Abstract
When radiocarbon dating is applied to young sample materials, the results are subject to the Suess effect1: that is, the concentration of atmospheric 14C has been diluted by carbon dioxide containing negligible 14C from the burning of fossil fuels since the onset of the industrial revolution. As this carbon dioxide is incorporated into growing plants in the normal manner, radiocarbon dating of young plant material tends to produce spuriously old dates. The age discrepancy could, in theory, be as much as 250 yr (ref. 2). However, during a study into the age, origin and vegetational history of upland blanket peats in South Wales, substantially older dates were obtained from recent horizons. The dating of different peat fractions by radiocarbon assay suggested that the substantially older dates derived from contamination by participate pollution during the industrial revolution. The scale and impact of this pollution are discussed in the context of these results.
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Chambers, F., Dresser, P. & Smith, A. Radiocarbon dating evidence on the impact of atmospheric pollution on upland peats. Nature 282, 829–831 (1979). https://doi.org/10.1038/282829a0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/282829a0
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