title: New insights into the source of decadal increases of dissolved organic matter in acid-sensitive lakes of the northeastern United States.
abstract: The last several decades have seen decreases in SO(4)(2-) deposition across the northeastern United States. As a result, SO(4)(2-) concentrations in lakes and streams have also decreased and many surface water bodies have become less acidic. During the same time period, there has been a concurrent increase in dissolved organic carbon (DOC) concentrations in many lakes and streams. We used fluorescence spectroscopy to characterize the dissolved organic matter (DOM) quality of archived samples from nine acid-sensitive lakes in Maine collected between 1993 and 2009, and determined that increased DOM contributions to lakes were primarily derived from litter and soil. All five lakes with increasing DOC trends demonstrated significant decreasing (i.e., more terrestrial) trends in fluorescence index (FI) and significant positive correlations between SO(4)(2-) and FI. This study used the chemical signature of terrestrial DOM to support the hypothesis that increased DOC concentrations in lakes and streams are driven by declining acid deposition and increased solubility of soil organic matter across a large area of the landscape.
authors.affiliation: Institute of Arctic and Alpine Research, University of Colorado Boulder, 1560 30th Street, Boulder, Colorado 80304, United States. michael.sanclements@colorado.edu
authors.forename: Michael D
authors.initials: MD
authors.lastname: SanClements
authors.forename: Gretchen P
authors.initials: GP
authors.lastname: Oelsner
authors.forename: Diane M
authors.initials: DM
authors.lastname: McKnight
authors.forename: John L
authors.initials: JL
authors.lastname: Stoddard
authors.forename: Sarah J
authors.initials: SJ
authors.lastname: Nelson
mesh_terms: D001578:Benzopyrans / Q000032:analysis*; D002244:Carbon / Q000032:analysis*; D004784:Environmental Monitoring / Q000379:methods; D006812:Humic Substances / Q000032:analysis*; D006863:Hydrogen-Ion Concentration; D060106:Lakes / Q000032:analysis*; D008281:Maine; D009511:New England; D013050:Spectrometry, Fluorescence; D013431:Sulfates / Q000032:analysis*
chemical_list: D001578:Benzopyrans; D006812:Humic Substances; D013431:Sulfates; D002244:Carbon; C005023:fulvic acid