosen for statistical analysis. The 3-parameter Weibull probability model successfully described the distributions of TSP concentrations as the total population and the part of them transported from the continental side. However, in the concentration set from the southern segment, outliers were found indicating the appearance of the highest concentrations from the open Adriatic Sea. The collected particles mostly constituted of PM10 and the ratio PM10/TSP reached value of 0.9. An analysis of the filter samples by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) confirmed the presence of marine aerosol, crustal and amorphous material. The Fe content of >2% in the TSP samples was accepted for the identification of genuine Saharan dust transport. The frequency of these events of 7% a year contributed to an increase of the annual TSP concentrations of 10%-15%. The amorphous material was found in the sample of 31 May/1 June 1999 after the bombing of Cape Arza on the Lustica Peninsula, which is situated 5 km away from the sampling site. The attack occurred on 30 May and depleted uranium ammunition was used. The U-238 radioactivity was at the background level, but the pulverous material found in that sample most likely originated from dust and soil transported from Cape Arza to Herceg-Novi on 31 May as the backward trajectory analysis by the Eta model showed. Resuspension was the dominant process affecting the TSP concentration, but this episode did not reflect significantly on the annual TSP levels, as is the case with the Saharan dust storms. The methodology applied in this work allowed a fugitive source of PM from destroyed objects and bombed terrain to be discovered. (C) 2004 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.