Acidification and Trace Metals of Lakes in Taiwan

One hundred and eighty lakes, ponds and reservoirs in Taiwan, and the offshore islands have been investigated since 1985. Effects such as warming/cooling, mixing, photosynthesis and respiration on pH have been identified. These effects were found to be less profound than those resulting from the geology. Since there is little rain or lake water pH data available prior to 1970, it was necessary to use proxy data in order to ascertain the history of lake acidification. In this study, we present data based on diatoms in a sediment core collected from a lake in the remote subalpine region of southern Taiwan. The acidity of this lake water was found to have increased since 1900. We measured the concentrations of 55 chemical species in lake water samples. In addition, concentrations of 26 chemical species were obtained from sediments. Conductivity, alkalinity (HCO3−), most other major and minor chemical species, as well as the non sea-salt SO4/Na ratio in lake water clearly decrease with elevation. Distribution of pH is similar, although the trend is less clear. Distribution of trace metals, however, shows a different trend as anthropogenic pollution, diagenetic reduction and lake acidification are at play.