Potential for acid precipitation damage to lakes of the Sierra Nevada, California
One of the areas of California potentially sensitive to acidic deposition is the Sierra Nevada, located along the eastern boundary. A report on sensitive areas in North America identifies the Sierra as a region characterized by poorly buffered soils and granite based lakes. The subalpine and alpine lakes in this region share many of the characteristics of lakes adversely affected by acid deposition in other parts of the US and the world. For this investigation selected subalpine lakes of the western slope of the Sierra were chosen for study, to establish baseline water quality which would allow for the identification of chemical and biological changes due to acidic deposition. It was then attempted to simulate the ecosystem stress of increased acidic deposition, particularly in the form of snowmelt, on these systems by performing microcosm experiments in the laboratory. These experiments were particularly concerned with recording changes in concentrations of micronutrients which might be leached from lake sediments with increasing acidification. This phenomenon is particularly important to study in the light of finds on the importance of aluminum leaching in the northeast which was led to toxic effects of biota in Adirondack lakes. 10 references, 3 figures, 1 table.
- Research Organization:
- California Univ., Berkeley (USA)
- OSTI ID:
- 6069423
- Report Number(s):
- PB-83-214825; OWRT-A-081-CAL(1)
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
Similar Records
Assessment of episodic acidification in the Sierra Nevada, California. Final report, 1987-1989
Acid precipitation and buffer capacity of lakes in the Sierra Nevada, California
Related Subjects
Aquatic-- Chemicals Monitoring & Transport-- (-1989)
54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES
560300 -- Chemicals Metabolism & Toxicology
63 RADIATION, THERMAL, AND OTHER ENVIRON. POLLUTANT EFFECTS ON LIVING ORGS. AND BIOL. MAT.
ACID RAIN
ACIDIFICATION
ALUMINIUM
ATMOSPHERIC PRECIPITATIONS
BASELINE ECOLOGY
BIOLOGICAL EFFECTS
CALIFORNIA
DAMAGE
DISSOLUTION
ECOLOGY
ELEMENTS
ENVIRONMENTAL EFFECTS
ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY
FEDERAL REGION IX
LAKES
LEACHING
METALS
MICROCOSMS
MOUNTAINS
NORTH AMERICA
NUTRIENTS
RAIN
SEDIMENTS
SENSITIVITY
SEPARATION PROCESSES
SIERRA NEVADA COLORADO
SIMULATION
SURFACE WATERS
USA
WATER QUALITY