Abstract
AbstractHere, we investigate the importance of net CH4 production and emissions in the carbon (C) budget of a small productive lake by monitoring CH4, CO2, and O2 for two consecutive years. During the study period, the lake was mostly a net emitter of both CH4 and CO2, while showing positive net ecosystem production. The analyses suggest that during the whole study period, 32% ± 26% of C produced by net ecosystem production was ultimately converted to CH4 and emitted to the atmosphere. When converted to global warming potential, CH4 emission (in CO2 equivalents) was about 3–10 times higher than CO2 removal from in‐lake net ecosystem production over 100‐yr and 20‐yr time frames, respectively. Although more work in similar systems is needed to generalize these findings, our results provide evidence of the important greenhouse gas imbalance in human‐impacted aquatic systems.
Highlights
We investigate the importance of net CH4 production and emissions in the carbon (C) budget of a small productive lake by monitoring CH4, CO2, and O2 for two consecutive years
Dissolved gases measured in the center of Soppensee were highly dynamic among seasons and showed strong vertical variation due to thermal stratification (Fig. 1)
The water column was mostly anoxic under 10 m depth (O2 < 10 μmol L−1) from May to October of both years, while surface-water O2 concentrations varied from oversaturation in summer to undersaturation in fall and winter (Supporting Information Fig. S3)
Summary
We investigate the importance of net CH4 production and emissions in the carbon (C) budget of a small productive lake by monitoring CH4, CO2, and O2 for two consecutive years. The lake was mostly a net emitter of both CH4 and CO2, while showing positive net ecosystem production. The analyses suggest that during the whole study period, 32% Æ 26% of C produced by net ecosystem production was converted to CH4 and emitted to the atmosphere. When converted to global warming potential, CH4 emission (in CO2 equivalents) was about 3–10 times higher than CO2 removal from in-lake net ecosystem production over 100-yr and 20-yr time frames, respectively. More work in similar systems is needed to generalize these findings, our results provide evidence of the important greenhouse gas imbalance in humanimpacted aquatic systems. Author Contribution Statement: D.V., T.L., D.D., and D.F.M. performed fieldwork and S.E.B. provided help with high-frequency gas measurements and data analysis. D.V. and D.F.M. performed the main analyses and all coauthors helped to analyze and interpret the results. D.V. wrote the initial draft of the paper with significant inputs from all coauthors
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary 
Published Version (
Free)
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
