Eutrophication and contamination dynamics of Schweriner See, NE-Germany, during the past 670 years – A multi-proxy approach on lacustrine surface sediments and sediment cores

Abstract

A multi-proxy study on sedimentary records from Schweriner See (See = lake), NE-Germany, covering the past 670 years (from 1350 CE to today) combined with sediment surface samples to better understand lake internal dynamics enables to reconstruct local and supra-regional eutrophication and contamination trends. Our approach shows that a thorough understanding of depositional processes is crucial for core site selection since at Schweriner See wave- and wind-induced processes in shallow water areas (e.g. reworking) or carbonate precipitation resulting from groundwater inflow may have altered the desired (in this case anthropogenic) signal. In Schweriner See both eutrophication and contamination have been directly influenced by sewage and population dynamics of the city of Schwerin and its surroundings. A higher population density resulted in increased sewage volume, which was discharged directly into Schweriner See since 1893 CE. Maximum eutrophication was reached in the 1970s but a solid improvement in water quality only occurred after the German reunification (1990) as a combined result of a decrease in population density and the connection of all households to a new sewage treatment plant, which stopped the discharge of sewage waters into Schweriner See. These counter measurements were traced within the sediment records. Eutrophication and contamination trends were detected within the lake basin as shown by remarkable similarities in signals between several sediment cores. To get an understanding of regional contamination tendencies east of the former inner German border in the recent past we compared our results with sediment records from the southern Baltic Sea area, which show similar contamination trends.