Using of high-resolution topsoil magnetic screening for assessment of dust deposition: comparison of forest and arable soil datasets

Magnetic susceptibility (kappa) is an easily detectable geophysical parameter that can be used as a proxy or semi-quantitative tracer of atmospheric industrial and urban dusts deposited in topsoil. An enhanced kappa value of topsoil is in many cases also associated with high concentrations of soil pollutants (mostly heavy metals). High-resolution magnetic screening of topsoil in areas of high pollution influx is a useful tool for detection of pollution "hot spots". General and regional screening maps with a grid density of 10 or 5 km have been performed on the basis of forest topsoil measurement only. The purpose of this study was to perform high-resolution magnetic screening with different grid densities in both forested and agricultural areas (arable land). Our large study area (ca. 200 km(2)) was located in a relatively more polluted region of the central part of Upper Silesia, and a second (small) one (ca. 100 m(2)) was located in the western part of Upper Silesia, with considerably lower influx of pollution. In the framework of this study, we applied a statistical comparison of data obtained in forested areas and on arable land. The arable soil showed statistically significantly lower kappa values, the result of "physical dilution" of the arable layer caused by annual ploughing. Thus arable soils must be avoided during high-resolution field measurement. From semivariograms, it was clear that the spatial correlations in forest topsoil are much stronger than in arable soil, which suggests that a denser measurement grid is required in forested areas.