Comparison of CO2 and DIC concentrations in bays with and without river discharge in an ice-covered lake

• Main Author: Rosendahl, Anna
• Format: Bachelor Thesis
• Language: English
• Published: Umeå universitet, Institutionen för ekologi, miljö och geovetenskap 2020
• Subjects: Carbon dioxide; Dissolved inorganic carbon; Gas chromatography; Under-ice; River plume; Örträsk; Boreal; Northern Sweden; Natural Sciences; Naturvetenskap
• Online Access: http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:umu:diva-174691

Many of the world’s lakes are located at high latitudes in the northern hemisphere where seasonal ice cover is common. The ice restricts lake-atmosphere gas exchange, causing an under-ice accumulation of CO2. However, there are few spatial under-ice CO2 studies of river influence on lakes. Here, I examine the river plume of a river-influenced bay and compare it to a control bay without river influence in lake Örträsk, a humic of 7 km2 lake in boreal Sweden. There was no relationship between CO2 or DIC and distance from the Vargån river outlet in Vargån bay, even though the CO2 and DIC concentration of the river was found lower in Vargån river (median CO2: 53,2 µM; DIC: 178 µM) than in Vargån bay (median CO2: 84,7 µM; DIC: 301 µM). The median values of the control bay were CO2: 92,7 µM and DIC: 345 µM. There was a negative relationship in CO2 concentration with distance in the control bay, but not in DIC. The control bay had a higher concentration of CO2 at 0-60 m distance than Vargån bay, but there was no difference at 70-180 m. The DIC concentration was higher in the control bay than in Vargån bay. I have reported lower CO2 and DIC concentrations in the river than in the lake, which is not in accordance with literature and is probably due to an earlier ice-melt in the river than in the lake. The negative CO2 relationship in the control bay is likely due to sediment respiration.