"Museum Lake" under Human Pressure!
Ann Arbor, MI — Human pollution threatens the UNESCO World Heritage Site in Lake Ohrid, including its large number of unique animal and plant species. The negative effects of pollution could be further amplified by expected global warming.
Most of the large lakes on our planet have a "life expectancy" of less than 100,000 years. During that period they become filled up with sediments from their tributaries. However, some lakes are much older due to natural enlargement over time or low sediment input. Lake Ohrid is the only such "ancient" lake in Europe, providing stable living conditions for freshwater life for 2-5 million years. Thanks to high survival and evolution during this long time, more than 200 species are unique to Lake Ohrid today.
Human population increase in the Lake Ohrid basin has led to increased pollution from households; a trend which is expected to continue. The pollution leads to an enhanced growth of algae, which settle on the lake bottom. There the algae are "eaten" by bacteria that use up the oxygen dissolved in the water. As a result, an increase in household pollution leads to a decrease in oxygen towards the lake bottom, which in turn limits the habitat for a large number of the unique species, such as fish and bottom animals. In addition, replenishment of oxygen in the deep water would be reduced by expected global warming of air temperatures.
Our analysis suggests that it is important to take steps to prevent pollution of Lake Ohrid, e.g., by improved water treatment. However, such local measures can only protect Lake Ohrid in the long run if the global production of greenhouse gases also is slowed down.
Original Publication Information
Results of this study "Sensitivity of Ancient Lake Ohrid to Local Anthropogenic Impacts and Global Warming," are reported by Andreas Matzinger, Zoran Spirkovski, Suzana Patceva and Alfred Wüest in the latest issue (Volume 32, No. 1, pp. 158-179) of the Journal of Great Lakes Research, published by the International Association for Great Lakes Research, 2006.
Contacts
For more information about the study, contact Alfred Wüest, Swiss Federal Institute of Aquatic Research and Technology, CH-6047 Kastanienbaum, Switzerland; wuest@eawag.ch; +41 41 3492181.
For information about the Journal of Great Lakes Research, contact Marlene Evans, Editor, National Water Research Institute, 11 Innovation Boulevard, Saskatoon, SK, S7N 3H5, Canada; editor@iaglr.org; (608) 692-1076.
Links
Since 1967, IAGLR has served as the focal point for compiling and disseminating multidisciplinary knowledge on North America's Laurentian Great Lakes and other large lakes of the world and their watersheds. In part, IAGLR communicates this knowledge through publication of the Journal of Great Lakes Research, available to members in print and electronic form. A searchable archive of the journal is available online and includes the abstracts of articles from the journal's inception in 1975 through the most recent issue. In addition, complete articles are available to members who have signed up for an electronic subscription.
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