The effect of evapoconcentration on dissolved organic carbon concentration and quality in lakes of SW Greenland

1. Dissolved organic carbon (DOC) concentration was determined for a range of lakes of varying conductivity (30–4000 μS cm^?1) in the low Arctic of SW Greenland. DOC concentration range from <1 to >100 mg C L^?1, occasionally approaching 200 mg C L^?1 in meromictic, oligosaline lakes. DOC concentration was strongly related to log₁₀] conductivity and total nitrogen. 2. Peak DOC concentrations (>80 mg L^?1) occur in lakes located approximately 50 km from the present ice sheet margin, a zone of low effective precipitation; evaporative concentration is the first‐order control on DOC concentration. Lakes at the coast and closer to the ice margin had lower DOC concentrations (<20 mg C L^?1). Local factors, notably the presence or absence of an outflow and catchment morphometry, resulted in considerable variability in concentration (20–100 mg C L^?1) within the area of maximum concentration around 51°W. 3. Despite their high DOC concentration, these lakes are essentially colourless. Dissolved organic matter (DOM) absorption (a₃₇₅) was low in most lakes (<10 m^?1) with maximum values (approximately 20 m^?1) occurring in one humic‐stained lake in the area. Absorption values corrected for DOC concentration () were very low (<0.6 m² g^?1 C) for all lakes apart from those at the coast, perhaps reflecting greater allochthonous inputs at these sites. 4. S, the spectral slope coefficient, ranged from 16 to 27 μm^?1 and was weakly correlated with DOC concentration. Both a₃₇₅ and S showed similar distribution patterns along the sampling gradient as did DOC, with maximum values at approximately 51°W. High and low S may indicate fresher, more rapidly flushed, systems with less degraded DOM or greater inputs from their catchments. 5. The lakes closer to the head of the fjord with higher conductivity, had low (<0.2 m² g^?1 C) and high S (>21 μm^?1) and this may reflect increasingly longer lake water residence times, greater DOM age and photochemical degradation.