Ecological Importance of Alkaline Phosphatase Activity and Acid Phosphatase Activity in Lakes with Different Catchment Use Structures

Abstract

Surface waters in Europe and across other continents have been affected by anthropogenic activities, leading to changes in the ecological state of lakes due to the continuous phenomenon of eutrophication. This study assesses the activity of enzymes secreted in bottom sediments collected from two lakes, aiming to determine the interaction between bottom sediments and water based on samples collected from lake bottoms and overlying water. The study measured the production of secreted enzymes via alkaline phosphatase (ALP) and acidic phosphatase (ACP) in two distinct environments. Sample collection encompassed two lakes within two diverse catchment types (agroforestry and forest) during spring and summer. The findings revealed higher ACP values than ALP in both lake environments, with higher enzyme values recorded in the lake with a typical forest catchment area. High values of enzymes were related to the pollutant’s input into the lakes, suggesting that anthropogenic activities may have a substantial influence on the studied lakes. Principal component analysis (PCA) allowed the identification of a negative correlation between the enzymatic activity of phosphorus in bottom sediments and the content of organic phosphorus (org-P) in overlying waters only within the forest catchment, where the angle between the vectors representing primary variables is close to 180 degrees. The conducted statistical analysis demonstrated significant distinctions among the lakes concerning most of the examined parameters.