Jakarta –
A new study reveals, The needle-small lake inside Land developed rapidly over the past four decades. Apparently this is a serious problem for the Earth. How come?
The development of small lakes has been labeled a concern, given their impact on the amount of greenhouse gases emitted by freshwater bodies.
Between 1984 and 2019, the global surface area of lakes increased by more than 46,000 square kilometers, according to the researchers. When accumulated, this size is approximately the size of a country, such as Denmark.
Quoted by Science Alert, carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide and other gases are continually being produced by the lake, as bacteria and fungi “eat” the bottom of the water, eating dead plants and animals drifting to the bottom of the lake.
In total, widespread The needle this equates to an annual increase in carbon emissions in the region of 4.8 teragrams (or trillion grams) of CO2. For illustration, this figure is equal to the CO2 increase of a country, for example the UK in 2012.
“There have been large and rapid changes in lakes in recent decades that affect greenhouse gases, as well as ecosystems and access to water resources,” said terrestrial ecologist Jing Tang of the University of Copenhagen, Denmark.
“Among other things, our new knowledge of lake area and dynamics allows us to better calculate their potential carbon emissions,” he continued.
The researchers used a combination of satellite imagery and deep learning algorithms to assess the lake’s coverage. Smaller lakes (less than one square kilometre) are important for accounting for greenhouse gases because they generate a high volume of emissions relative to their size.
This modest body of water covers only 15 percent of the lake’s total coverage, but is responsible for a 45 percent increase in carbon dioxide emissions and a 59 percent increase in methane emissions over the period 1984 to 2019.
Small lakes emit a disproportionate amount of greenhouse gases because they usually accumulate more organic matter, which is converted into gases,” Tang said.
And because it’s often shallow, Tang said, this makes it easier for gases to reach the surface and rise into the atmosphere.
“At the same time, small lakes are much more sensitive to climate and weather changes, as well as human disturbances. As a result, the size and chemistry of the water fluctuates greatly,” he explained.
More than half of the lake cover increase during the study period is due to human activities, mostly newly constructed reservoirs. The rest, mainly due to melting glaciers and permafrost melting caused by warming Land.
The researchers hope their data will prove useful for future climate models, with most of the greenhouse gases potentially coming from the surface The needle as the thaws and warming continue.
“Furthermore, this dataset can be used to make better estimates of water resources in freshwater lakes and to better assess flood risk, as well as for better lake management, as lake area also has an impact on biodiversity,” Tang said.
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