Assessing the environmental metal pollution in Germany since the inception of metal use in Europe

• Applicant: Professor Dr. Frank Lehmkuhl
• Subject Area: Physical Geography
• Term: since 2025
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 567907466

The advent of metal processing millennia ago changed the course of human history, and Central Europe has at times played a crucial role in the spread of metal use. However, a lack of regionally representative environmental data precludes precise understanding of the long-term impacts of such activities. In this project we aim to assess the environmental legacy of this long-term history of metal processing in Central-Europe by disentangling the variability of lead (Pb) and other metal contamination in sites from the Harz, Erzgebirge and Eifel regions. We will focus on high-resolution geochemical analyses (ICP-MS, xrf-core scanning) on ombrotrophic peat records, which are reliable records of direct atmospheric fallout of chemical particulates. We will apply Pb-isotope provenance tracing to determine the sources and sinks of pollution. Radiocarbon dating and tephrochronology will be used to assess rates of change and to trace leads and lags in regional response that we rely on. All geochemical and isotopic data will be treated in mixed isotope models and change-point analyses. Our results will add crucial evidence to the long-range and long-lasting environmental legacy cast of past metal processing in Europe over the last millennia.

• DFG Programme: Research Grants
• International Connection: Romania
• Co-Investigator: Professor Dr. Volker Linnemann
• Cooperation Partner: Dr. Daniel Veres