Sources of exposure to lead in Arctic and subarctic regions: a scoping review

ABSTRACT

Understanding lead exposure pathways is a priority because of its ubiquitous presence in the environment as well as the potential health risks. We aimed to identify potential lead sources and pathways of lead exposure, including long-range transport, and the magnitude of exposure in Arctic and subarctic communities. A scoping review strategy and screening approach was used to search literature from January 2000 to December 2020. A total of 228 academic and grey literature references were synthesised. The majority of these studies (54%) were from Canada. Indigenous people in Arctic and subarctic communities in Canada had higher levels of lead than the rest of Canada. The majority of studies in all Arctic countries reported at least some individuals above the level of concern. Lead levels were influenced by a number of factors including using lead ammunition to harvest traditional food and living in close proximity to mines. Lead levels in water, soil, and sediment were generally low. Literature showed the possibility of long-range transport via migratory birds. Household lead sources included lead-based paint, dust, or tap water. This literature review will help to inform management strategies for communities, researchers, and governments, with the aim of decreasing lead exposure in northern regions.

KEYWORDS:

• Lead
• metal
• Indigenous peoples
• north
• risk assessment
• Dene
• First Nations

Acknowledgments

We would like to thank the federal funding agency, the Northern Contaminants Program. We would like to thank Jackie Stapleton for her assistance in creating the search strategy. We would also like to thank Steven Lam and Gabriella Luongo for comments regarding grey literature screening methods. We sincerely thank David G. MacDougall, geologist and Emeritus Members of the Saskatchewan Geological Society, for his assistance on soil lead composition.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Supplementary material

Supplemental data for this article can be accessed online at https://doi.org/10.1080/22423982.2023.2208810.

Additional information

Funding

Funding for this work (2019-2021) was provided by the Northern Contaminants Program (NCP), which is a governmental program of Crown-Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs Canada (grant number HH-05).