The Present State of Human Impact on Lake Baikal

• Main Author: Eugene A. Silow
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: Siberian Federal University 2013-12-01
• Series: Журнал Сибирского федерального университета: Серия Биология
• Subjects: lake baikal; anthropogenic impact; water level; chemical pollution
• Online Access: http://elib.sfu-kras.ru/bitstream/2311/10337/1/Silow.pdf

Five stages of human impact on the lake Baikal are characterised. Physical influence on the lake caused by Irkutsk power plant is described. Chemical pollution due to navigation, tourism, settlements’ waste water, waste discharges to water and atmosphere by Baikal Pulp and Paper Plant, waters coming from watershed, atmospheric transfer are viewed in details. The most of contaminants (>83 %) is coming with the waters of tributaries, the second role belongs to atmospheric precipitation (>15 %), the third place is occupied by pollution from Baikal Pulp and Paper Plant (<1 %), the rest – contaminations from other enterprises and settlements at shores, tourism and navigation (together about 0.5 %). Pollutants according to decrease in volume of their input can be ranged as mineral salts, particulate matter, dissolved organic matter, sulphates, mineral forms of nitrogen and phosphorus, oil products, sulphur containing organic substances, heavy metals and synthetic surfactants