The Phosphorus Status of the Sediments of three Eutrophic Lakes in Victoria

Abstract

The analysis of phosphorus, iron, and aluminium forms in the sediments of three eutrophic lakes in Victoria (Lakes Burrumbeet, Learmonth, and Colac) is reported. The phosphorus sorption and release characteristics of the sediments were also studied.

It was found that the Lake Colac sediments contained the highest levels of all forms of phosphorus and also possessed by far the greatest potential for the release of dissolved reactive phosphorus to the overlying water.

It appears that correlations between the sediment parameters amorphous iron and inorganic phosphorus, which have been noted in studies on lakes in Wisconsin, U.S.A., are not applicable to the lakes of this study. This and other difficulties in comparing sediment data between lakes are discussed.