Abstract
The hypothesis that loss of dissolved organic matter from lake water accompanies acidification1,2 has been investigated palaeolimnologically for Hovvatn (pH 4.4; TOC (total organic carbon) 3.2 p.p.m.) and Holmvatn (pH 4.7; TOC 2.2 p.p.m.) in southern Norway. Regression equations3,4 that relate sedimentary diatom remains separately to pH and TOC were applied to diatom counts from 210Pb-dated cores from the lakes. The results indicate that in pre-industrial times both lakes were acidic (pH 4.9–5.1, no bicarbonate alkalinity) and relatively humic (TOC 6–9 p.p.m.). This acidification started about 1920 at Howatn and in the 1940s at Holmvatn, and was accompanied by TOC decreases of 3–6 p.p.m. This supports the hypothesis and suggests that the acidification of such lakes transformed them from organic weak acid dominated to mineral strong acid dominated. It also implies that acidification decreased the availability of organic ligands for binding potentially toxic aluminium.
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Davis, R., Anderson, D. & Berge, F. Palaeolimnological evidence that lake acidification is accompanied by loss of organic matter. Nature 316, 436–438 (1985). https://doi.org/10.1038/316436a0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/316436a0
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