Abstract
Surface water samples and lake bed sediments were collected and analyzed from Gosaikunda Lake within Langtang National Park (28°05'N, 85°25'E; 4380 m a.s.l.) in the central Himalayan region of Nepal during fall 2011. The major cations and anions in equivalents were present in the following order: and , respectively. Sulfide oxidation coupled with carbonate dissolution and aluminosilicate dissolution appeared to be the dominant geochemical processes determining lake water dissolved ions. Sulfate concentration was much higher than the alkalinity which is in contrast to glacier meltwater within the same landscape. Alkalinity primarily as bicarbonate contributes 88.6% to the total dissolved inorganic carbon (DIC) followed by carbon dioxide (CO2) and carbonate (CO3) in surface water samples. Organic carbon contributes 0.3% to 5.4% to the sediments and the organic matter is predominantly of aquatic origin. The lake is under saturated with carbon dioxide and the average partial pressure of carbon dioxide (pCO2) appeared quite low (43.4 μatm). Overall, natural biogeochemical processes regulate the chemical species within the lake ecosystem. The lake is oligotrophic, however, nutrients and dissolved organic carbon (DOC) concentrations are enhanced at the near shore sites close to the tracking trail.
Highlights
Global warming has strong influence on water resources throughout the world and in the central Himalayan region in Nepal
The main objective of this paper is to report the major chemical parameters including nutrients and carbonic species present in a high altitude lake within Langtang National Park in central Himalaya and to evaluate the regulating factors including geochemical processes of these chemical parameters within the lake
The regulating factors and geochemical processes of the Gosaikunda lake are evaluated in order to understand the water quality and ecological status of the lake within Langtang National Park in central Nepal
Summary
The chemistry of surface water can be impacted by three major processes: evaporation-crystallization, precipitation and geochemical processes related to rock weathering [1]-[4]. In recent years there have been some documented reports about the chemistry and biology of lakes of glacierized basins in the high Himalayan and lesser Himalayan landscape [6] [15]-[24] but the controlling mechanisms of biogeochemical processes within high Himalayan lakes have not been documented yet especially from the central Himalayan region in Nepal. The main objective of this paper is to report the major chemical parameters including nutrients and carbonic species present in a high altitude lake within Langtang National Park in central Himalaya and to evaluate the regulating factors including geochemical processes of these chemical parameters within the lake
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