Modern Sedimentary Rate and Heavy Metal Pollution in the Pearl River Estuary

The paper presents the modern sedimentary rate determined by 210 Pb from a core collected in the Pearl River Estuary. The results show that the modern dcpositional environment of the Pearl River is relatively stable. The relations between organic carbon and heavy metals, and among the heavy metals of the core sediments are discussed. In addition, by comparing the heavy metal pollution of the Pearl River Estuary with that in other water areas and with the historical data, one might find an aggravating trend of heavy metal pollution in the Pearl River Estuary in recent years.