Systematic Review of Metallic, Industrial, and Pharmaceutical Emerging Contaminants in Snow and Ice: A Global Perspective from Polar and High-Mountain Regions
Abstract
Emerging contaminants (ECs) comprise diverse pollutant classes that are increasingly detected in remote environments due to their persistence and long-range transport potential. In cold regions, atmospheric cold-trapping processes favour their accumulation in high-altitude and high-latitude snow and ice, which act as sensitive archives and secondary sources of contamination. While previous studies have addressed individual environmental compartments (e.g., snowpack, glacier ice, meltwater), focusing on specific contaminant classes, a systematic review integrating the occurrence, behaviour and impacts of major EC groups in polar and alpine snow and ice is still lacking. To fill this gap, this work synthesised current knowledge on the environmental fate of three key EC categories in the cryosphere: metals and metalloids (MMs), industrial chemicals and by-products (ICBs), and pharmaceuticals and personal care products (PPCPs). PRISMA guidelines were accurately followed for research, which was based on a Google Scholar search combining keywords on cryospheric matrices (snow, firn, ice cores), geographical regions (Arctic, Antarctic, Alps, high mountains), and contaminant classes. Of 350 records initially identified, 300 met the eligibility criteria (post-industrial snow, firn, or ice cores studies) after excluding studies focused on aerosol or meltwater-only, method-focused papers, pre-industrial datasets, urban-only investigations, and duplicates. Risk of bias was qualitatively…
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Evidence Hub reads this as a systematic review. Its evidence level is 1 of 5 (Highest · pooled evidence). Pooled evidence from several studies sits at the top of the evidence pyramid.
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