Land-Based Impact of Nutrient Loads and Eutrophication on an Ancient Mediterranean Natural Lake

Abstract

In water management plans, all human impacts on the aquatic environment are quantified and evaluated. For this purpose, lake-related assessment methods of watersheds are needed. The aim of this study is to present the environmental condition along the watershed–lake continuum of Lake Baratz, located in the northeastern part of Sardinia. We provide a method to evaluate the impact of a small watershed area on the trophic state of this ancient Mediterranean natural lake. This study demonstrates the potentialities of coupling simple land structure-based models with empirical ones, allowing one to hierarchize, interpret, and predict the relationships among the watershed ecological unity and lake trophic conditions at multiple spatial and temporal scales. It also demonstrates how the impact of single and interacting nutrient stressors can have a different impact on the trophic status which, in particular, applies to autotrophs, constituting a key response in the ecosystem. We suggest that the stressor hierarchy should be considered as a way of prioritizing actions in the cost-effective implementation of conservation and management plans.

Evaluating the Performance of Water Quality Indices: Application in Surface Water of Lake Union, Washington State-USA

“…These chemical substances significantly impact whether or not the water is suitable for human consumption and purposes in industry and agriculture. Even while many researchers, including scientists and engineers, have conducted exhaustive studies on a wide range of themes concerning water pollution, it is abundantly evident that there is a dearth of mature and scientifically sound techniques in several areas [13][14][15]. Horton pioneered mathematical algorithms to estimate river water quality levels as early as 1965 [16].The combined influence of many driving forces that control water quality and the difficulties in identifying the significant parameters used to quantify the chemical status of water resources are complicated to comprehend [17].…”