Dust and Fog Effects on Inland Waters

Document Type

Contribution to Book

Journal/Book Title/Conference

Encyclopedia of Inland Waters (Second Edition)

Volume

4

Publisher

Elsevier

Publication Date

1-1-2022

Keywords

aquatic ecosystems, atmospheric transport, dust, nutrients

First Page

639

Last Page

656

Abstract

This chapter describes the atmospheric transport of nutrients and other key constituents to aquatic ecosystems via dust and fog. As the global human population grows, commensurate with climate and land-use changes, the emission and deposition of dust and other aerosols may have an increasing effect on inland waters. Dust has been shown to influence nutrient concentrations and to contribute to the buffering capacity of receiving aquatic ecosystems. Collectively, the addition of nutrients, acids or alkaline minerals from atmospheric sources can influence microbial, phytoplankton, and zooplankton communities. Dust has also been shown to transport plastic, microbes, metals, and xenobiotics to waterbodies, although less is known about their ecological implications. Indirectly, dust may also affect aquatic ecosystems by influencing the timing and duration of the spring snowmelt and nutrient pulse. In contrast to dust deposition, fog droplets hang in the atmosphere and are unlikely to be directly deposited to aquatic surfaces. However, there are some potential indirect effects of fog on inland waters. Fog deposition of substances to the catchment can be subsequently transported to lake systems via overland flow, groundwater, or streamwater. Further, fog cover can attenuate solar radiation thereby indirectly affecting primary productivity at the lake surface. This chapter discusses controls on dust and fog composition and nutrient bioavailability, common measurement techniques of dust and fog, and case studies that exemplify the effects of dust and fog on water chemistry and ecology.

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