Published

Credit: NTL LTER

Credit: NTL LTER

Terrestrial organic carbon (C) entering lakes can be stored, sent to the atmosphere as CO2, or passed downstream. Long term measurements of hydrology and C were used to understand and model the fate of terrestrial C in lakes. In Wisconsin’s 6,400 km2 Northern Highland Lake District (NHLD), the fraction of organic C converted to CO2 varied substantially among lakes due to hydrology. Nonetheless, lakes accounted for about 40% of C storage, although they represent only 13% of the region’s area.

Learn more

  1. Buffam, I et al. 2011. Integrating aquatic and terrestrial components to construct a complete carbon budget for a north temperate lake district. Global Change Biology. doi: 10.1111/j.1365-2486.2010.02313.x
  2. Hanson, PC et al. 2014. Quantifying lake allochthonous organic carbon budgets using a simple equilibrium model. Limnology and Oceanography. doi: 10.4319/lo.2014.59.1.0167

Contact

Emily Stanley
ehstanley@wisc.edu

Posted:  July 10, 2020