Lacustrine carbonate sedimentation

Type :

Presentation

Pages :

6 pages

Format :

.doc

Published date :

01/09/2009

Category :

Political science

Sub category :

Ecology & environment

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Summary :

Introduction.
Characteristics of open and closed basin lakes.
Sources of carbonate in lake systems.
Deposition and preservation of lake sediments.
Interpretation.
Case study: Moon Lake, North Dakota.
1. Demonstrating the importance of using various proxies when reconstructing paleoenvironment.
2. A shift from calcite deposition to aragonite.
3. The necessity to combine several techniques.
Conclusion.

Abstract

Lakes act as outdoor laboratories for the observation and understanding of natural processes. Every process has its own signature. If science looks at processes occurring today and their respective characteristics, then the door opens for understanding past processes that have similar characteristics and signatures. Sediments in lakes are the primary diagnostic source for determining paleoclimate, paleoenvironment and for developing a general understanding of lake processes. In particular carbonate sediments are unique archives for looking at a lake's specific chemical and environmental history. (Kelts and Talbot, 1990.) However it is necessary to look at a combination of factors other than carbonates and use various means of gathering data to fully understand a lake's history. Familiarity with the different sources of carbonate, the preservation processes and the general isotopic interpretation will provide bounds of information about biotic and abiotic interactions in the lake and local environmental change.