Cultural eutrophication, anoxia, and ecosystem recovery in Meretta Lake, High Arctic Canada

Antoniades, Dermot; Michelutti, Neal; Quinlan, Roberto; Blais, Jules M.; Bonilla, Sylvia; Douglas, Marianne S. V.; Pienitz, Reinhard; Smol, John P.; Vincent, Warwick F.

doi:10.4319/lo.2011.56.2.0639

Cited by 50 publications

(41 citation statements)

References 46 publications

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“…One hypothesis for an increase in phytoplankton biomass (Lougheed et al, 2011) and change in NLS in IBP ponds over the past 40 years was the encroachment of the village of Barrow nearer to the ponds. Urban inputs, combined with climate warming, have had profound influences on Arctic waterbodies (Schindler et al, 1974;Douglas & Smol, 2000;Antoniades et al, 2011). While ponds within the village of Barrow showed significantly higher nutrient and algal concentrations, the IBP ponds remained similar in nutrient status to the more isolated BEO ponds.…”

Section: Regionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Contrasting responses of phytoplankton and benthic algae to recent nutrient enrichment in Arctic tundra ponds

et al. 2015

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Summary Tundra ponds are a dominant feature on the Arctic Coastal Plain, but their response to warming, especially in the long‐term, is largely unknown. Our study assessed changes in algal nutrient limitation over a 40‐year period in historically studied ponds that may have been affected by either human development in the region or increased temperatures leading to permafrost thaw and nutrient release. We also compared nutrient limitation of algae in the pelagic and benthic zones at a landscape level. Nutrient diffusing substrata (NDS) and bottled nutrient incubations, which expose natural algal communities to known quantities of nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P), were utilised to determine benthic and phytoplankton algal nutrient limitation, respectively, in a series of ponds on the north slope of Alaska, USA. This included ponds where phytoplankton nutrient limitation was examined in 1971–1973 as part of the International Biological Program (IBP), as well as ponds in a remote protected area and others near the village of Barrow. Nutrient limitation status of phytoplankton has changed since the original IBP study 40 years ago from P limitation to NP co‐limitation. One‐third of regional phytoplankton enrichment experiments indicated no nutrient limitation of algal growth, and none exhibited single‐nutrient P limitation. This shift in nutrient limitation was coincident with increased water column nutrients due to degrading permafrost, and to the expansion into the ponds of macrophytes, which may compete with algae for available nitrogen. A comparison of pelagic and benthic experiments across the landscape revealed differences among these zones with a predominance of NP limitation of phytoplankton and absence of nutrient limitation in the benthic zone, reflecting contrasting nutrient limitation status within the same ponds. Permafrost thaw is probably reintroducing previously frozen stores of P or N to the sediment surface, which are quickly taken up by periphyton but become limited in the water column. Grazing by invertebrates, which were not excluded from the benthic assays, may also have influenced the results. While ponds within the village of Barrow had higher nutrient and algae levels, there was no obvious effect of urban development on nutrient limitation status, nor did development appear to have influenced the historic IBP pond sites.

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Section: Regionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Contrasting responses of phytoplankton and benthic algae to recent nutrient enrichment in Arctic tundra ponds

et al. 2015

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“…For example, Meretta Lake, located in Resolute Bay on Cornwallis Island, Nunavut, experienced eutrophication as a consequence of receiving untreated sewage between 1949 and 1998 (Douglas and Smol 2000). Further, as climate change proceeds, anticipated changes in permafrost thaw, length of seasonal ice cover, and water temperatures will likely increase the productivity of northern ecosystems (Antoniades et al 2011). In fact, increases in internal P loading in boreal lakes in northern Alberta due to climate change have resulted in long-term increases in lake productivity (Hazewinkel et al 2008;Kurek et al 2013;Summers et al 2016).…”

Section: Understudied Ecosystemsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Internal phosphorus loading in Canadian fresh waters: a critical review and data analysis

Orihel

Baulch

Casson

et al. 2017

Can. J. Fish. Aquat. Sci.

193

133

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Many physical, chemical, and biological processes in freshwater ecosystems mobilize the nutrient phosphorus (P) from sediments, which in turn may contribute to the formation of harmful algal blooms. Here, we critically reviewed internal P loading in Canadian fresh waters to understand the geographic patterns and environmental drivers of this important process. From 43 publications, we consolidated 618 estimates of internal P loading from Canadian freshwater ponds, lakes, reservoirs, and coastal wetlands (n = 70). Expressed in terms of total P, short-term gross rates in sediment samples (L gross ) ranged from −27 to 54 mg·m −2 ·day −1 (n = 461), while long-term net rates in whole ecosystems (L net ) ranged from −1694 to 10 640 mg·m −2 ·year −1 (n = 157). The main environmental drivers of this variation were oxygen, pH, geology, and trophic state. Internal P loading tended to be higher during the open-water season and most prominent in small prairie lakes. Priorities for future research on internal P loading should include resolving methodological problems, assessing the relative importance of different mechanisms, examining the influence of anthropogenic activities, and quantifying rates in understudied ecosystems. Résumé :De nombreux processus physiques, chimiques et biologiques dans les écosystèmes d'eau douce mobilisent le phosphore (P), un élément nutritif, des sédiments, ce qui peut favoriser la formation de fleurs d'eau néfastes. Nous avons effectué un examen critique de l'apport interne de P dans les plans d'eau douce canadiens afin de comprendre les motifs de répartition géographique et les facteurs environnementaux qui influent sur cet important processus. À la lumière de 43 publications, nous avons colligé 618 estimations de l'apport interne de P d'étangs, de lacs, de réservoirs et de milieux humides littoraux d'eau douce canadiens (n = 70). Exprimés en termes de P total, les taux d'apport de P à court terme pour les échantillons de sédiments (L gross ) vont de −27 à 54 mg·m -2 ·jour -1 (n = 461), alors que les taux nets à long terme à l'échelle de l'écosystème (L net ) vont de −1694 à 10 640 mg·m -2 ·an -1 (n = 157). Les principaux facteurs environnementaux influant sur ces variations sont l'oxygène, le pH, la géologie et l'état trophique. L'apport interne de P tend à être plus élevé durant la période d'eau libre et le plus marqué dans les petits lacs de prairie. La priorité des travaux futurs sur l'apport interne de P devrait porter sur la résolution de problèmes méthodologiques, l'évaluation de l'importance relative de différents mécanismes, l'examen de l'influence des activités humaines et la quantification des taux dans les écosystèmes sous-étudiés. [Traduit par la Rédaction]

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“…Meretta Lake received untreated sewage from the local airport between 1949 and 1998, although the greatest inputs occurred in the earlier decades of that time period. The water quality of the lake has since returned to near baseline conditions (Antoniades et al 2011). Chironomid larvae were collected from shallow nearshore areas (\1.25 m deep) with a D-framed kicknet of 500 lm mesh and from sediment in offshore, deeper waters (3-30 m depth) with an Ekman grab.…”

Section: Field Samplingmentioning

confidence: 99%

Ecological determinants of methylmercury bioaccumulation in benthic invertebrates of polar desert lakes

et al. 2014

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We investigated concentrations of monomethylmercury (MMHg) at the base of benthic food webs in six lakes from polar desert (biologically poor and low annual precipitation) on Cornwallis Island (Nunavut, Canada, *75°N latitude). Anthropogenic mercury emissions reach the Arctic by long-range atmospheric transport, and information is lacking on processes controlling MMHg entry into these simple lake food webs, despite their importance in determining transfer to lake-dwelling Arctic char. We examined the influences of diet (using carbon and nitrogen stable isotopes), water depth, and taxonomic composition on MMHg bioaccumulation in benthic invertebrates (Chironomidae and Trichoptera). We also estimated MMHg biomagnification between benthic algae and invertebrates. Similar MMHg concentrations of chironomid larvae in nearshore and offshore zones suggest that benthic MMHg exposure was homogeneous within the lakes. Chironomid d 13 C values were also similar in both depth zones, suggesting that diet items with highly negative d 13 C, specifically methanogenic bacteria and planktonic organic matter, were not important food (and therefore mercury) sources for profundal larvae. MMHg concentrations were significantly different among two subfamilies of chironomids (Diamesinae, Chironominae) and Trichoptera. Higher MMHg concentrations in Diamesinae were likely related to predation on other chironomids. We found high MMHg biomagnification between benthic algae and chironomid larvae compared with literature estimates for aquatic ecosystems at lower latitudes; thus, benthic processes may affect the sensitivity of polar desert lakes to mercury. Information on benthic MMHg exposure is important for evaluating and tracking impacts of atmospheric mercury deposition and environmental change in this remote High Arctic environment.

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Cultural eutrophication, anoxia, and ecosystem recovery in Meretta Lake, High Arctic Canada

Cited by 50 publications

References 46 publications

Contrasting responses of phytoplankton and benthic algae to recent nutrient enrichment in Arctic tundra ponds

Contrasting responses of phytoplankton and benthic algae to recent nutrient enrichment in Arctic tundra ponds

Internal phosphorus loading in Canadian fresh waters: a critical review and data analysis

Ecological determinants of methylmercury bioaccumulation in benthic invertebrates of polar desert lakes

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