The cultural eutrophication of Lac la Biche, Alberta, Canada: a paleoecological study
A multiproxy paleoecological investigation of Lac la Biche, a large boreal lake in northeastern Alberta, Canada, revealed that the lake was eutrophic before European settlement but has undergone additional cultural eutrophication in the past 30 to 50 years. Annual fluxes to sediments of phosphorus,...
Published in: | Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences |
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Canadian Science Publishing
2008
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Online Access: | http://dx.doi.org/10.1139/f08-117 http://www.nrcresearchpress.com/doi/full-xml/10.1139/F08-117 http://www.nrcresearchpress.com/doi/pdf/10.1139/F08-117 |
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crcansciencepubl:10.1139/f08-117 2024-10-06T13:50:27+00:00 The cultural eutrophication of Lac la Biche, Alberta, Canada: a paleoecological study Schindler, D. W. Wolfe, Alexander P. Vinebrooke, Rolf Crowe, Angela Blais, Jules M. Miskimmin, Brenda Freed, Rina Perren, Bianca 2008 http://dx.doi.org/10.1139/f08-117 http://www.nrcresearchpress.com/doi/full-xml/10.1139/F08-117 http://www.nrcresearchpress.com/doi/pdf/10.1139/F08-117 en eng Canadian Science Publishing http://www.nrcresearchpress.com/page/about/CorporateTextAndDataMining Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences volume 65, issue 10, page 2211-2223 ISSN 0706-652X 1205-7533 journal-article 2008 crcansciencepubl https://doi.org/10.1139/f08-117 2024-09-12T04:13:25Z A multiproxy paleoecological investigation of Lac la Biche, a large boreal lake in northeastern Alberta, Canada, revealed that the lake was eutrophic before European settlement but has undergone additional cultural eutrophication in the past 30 to 50 years. Annual fluxes to sediments of phosphorus, nitrogen, carbon, and inorganic sediments have increased with time. A declining N–P ratio has increasingly favored nitrogen-fixing cyanobacteria. Increased deposition of microbial pigments and diatom frustules and a recent shift in diatom species also indicate increasing eutrophication. Biogenic silica increased with time, but there is no evidence of a near-surface decline that would indicate silica limitation. Stable isotopes suggest that an increasing proportion of carbon deposited in sediments is of in-lake origin, indicating increased productivity. In the basin nearest the town of Lac La Biche, an increase in δ 15 N followed the construction of the sewage treatment plant, but more recently, decreased δ 15 N in both basins suggests that nitrogen fixation has become a more important source of nitrogen. Despite documented damage to the fishery of the lake, zooplankton fossils do not show evidence of a strong trophic cascade. The study illustrates the power of a multiproxy approach in obtaining reliable paleolimnological conclusions. Article in Journal/Newspaper Lac la Biche Canadian Science Publishing Boreal Lake ENVELOPE(-127.670,-127.670,58.802,58.802) Canada Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences 65 10 2211 2223 |
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Open Polar |
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Canadian Science Publishing |
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crcansciencepubl |
language |
English |
description |
A multiproxy paleoecological investigation of Lac la Biche, a large boreal lake in northeastern Alberta, Canada, revealed that the lake was eutrophic before European settlement but has undergone additional cultural eutrophication in the past 30 to 50 years. Annual fluxes to sediments of phosphorus, nitrogen, carbon, and inorganic sediments have increased with time. A declining N–P ratio has increasingly favored nitrogen-fixing cyanobacteria. Increased deposition of microbial pigments and diatom frustules and a recent shift in diatom species also indicate increasing eutrophication. Biogenic silica increased with time, but there is no evidence of a near-surface decline that would indicate silica limitation. Stable isotopes suggest that an increasing proportion of carbon deposited in sediments is of in-lake origin, indicating increased productivity. In the basin nearest the town of Lac La Biche, an increase in δ 15 N followed the construction of the sewage treatment plant, but more recently, decreased δ 15 N in both basins suggests that nitrogen fixation has become a more important source of nitrogen. Despite documented damage to the fishery of the lake, zooplankton fossils do not show evidence of a strong trophic cascade. The study illustrates the power of a multiproxy approach in obtaining reliable paleolimnological conclusions. |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
Schindler, D. W. Wolfe, Alexander P. Vinebrooke, Rolf Crowe, Angela Blais, Jules M. Miskimmin, Brenda Freed, Rina Perren, Bianca |
spellingShingle |
Schindler, D. W. Wolfe, Alexander P. Vinebrooke, Rolf Crowe, Angela Blais, Jules M. Miskimmin, Brenda Freed, Rina Perren, Bianca The cultural eutrophication of Lac la Biche, Alberta, Canada: a paleoecological study |
author_facet |
Schindler, D. W. Wolfe, Alexander P. Vinebrooke, Rolf Crowe, Angela Blais, Jules M. Miskimmin, Brenda Freed, Rina Perren, Bianca |
author_sort |
Schindler, D. W. |
title |
The cultural eutrophication of Lac la Biche, Alberta, Canada: a paleoecological study |
title_short |
The cultural eutrophication of Lac la Biche, Alberta, Canada: a paleoecological study |
title_full |
The cultural eutrophication of Lac la Biche, Alberta, Canada: a paleoecological study |
title_fullStr |
The cultural eutrophication of Lac la Biche, Alberta, Canada: a paleoecological study |
title_full_unstemmed |
The cultural eutrophication of Lac la Biche, Alberta, Canada: a paleoecological study |
title_sort |
cultural eutrophication of lac la biche, alberta, canada: a paleoecological study |
publisher |
Canadian Science Publishing |
publishDate |
2008 |
url |
http://dx.doi.org/10.1139/f08-117 http://www.nrcresearchpress.com/doi/full-xml/10.1139/F08-117 http://www.nrcresearchpress.com/doi/pdf/10.1139/F08-117 |
long_lat |
ENVELOPE(-127.670,-127.670,58.802,58.802) |
geographic |
Boreal Lake Canada |
geographic_facet |
Boreal Lake Canada |
genre |
Lac la Biche |
genre_facet |
Lac la Biche |
op_source |
Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences volume 65, issue 10, page 2211-2223 ISSN 0706-652X 1205-7533 |
op_rights |
http://www.nrcresearchpress.com/page/about/CorporateTextAndDataMining |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.1139/f08-117 |
container_title |
Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences |
container_volume |
65 |
container_issue |
10 |
container_start_page |
2211 |
op_container_end_page |
2223 |
_version_ |
1812178570560143360 |