Impacts of acid precipitation on decomposition and plant communities in lakes

Conference · Sun Jan 01 04:00:00 EST 1978

OSTI ID:6297027

Hendrey, G R; Barvenik, F W

Over the past few decades the acidity of lakes and rivers has been increasing in several areas of the world. In southern Norway, western Sweden, the Canadian Shield, and the northeastern United States, acidification of fresh waters has become a major environmental problem. It has been clearly established that acid precipitation is the cause of decreasing pH levels in waters of the affected areas. Over most all of northern Europe, southern Scandinavia, and essentiallly all of the U.S. east of the Mississippi River, the mean annual H/sup +/ concentrations in precipitation, expressed as pH, are below 5.0. Furthermore, the regions affected by very acid precipitation (pH < 4.5) are rapidly expanding. The effects of acid precipitation on aquatic ecosystems depend primarily on the geology of the region, but also on the evaluation (orographic precipitation). The regions now known to be the most seriously affected are mountainous districts of southern Scandinavia and the northeastern United States which are located hundreds of kilometers from SO/sub 2/ and NO/sub x/ emissions sources. Regions of the United States which are potentially sensitive to acid inputs because of their geology and surface water alkalinity are also found in the western United States. Local acid precipitation problems are now known on the West Coast, and some lakes in the Puget Sound region appear to be acidified aquatic flora and fauna at all ecosystem levels are greatly impoverished in acidified freshwaters. The numbers of species are reduced and changes in the biomass of some groups of plants and animals have been observed. Decomposition of leaf litterand other organic substrates is hampered, nutrient recycling appears to be retarded, and nitrofication inhibited at pH levels frequently observed in acid-stressed waters.

• Research Organization: Brookhaven National Lab., Upton, NY (USA)
• Sponsoring Organization: USDOE
• DOE Contract Number: EY-76-C-02-0016
• OSTI ID: 6297027
• Report Number(s): BNL-25066; CONF-7805164-1
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

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54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES
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560303 -- Chemicals Metabolism &amp; Toxicology-- Plants-- (-1987)
63 RADIATION, THERMAL, AND OTHER ENVIRON. POLLUTANT EFFECTS ON LIVING ORGS. AND BIOL. MAT.
ACID RAIN
ACIDIFICATION
AIR POLLUTION
AQUATIC ECOSYSTEMS
AQUATIC ORGANISMS
ATMOSPHERIC PRECIPITATIONS
BIODEGRADATION
BIOLOGICAL EFFECTS
BIOLOGICAL MATERIALS
BIOMASS
CHEMICAL REACTIONS
DECOMPOSITION
ECOLOGY
ECOSYSTEMS
ENERGY SOURCES
ENVIRONMENTAL EFFECTS
FOREST LITTER
FRESH WATER
GLOBAL ASPECTS
HYDROGEN COMPOUNDS
INHIBITION
LAKES
MINERAL CYCLING
NITROGEN CYCLE
OXYGEN COMPOUNDS
PH VALUE
POLLUTION
POPULATION DYNAMICS
RAIN
RENEWABLE ENERGY SOURCES
SPECIES DIVERSITY
SURFACE WATERS
WATER
WATER POLLUTION