Monitoring the Responses of Freshwater Ecosystems to Climate Change - Climate Change Impacts on Freshwater Ecosystems - page 88

Table 5.1 ( Cont'd )

Category Response Indicator Justification of indicator c t w

Oxygen depletion High temperatures will

stimulate phytoplankton
growth, which will lead to
oxygen depletion of profundal
habitats.

Oxygen
concentration of
the bottom water
in summer

The parameter is easy to
record and often
incorporated into routine
water chemistry
monitoring.

(x) (x) x

Sulphate
concentration

With less precipitation in El
Nino years and resulting
droughts, stored reduced S in
anoxic zones (wetlands) is
oxidized during drought, with
subsequently high sulphate
export rates. Elevated
sulphate concentrations in
lakes will be the result.

Sulphate
concentration

Directly reflecting the
responding parameter;
often incorporated into
routine water quality
monitoring

x (x)

Physicochemistry

DOC Rising temperatures in

combination with declining
acid deposition cause
increasing DOC
concentrations.

DOC Incorporated into routine

water quality monitoring

x (x)

Acidification effects
on phytoplankton

Acidification pulses occur due
to drought (El Nino).
Acidification pulses will cause
changes in phytoplankton
richness and biomass.

pH; biotic acid
indices

pH is easy to record and
often incorporated in
water chemistry
monitoring. As pH varies
seasonally and daily,
biotic indices are often
more stable.

x