Lake Baldegg Research Articles

MELIMEX, an experimental heavy metal pollution study: Goals, experimental design and major findings

It was the goal of the interdisciplinary research project MELIMEX to study ecological consequences of increased heavy metal loadings on limnic ecosystems. A detailed description of the limno-corrals (diameter 12 m, depth 10 m water flow through rate 11.5 m3/day) used in this study is presented. Since the physico-chemical environment must have a direct bearing on the results of such an experiment a brief description of Lake Baldegg, in which the experiments were conducted is given and conditions in which limno-corrals differ from natural systems are discussed. Furthermore the major findings of the various MELIMEX studies are briefly summarized.