Radiocarbon (14C) Concentration of Local Pollution in Street Trees Located at Intersections

At large intersections, vehicles consume and generate a large amount of fossil fuel. Carbon derived from fossil fuels that do not contain radioactive carbon (¹⁴C), i.e., dead carbon, is released in large amounts in the roadside air environment. By means of photosynthesis, street trees along the roadside assimilate both dead carbon, not containing radioactive carbon (¹⁴C), and contemporary carbon, which includes radioactive carbon (¹⁴C). Therefore, the concentration of radioactive carbon (¹⁴C) in leaves of trees growing in heavily polluted environments decreases.