Wildfire Smoke: Distribution, Particle Characterization, and Impacts on Lakes

SUDEEP CHANDRA; JANICE BRAHNEY; FACUNDO SCORDO; CARINA SEITZ; STEVE SADRO; ERIN SUENAGA; EMILY CARLSON; FLAVIA TROMBONI; CRAIG WILLIAMSON; JOSH CULPEPPER; KEVIN ROSE; ERIN OVERHOLT; JOANNA BLASCZAK; KELLY LORIA

Palma de Mallorca

Encuentro; ASLO Aquatic Sciences Meeting 2023; 2023

Association for the Sciences of Limnology and Oceanography

Large wildfires are increasing worldwide, but the impacts of wildfire smoke on lakes and their airsheds are rarely studied. We investigated the fundamental properties of wildfire smoke-ash that is transported and deposited around Lake Tahoe after the Caldor and other large fires in 2021. The amount of smoke deposited around the lake is highly variable depending on the proximity of ignition and the nutrient and metal quality of materials and their potential for influencing water quality (productivity and oxygen) are variable depending on location of deposition. We also summarize our findings from the impacts of wildfire smoke in 2018 on the airshed and mesotrophic Castle Lake. Incident ultraviolet-B (UV-B) radiation and photosynthetically active radiation (PAR) decreased by 53% and 28%, respectively, while the water column extinction coefficient of UV-B and PAR increased by 20% and 18% respectively. Pelagic productivity in the epilimnion increased during smoke cover because of decreased solar inputs with a decrease in deep water productivity. Despite changes in light and productivity in the offshore, zooplankton dynamics (biomass, composition, and migration), did not change but fishes were virtually absent in the nearshore during the smoke period.