Total Organic Carbon Analyzer for Carbon Cycling in Freshwater

湖泊和河流及其为加拿大人提供的服务受到溶解有机物质(DOM)的深刻影响，DOM通常从陆地装入水域。DOM主要来自植物和土壤，通过控制我们水域中的许多生物、化学和物理参数，在湖泊和河流中发挥着重要的作用。DOM在全球碳通量中也起着关键作用。我们通过量化DOM的碳含量(缩写为DOC)来衡量DOM。目前淡水中溶解有机碳(DOC)负荷的波动代表了全球生态系统变化的戏剧性表现。例如，由于陆地有机碳负荷的增加，许多北部和北方的湖泊和河流正在经历颜色的增加，本质上是由于气候和/或土地利用的变化而变棕色(即“棕色”=陆地有机质的增加)。DOC的这些变化反过来影响初级生产、生物多样性、鱼类生产、生物地球化学过程和饮用水质量。申请的资金将使我们能够购买TOC分析仪，可以用来测量水中的DOC。据此，我们将研究DOC的动态及其与初级生产、食物网营养途径以及安大略省湖泊和河流中的鱼类生产和健康的联系。我们收集的数据可以用于科学政策，例如，通过将河流和湖泊DOC的区域增加与饮用水质量的下降联系起来。

Lakes and rivers and the services that they provide to Canadians are profoundly influenced by dissolved organic material (DOM) that typically loads into waters from land. DOM which is derived primarily from plants and soils plays an important role in lakes and rivers by controlling many biological, chemical and physical parameters in our waters. DOM also plays a key role in global carbon fluxes. We measure DOM by quantifying its carbon content (abbreviated as DOC). Fluctuations currently occurring in dissolved organic carbon (DOC) loadings in freshwater represent a dramatic presentation of global ecosystem change. For example, many northern and boreal lakes and rivers are experiencing increased color due to the increased loading of terrestrial organic carbon, essentially turning browner (known as “browning”= increased terrestrial organic matter) because of climate and/or land-use changes. These changes in DOC in turn affect primary production, biodiversity, fish production, biogeochemical processes and drinking water quality. The requested funding will allow us to purchase a TOC Analyzer which can be used to measure DOC in water. With this we will examine DOC dynamics and their links to primary production, food web trophic pathways, and fish production and health in lakes and rivers in Ontario. The data that we collect can be used for scientific policy for example by linking the regional increases in stream and lake DOC with the reduction in drinking water quality.