Hydrological and Ecological Controls on Autochthonous Carbonate Deposition in Lake Systems: A Case Study From Lake Wuliangsu and the Global Perspective

Abstract

AbstractBased on ~150‐year of sedimentary records, we identify that autochthonous carbonate deposition in Lake Wuliangsu, in the upper reaches of the Yellow River, was independent of both hydrological and ecological variations before 1965, influenced by hydrological changes due to agricultural activities during 1965–1990, and slightly impacted by higher productivity under the eutrophication process after 1990. By comparing with data from lakes across the globe, we find that lake size and lake stratification control the contribution of recycled organic carbon to autochthonous carbonate deposition. Continuous mixing and aeration in shallow lakes facilitate the transformation of organic carbon into 29–45% of sedimentary carbonate, different from large and deep lakes (2–25%). Organic carbon recycling in lakes remains generally stable or decreases under the pressure of lake eutrophication, requiring further investigations on whether more organic carbon will be buried in the carbonate form.