Climate crisis is suffocating the world’s lakes, study finds

Exposing the Big Game's avatarThe Extinction Chronicles

https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2021/jun/02/climate-crisis-is-suffocating-the-worlds-lakes-study-finds

Falling oxygen levels harming already struggling wildlife and drinking water supplies, say scientists

Lake Ammersee near Munich, Bavaria, Germany
Lake Ammersee near Munich, Bavaria, Germany. Oxygen levels in lakes have fallen three to nine times faster in the past 40 years.Photograph: Lukas Barth-Tuttas/EPA

Damian CarringtonEnvironment editor@dpcarringtonWed 2 Jun 2021 11.00 EDT

The climate crisis is causing a widespread fall in oxygen levels in lakes across the world, suffocating wildlife and threatening drinking water supplies.

Falling levels ofoxygen in oceans had already been identified, but new research shows that the decline in lakes has been between three and nine times faster in the past 40 years. Scientists found oxygen levels had fallen by 19% in deep waters and 5% at the surface.

Rising temperatures driven by global heating is the main cause, because warmer water cannot hold as much oxygen. Furthermore, rising summer heat leaves the top layer of lakes hotter…

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