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Instability in a small hypereutrophic urban lake

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Abstract

Two summer intensive monitoring programs were conducted on a small Louisiana urban lake following restoration. Monitoring objectives were directed towards providing high resolution data needed to examine lake temporal and spatial variability. During the first year of post-restoration (1983), anaerobic conditions developed in the lake and a major fish kill (Ictalurus sp.) was observed. Total phosphorus concentrations at stations nearest the lake bottom were exceedingly high (>0.400 mg L−1), suggesting the source of phosphorus was sediment release. Monitoring conducted in 1984 indicated the re-establishment of high benthic demand and internal nutrient recycling patterns. Mean phosphorus levels increased by more than 50% over the observed 1983 values, while dissolved oxygen concentrations demonstrated gradients from surface to bottom and were consistently below 2.0 mg L−1 in the bottom waters.

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Burden, D.G., Malone, R.F. & Gremillion, P. Instability in a small hypereutrophic urban lake. Environ Monit Assess 9, 13–24 (1987). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00394212

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00394212

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