Climate warming and heatwaves accelerate global lake deoxygenation
Yibo Zhang1,2, Kun Shi1,2, R Iestyn Woolway3
1Key Laboratory of Lake and Watershed Science for Water Security, Nanjing Institute of Geography and Limnology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Nanjing, China.
Science Advances
|March 21, 2025
Summary
Global lake deoxygenation is accelerating, with 83% of studied lakes showing declining dissolved oxygen (DO). Climatic warming is the primary driver, decreasing DO solubility and exacerbating declines during heatwaves.
Area of Science:
- Environmental Science
- Climate Science
- Limnology
Background:
- Dissolved oxygen (DO) decline is a global issue affecting aquatic ecosystems.
- The specific impact of climate warming on lake deoxygenation is not well understood.
Purpose of the Study:
- To quantify the extent of global lake deoxygenation.
- To determine the contribution of climatic warming to DO variations in lakes.
- To project future lake DO levels under different climate scenarios.
Main Methods:
- Utilized data-driven models trained on climatic data, satellite imagery, and geographic factors.
- Reconstructed surface DO for 15,535 lakes globally from 2003 to 2023.
- Quantified the climatic contribution to DO changes and assessed heatwave impacts.
Main Results:
- 83% of studied lakes exhibited continuous deoxygenation.
- The average deoxygenation rate in global lakes (-0.049 mg/L/decade) surpasses that of oceans and rivers.
- Climatic warming accounts for 55% of global lake deoxygenation by reducing oxygen solubility.
- Heatwaves caused a significant 7.7% deoxygenation compared to average conditions.
Conclusions:
- Global lakes are experiencing significant and accelerating deoxygenation, primarily driven by climate warming.
- Future projections indicate substantial DO decreases in lakes by the end of the century under various Shared Socioeconomic Pathways (SSPs).
- Urgent climate mitigation strategies are needed to preserve aquatic ecosystems and prevent further deoxygenation.
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