Changes in water colour between 1986 and 2006 in the headwaters of the River Nidd, Yorkshire, UK: a critique of methodological approaches and measurement of burning management

The effect of moorland management on the release of dissolved organic carbon (DOC) from blanket peat is currently a topic of great interest in the UK. A recent paper by Chapman et al. (Biogeochemistry, doi:10.1007/s10533-010-9474-x, 2010) reports on changes in humic colour/DOC concentrations in surface waters draining 15 upland peat catchments in the North Pennines (UK) over two decades, and examines the possible underlying drivers of those changes. Chapman et al. identify significant variation in water colour between adjacent catchments and over time. One potential driver of changes in DOC is managed moorland burning, and Chapman et al. state that their study provides evidence that burning has no effect on colour in upland catchment drainage waters. This observation counters a recent series of papers showing strong links between new moorland burn management on blanket peat soils and colour/DOC in catchment drainage waters. We have reviewed the methodological approach and results presented by Chapman et al. that relate to the assessment of managed burning, and show significant errors in the data used in their analysis. This has resulted in conclusions being drawn about the role of managed burning in DOC release that are not supported by evidence.     

Dust mediated transfer of phosphorus to alpine lake ecosystems of the Wind River Range,Wyoming, USA

Alpine lakes receive a large fraction of their nutrients from atmospheric sources and are consequently sensitive to variations in both the amount and chemistry of atmospheric deposition. In this study we explored the spatial changes in lake water chemistry and biology along a gradient of dust deposition in the Wind River Range, Wyoming. Regional differences were explored using the variation in bulk deposition, lake water, sediment, and bedrock geochemistry and catchment characteristics. Dust deposition rates in the Southwestern region averaged 3.34 g m^?2 year^?1, approximately three times higher than deposition rates in the Northwestern region (average 1.06 g m^?2 year^?1). Dust-P deposition rates ranged from 87 µg P m² day^?1 in the Northwestern region to 276 µg P m² day^?1 in the Southwestern region. Subalpine and alpine lakes in the Southwestern region had greater total phosphorus (TP) concentrations (5–13 µg L^?1) and greater sediment phosphorus (SP) concentrations (2–5 mg g^?1) than similar lakes elsewhere in the region (1–8 µg L^?1 TP, 0.5–2 mg g^?1 SP). Lake phosphorus concentrations were related to dissolved organic carbon (DOC) across vegetation gradients, but related to the percent of bare rock, catchment area to lake area, and catchment steepness across dust deposition gradients. Modern phytoplankton and zooplankton biomasses were two orders of magnitude greater in the Southwest than in the Northwest, and alpine lakes in the Southwest had a unique diatom species assemblage with relatively higher concentrations of Asterionella formosa, Pseudostaurosira pseudoconstruens, and Pseudostaurosira brevistriata. These results suggests that catchment controls on P export to lakes (i.e. DOC) are overridden in dominantly bare rock basins where poor soils cannot effectively retain dust deposited P.     

Biogeochemical Budgets in a Mediterranean Catchment with High Rates of Atmospheric N Deposition – Importance of Scale and Temporal Asynchrony

In this study biogeochemical export in a set of catchments that vary from 6 ha to almost 1500 ha is investigated. Studying catchments across this large range of scales enables us to investigate the scale dependence and fundamental processes controlling catchment biogeochemical export that would not have been possible with a more limited data set. The Devil Canyon catchment, in the San Bernardino Mountains, California, has some of the highest atmospheric N deposition rates in the world (40–90 kg ha⁻¹year⁻¹ at the crest of the catchment). These high rates of deposition have translated into consistently high levels of NO⁻in 3 some streams of the San Bernardino Mountains. However, the streams of the Devil Canyon catchment have widely varying dissolved inorganic nitrogen (DIN) concentrations and export. These differences are also, to a more limited extent, present for dissolved organic carbon (DOC) but not in other dissolved species (Cl⁻, SO²⁻₄,Ca²⁺ and other weathering products). As catchment size increases DIN and DOC concentrations first increase until catchment area is ∼150 ha but then decrease as catchment scale increases beyond that size. The scale dependence of DIN export implies that catchments at different spatial scales are at different degrees of N saturation. The reason for this scale effect appears to be the dominance of flushing of DIN out of soil at small scales due to the temporal asynchrony between nutrient availability and biological N demand, the groundwater exfiltration of this flushed DIN at intermediate scales and the removal of this DIN from streamflow through in-stream processes and groundwater–surface water interaction at larger scales. While the particular scale effect observed here may not occur over the same range in catchment area in other ecosystems, it is likely that other ecosystems have similar scale dependant export for DIN and DOC.     

Climate change and Saharan dust drive recent cladoceran and primary production changes in remote alpine lakes of Sierra Nevada,Spain

Recent anthropogenic climate change and the exponential increase over the past few decades of Saharan dust deposition, containing ecologically important inputs of phosphorus (P) and calcium (Ca), are potentially affecting remote aquatic ecosystems. In this study, we examine changes in cladoceran assemblage composition and chlorophyll‐a concentrations over the past ~150 years from high‐resolution, well‐dated sediment cores retrieved from six remote high mountain lakes in the Sierra Nevada Mountains of Southern Spain, a region affected by Saharan dust deposition. In each lake, marked shifts in cladoceran assemblages and chlorophyll‐a concentrations in recent decades indicate a regional‐scale response to climate and Saharan dust deposition. Chlorophyll‐a concentrations have increased since the 1970s, consistent with a response to rising air temperatures and the intensification of atmospheric deposition of Saharan P. Similar shifts in cladoceran taxa across lakes began over a century ago, but have intensified over the past ~50 years, concurrent with trends in regional air temperature, precipitation, and increased Saharan dust deposition. An abrupt increase in the relative abundance of the benthic cladoceran Alona quadrangularis at the expense of Chydorus sphaericus, and a significant increase in Daphnia pulex gr. was a common trend in these softwater lakes. Differences in the magnitude and timing of these changes are likely due to catchment and lake‐specific differences. In contrast with other alpine lakes that are often affected by acid deposition, atmospheric Ca deposition appears to be a significant explanatory factor, among others, for the changes in the lake biota of Sierra Nevada that has not been previously considered. The effects observed in Sierra Nevada are likely occurring in other Mediterranean lake districts, especially in softwater, oligotrophic lakes. The predicted increases in global temperature and Saharan dust deposition in the future will further impact the ecological condition of these ecosystems.     

火烧对森林土壤有机碳的影响研究进展

对国内外火烧影响森林土壤有机碳动态的研究成果进行了综合述评。较多研究表明低强度火烧不会造成土壤有机碳贮量的明显变化,但火烧非常强烈而彻底,土壤有机碳明显减少。有限研究表明火烧对森林土壤呼吸的影响结果有增加、降低或无影响,因火烧强度、火后观测时间、森林类型、火烧迹地上植被恢复进程和气候条件等而异。同时,火烧对土壤有机碳组分(活性有机碳和黑碳)也具有不同程度的影响。随着全球变化研究的深入,火烧作为森林主要管理措施对大气CO2浓度影响亦愈来愈受重视,今后应着重开展以下几方面研究:(1)扩大气候和经营管理的变化对森林土壤有机碳贮量时空动态影响研究;(2)深入探讨火烧影响土壤CO2释放的过程及机理;(3)加强火烧历史和频率对黑碳影响的研究;(4)从广度和深度上加强火烧等经营措施对亚热带森林土壤碳动态影响的研究。     

Penetration of solar ultraviolet radiation into New Zealand lakes: influence of dissolved organic carbon and catchment vegetation

Eleven lakes in the South Island of New Zealand were sampled in summer 1996. Water column profiles of ultraviolet radiation (UVR) at four wavelengths and photosynthetically available radiation (PAR) were obtained, along with analyses of dissolved organic carbon (DOC) concentration, total suspended solids (TSS), and catchment vegetation, including forest and natural grassland. Downward attenuation coefficients (K _d) and lake water transparency (1/K _d) for UVR were examined in relation to these variables. Consistent with other regions of the world, DOC concentration and variables related to DOC were the best predictors of UVR penetration. With our data set, we calculated ratios of water column integrals (RI) of UVR/PAR irradiance, using equations from the literature. At DOC concentrations below 4 g m⁻³, a progressive increase in RI shows that lakes become increasingly transparent to UVR. We also normalized chromophoric dissolved organic matter (CDOM) absorption of UVR at 380 nm (a ₃₈₀) to DOC concentration and found that the UVR-absorbing capacity per unit DOC increases with increasing percentage of forest in the catchment area. This indicates that not only DOC concentration but also DOC type or composition is important in determining the transparency of lake water to UVR, and that qualitative differences in DOC are dictated by the type and amount of vegetation present in the lake's catchment area. Received: September 18, 2000 / Accepted: December 14, 2000     

Season of fire influences seed dispersal by wind in a serotinous obligate seeding tree

Plant Ecology - In temperate ecosystems, fire management involving prescribed burning and wildfire suppression often causes a shift in fire season from hot and dry summer conditions to cooler,...     

Impact of DOC trends resulting from changing climatic extremes and atmospheric deposition chemistry on periphyton community of a freshwater tropical lake of India

Recent measurements have demonstrated unprecedented increase in atmospheric deposition of nutrients in many parts of India. To determine whether atmospheric nutrient inputs would increase phytoplankton growth and catchment dissolved organic carbon (DOC) flushing to constrain benthic algae, we analyzed NO₃ ^? and PO ₄ ^?3 in atmospheric deposits; nutrients and DOC in runoff and lake water and standing crop biomass of phytoplankton and periphyton at Jaisamand Lake of Rajasthan, India. Atmospheric deposition of NO₃ ^? (7.18–29.95 kg ha^?1 year^?1) and PO ₄ ^?3 (0.56–2.15 kg ha^?1 year^?1) showed a consistently rising trend across the year. Microbial biomass and activity in catchment increased in response to atmospheric deposition. Lake DOC and nutrients showed strong coherence with their terrestrial and atmospheric fluxes. Phytoplankton development showed significant linearity with atmospheric input of nutrients. Air-driven input appeared to have compensated the nutrient constraints to phytoplankton during drought. The N:P stoichiometry of deposition and that of lake water indicated that, although there was a seasonal switchover to N- or P-limitation, phytoplankton were mainly co-limited by N and P due probably to the synergistic effects of combined N + P enrichment in the pelagic zone of the lake. Periphyton standing crop showed inverse relationship with phytoplankton and lake DOC. The study indicated that enhanced phytoplankton development and terrestrial DOC flushing in response to atmospheric nutrient input attenuated light penetration to constrain algal periphyton. We suggests that data on these issues may be considered in developing aquatic ecosystem models to establish future links between changing air–water–land interactions and associated shifts in lake ecosystem functioning for more accurately predicting climate change drivers and designing integrated lake basin management strategies.     

Complementary pathways of dissolved organic carbon removal pathways in clear-water Amazonian ecosystems: photochemical degradation and bacterial uptake

Dissolved organic carbon (DOC) photochemical reactions establish important links between DOC and planktonic bacteria. We hypothesize that seasonal changes in DOC quality, related to the flood pulse, drive the effects of light-DOC interactions on uptake by planktonic bacteria uptake in clear-water Amazonian ecosystems. Water samples from two ecosystems (one lake and one stream) were incubated in sunlight during different hydrological periods and were then exposed to bacterial degradation. Photochemical and bacterial degradation were driven by seasonal DOC inputs. Bacterial mineralization was the main degradation pathway of autochthonous DOC in the lake, while allochthonous DOC was more available for photochemical oxidation. We suggest that sunlight enhances the bacterial uptake of refractory DOC but does not alter uptake of labile forms. We also observed a positive relationship between sunlight and bacterial degradation of DOC, instead of competition. We conclude that photochemical reactions and bacteria complementarily degrade the different sources of DOC during the flood pulse in Amazonian clear-water aquatic ecosystems.     

Evidence that Soil Carbon Pool Determines Susceptibility of Semi-Natural Ecosystems to Elevated Nitrogen Leaching

Deposition of reactive nitrogen (N) compounds has the potential to cause severe damage to sensitive soils and waters, but the process of ‘nitrogen saturation’ is difficult to demonstrate or predict. This study compares outputs from a simple carbon–nitrogen model with observations of (1) regional- and catchment-scale relationships between surface water nitrate and dissolved organic carbon (DOC), as an indicator of catchment carbon (C) pool; (2) inter-regional variations in soil C/N ratios; and (3) plot scale soil and leachate response to long-term N additions, for a range of UK moorlands. Results suggest that the simple model applied can effectively reproduce observed patterns, and that organic soil C stores provide a critical control on catchment susceptibility to enhanced N leaching, leading to high spatial variability in the extent and severity of current damage within regions of relatively uniform deposition. Results also support the hypothesis that the N richness of organic soils, expressed as C/N ratio, provides an effective indicator of soil susceptibility to enhanced N leaching. The extent to which current C/N is influenced by N deposition, as opposed to factors such as climate and vegetation type, cannot be unequivocally determined on the basis of spatial data. However, N addition experiments at moorland sites have shown a reduction in organic soil C/N. A full understanding of the mechanisms of N-enrichment of soils and waters is essential to the assessment of current sensitivity to, and prediction of future damage from, globally increasing reactive nitrogen deposition.     

Geochemical and physical characteristics of river and lake [2pt] sediments at Naivasha,Kenya

Prior studies on Lake Naivasha relevant to understanding sediment dynamics include a bathymetric map, a paleolimnological study of fossil invertebrate assemblages in lake sediment, an overview of lake level fluctuations throughout the 20th century, and identification of a dynamic assemblage of macrophyte zones that has responded both to these changes in lake level and to more recent, alien species. Sediment samples collected from the rivers systems and the lake were examined physically and chemically. River sediment characteristics reflect geology and geomorphological processes in the catchment, whereas lake sediment stratigraphy has responded to past lake level changes. Such changes have caused significant changes in aquatic vegetation assemblages. Present day sediment dynamics in the lake are governed by the presence of river point sources in the north and wave-induced re-suspension, such that sediments introduced by rivers are transported in easterly and southerly directions, and are eventually deposited in the eastern, central and southern parts of the lake. Sedimentary deposition is also occurring in northern areas that once were protected by papyrus swamp vegetation but now only have a narrow fringe, highlighting the important role of swamp vegetation in filtering out suspended particulates and thereby controlling water quality in the lake. Geochemical analyses of river and lake sediments indicate that they represent fairly undisturbed background conditions. Higher-than-expected concentrations of cadmium, iron, nickel and zinc found in both river and lake sediment are likely to derive from volcanic rocks and/or lateritic soils found in the lake catchment.     

Experimental whole‐lake increase of dissolved organic carbon concentration produces unexpected increase in crustacean zooplankton density

The observed pattern of lake browning, or increased terrestrial dissolved organic carbon (DOC) concentration, across the northern hemisphere has amplified the importance of understanding how consumer productivity varies with DOC concentration. Results from comparative studies suggest these increased DOC concentrations may reduce crustacean zooplankton productivity due to reductions in resource quality and volume of suitable habitat. Although these spatial comparisons provide an expectation for the response of zooplankton productivity as DOC concentration increases, we still have an incomplete understanding of how zooplankton respond to temporal increases in DOC concentration within a single system. As such, we used a whole‐lake manipulation, in which DOC concentration was increased from 8 to 11 mg L^?1 in one basin of a manipulated lake, to test the hypothesis that crustacean zooplankton production should subsequently decrease. In contrast to the spatially derived expectation of sharp DOC‐mediated decline, we observed a small increase in zooplankton densities in response to our experimental increase in DOC concentration of the treatment basin. This was due to significant increases in gross primary production and resource quality (lower seston carbon‐to‐phosphorus ratio; C:P). These results demonstrate that temporal changes in lake characteristics due to increased DOC may impact zooplankton in ways that differ from those observed in spatial surveys. We also identified significant interannual variability across our study region, which highlights potential difficulty in detecting temporal responses of organism abundances to gradual environmental change (e.g., browning).     

Fine-scale temporal characterization of trends in soil water dissolved organic carbon and potential drivers

Long-term monitoring of surface water quality has shown increasing concentrations of dissolved organic carbon (DOC) across a large part of the Northern Hemisphere. Several drivers have been implicated including climate change, land management change, nitrogen and sulphur deposition and CO₂ enrichment. Analysis of stream water data, supported by evidence from laboratory studies, indicates that an effect of declining sulphur deposition on catchment soil chemistry is likely to be the primary mechanism, but there are relatively few long term soil water chemistry records in the UK with which to investigate this, and other, hypotheses directly. In this paper, we assess temporal relationships between soil solution chemistry and parameters that have been argued to regulate DOC production and, using a unique set of co-located measurements of weather and bulk deposition and soil solution chemistry provided by the UK Environmental Change Network and the Intensive Forest Monitoring Level II Network. We used statistical non-linear trend analysis to investigate these relationships at 5 forested and 4 non-forested sites from 1993 to 2011. Most trends in soil solution DOC concentration were found to be non-linear. Significant increases in DOC occurred mostly prior to 2005. The magnitude and sign of the trends was associated qualitatively with changes in acid deposition, the presence/absence of a forest canopy, soil depth and soil properties. The strongest increases in DOC were seen in acidic forest soils and were most clearly linked to declining anthropogenic acid deposition, while DOC trends at some sites with westerly locations appeared to have been influenced by shorter-term hydrological variation. The results indicate that widespread DOC increases in surface waters observed elsewhere, are most likely dominated by enhanced mobilization of DOC in surficial organic horizons, rather than changes in the soil water chemistry of deeper horizons. While trends in DOC concentrations in surface horizons have flattened out in recent years, further increases may be expected as soil chemistry continues to adjust to declining inputs of acidity.     

森林生态系统可溶性碳和颗粒碳通量

可溶性碳(Dissolved carbon,DC)和颗粒碳(particulate carbon,PC)通量作为森林生态系统碳收支的重要组分,在森林固碳功能的评价和模型预测中具有重要意义,但常因认识不足、测定困难等而在森林碳汇研究中被忽略。综述了森林生态系统DC和PC的组成、作用、相关生态过程及其影响因子,并展望了该领域应该优先考虑的研究问题。森林生态系统DC和PC主要包括可溶性有机碳、可溶性无机碳和颗粒有机碳,主要来源于生态系统的净初级生产量。DC和PC是森林土壤的活性碳库,主要以大气沉降、穿透雨和凋落物的形式输入森林土壤系统,并通过土壤呼吸、侧向运输及渗透流失的方式输出生态系统。从局域尺度看,DC和PC通量受根系分泌、细根分解、微生物周转等生物过程的影响较大;从区域尺度看,它们受土壤和植被特性、生态过程耦联关系、气候因子以及全球变化的综合影响。该领域应该优先考虑:(1)探索不同时空尺度下森林生态系统DC和PC通量的控制因子及其耦联关系,揭示其中的驱动机理;(2)探索DC和PC与其它森林生态系统碳组分的相互关系及转化,阐明DC和PC通量与其它养分之间潜在的生态化学计量关系;(3)探索全球变化,特别是人类活动(如森林经营)和极端干扰事件(如林火、旱涝、冰冻、冻融交替等)对森林生态系统DC和PC通量的影响。     

Characterization of carbonaceous particles from lake sediments

Spheroidal carbonaceous particles produced by high temperature combustion of coal and oil are found in high concentrations in lake sediments from areas of high acid deposition. The sediment record of these particles showing the onset of industrialisation correlates well with the record of acidification as indicated by diatom analysis. To find sources of the atmospheric deposition affecting a lake and its catchment, characterisation of the carbonaceous particles is necessary. A reference data set of particle chemistries from coal and oil power stations was produced using EDS generated data of 17 elements. Using multivariate statistical techniques, the most important elements for the coal/oil separation were identified and incorporated into a linear discriminant function which allocated fuel type with > 97% accuracy. Application of this technique to surface sediments in Scotland shows the influence of oil burning from outside the region, higher areas located on the east coast and in the south-west of the country. When applied to a full sediment core, the history of coal and oil combustion affecting the lake is seen and correlates well with known coal and oil consumption figures. Consequently this method could be used to add extra dating levels to sediment cores. The technique has been extended to include peat particles and could potentially be used on those from brown coal, lignite and oil shale combustion.     

Climate and landscape influence on indicators of lake carbon cycling through spatial patterns in dissolved organic carbon

Freshwater ecosystems are strongly influenced by both climate and the surrounding landscape, yet the specific pathways connecting climatic and landscape drivers to the functioning of lake ecosystems are poorly understood. Here, we hypothesize that the links that exist between spatial patterns in climate and landscape properties and the spatial variation in lake carbon (C) cycling at regional scales are at least partly mediated by the movement of terrestrial dissolved organic carbon (DOC) in the aquatic component of the landscape. We assembled a set of indicators of lake C cycling (bacterial respiration and production, chlorophyll a, production to respiration ratio, and partial pressure of CO₂), DOC concentration and composition, and landscape and climate characteristics for 239 temperate and boreal lakes spanning large environmental and geographic gradients across seven regions. There were various degrees of spatial structure in climate and landscape features that were coherent with the regionally structured patterns observed in lake DOC and indicators of C cycling. These different regions aligned well, albeit nonlinearly along a mean annual temperature gradient; whereas there was a considerable statistical effect of climate and landscape properties on lake C cycling, the direct effect was small and the overall effect was almost entirely overlapping with that of DOC concentration and composition. Our results suggest that key climatic and landscape signals are conveyed to lakes in part via the movement of terrestrial DOC to lakes and that DOC acts both as a driver of lake C cycling and as a proxy for other external signals.     

Unimodal response of fish yield to dissolved organic carbon

Here, we demonstrate a contrasting effect of terrestrial coloured dissolved organic material on the secondary production of boreal nutrient poor lakes. Using fish yield from standardised brown trout gill‐net catches as a proxy, we show a unimodal response of lake secondary productivity to dissolved organic carbon (DOC). This suggests a trade‐off between positive and negative effects, where the initial increase may hinge upon several factors such as energy subsidising, screening of UV‐radiation or P and N load being associated with organic carbon. The subsequent decline in production with further increase in DOC is likely associated with light limitations of primary production. We also show that shallow lakes switch from positive to negative effects at higher carbon loads than deeper lakes. These results underpin the major role of organic carbon for structuring productivity of boreal lake ecosystems.     

Shifting stoichiometry: Long-term trends in stream-dissolved organic matter reveal altered C:N ratios due to history of atmospheric acid deposition

Dissolved organic carbon (DOC) and nitrogen (DON) are important energy and nutrient sources for aquatic ecosystems. In many northern temperate, freshwater systems DOC has increased in the past 50 years. Less is known about how changes in DOC may vary across latitudes, and whether changes in DON track those of DOC. Here, we present long-term DOC and DON data from 74 streams distributed across seven sites in biomes ranging from the tropics to northern boreal forests with varying histories of atmospheric acid deposition. For each stream, we examined the temporal trends of DOC and DON concentrations and DOC:DON molar ratios. While some sites displayed consistent positive or negative trends in stream DOC and DON concentrations, changes in direction or magnitude were inconsistent at regional or local scales. DON trends did not always track those of DOC, though DOC:DON ratios increased over time for ~30% of streams. Our results indicate that the dissolved organic matter (DOM) pool is experiencing fundamental changes due to the recovery from atmospheric acid deposition. Changes in DOC:DON stoichiometry point to a shifting energy-nutrient balance in many aquatic ecosystems. Sustained changes in the character of DOM can have major implications for stream metabolism, biogeochemical processes, food webs, and drinking water quality (including disinfection by-products). Understanding regional and global variation in DOC and DON concentrations is important for developing realistic models and watershed management protocols to effectively target mitigation efforts aimed at bringing DOM flux and nutrient enrichment under control.     

Alternative explanations for rising dissolved organic carbon export from organic soils

Since 1988, there has been, on average, a 91% increase in dissolved organic carbon (DOC) concentrations of UK lakes and streams in the Acid Waters Monitoring Network (AWMN). Similar DOC increases have been observed in surface waters across much of Europe and North America. Much of the debate about the causes of rising DOC has, as in other studies relating to the carbon cycle, focused on factors related to climate change. Data from our peat‐core experiments support an influence of climate on DOC, notably an increase in production with temperature under aerobic, and to a lesser extent anaerobic, conditions. However, we argue that climatic factors may not be the dominant drivers of DOC change. DOC solubility is suppressed by high soil water acidity and ionic strength, both of which have decreased as a result of declining sulphur deposition since the 1980s, augmented during the 1990s in the United Kingdom by a cyclical decline in sea‐salt deposition. Our observational and experimental data demonstrate a clear, inverse and quantitatively important link between DOC and sulphate concentrations in soil solution. Statistical analysis of 11 AWMN lakes suggests that rising temperature, declining sulphur deposition and changing sea‐salt loading can account for the majority of the observed DOC trend. This combination of evidence points to the changing chemical composition of atmospheric deposition, particularly the substantial reduction in anthropogenic sulphur emissions during the last 20 years, as a key cause of rising DOC. The implications of rising DOC export for the carbon cycle will be very different if linked primarily to decreasing acid deposition, rather than to changes in climate, suggesting that these systems may be recovering rather than destabilising.     

Using empirical methods to assess the risks of mercury accumulation in fish from lakes receiving acid rain

It has been hypothesized that concentrations of mercury ([Hg]) in fish increase with increasing acidic deposition. Our investigation suggests that this hypothesis is false for three species of fish from Ontario lakes. Across Ontario, Canada, slightly lower average [Hg] in Lake Trout, Walleye and Northern Pike (controlled for fish length) were associated with regions receiving progressively greater rates of sulphate deposition. We also observed that lake concentration of dissolved organic carbon ([DOC]), not pH, alkalinity or sulphate ion concentration, was the strongest correlate of this residual fish Hg contamination. Path analysis also determined a net reduction in fish [Hg] at higher rates of sulphate deposition. However, this analysis indicated a far more complex web of interactions between sulphate deposition, water chemistry and fish [Hg] than simple correlation analysis could define. Path analysis provided empirical evidence in support of several previously described mechanisms interacting simultaneously to influence fish Hg accumulation. Based on these empirical observations, an alternate hypothesis is proposed whereby increasing sulphate deposition results in lower [DOC] levels in lakes which, in turn, cause a decline in fish Hg contamination.