Morphometry and hydrology of the four large lakes of Sweden

Abstract

The four largest Swedish lakes Vanern, Vattern, Malaren and Hjalmaren all have a tectonic origin with multidirectional fault fissures, which influence the topography of the bottoms and the creation of subbasins. All the four lakes have been subject to several glacials, the latest of which started to recede from central Sweden c. 10 000 years ago. The many differences between the four lakes can be explained by their shapes, sizes and the relation between the sizes of the drainage basins and the size of the lakes. This paper focuses on processes considered relevant to aquatic organisms of the lakes: water balance, water residence time, water temperature, water exchange between subbasins within the lakes, and other internal water movements. Links between pollution, water exchange and retention of nutrients are discussed with an example from Lake Vanern.

Published in

AMBIO: A Journal of the Human Environment
2001, Volume: 30, number: 8, pages: 467-474

SLU Authors

• Kvarnäs, Hans

  • Department of Aquatic Sciences and Assessment, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences
    

UKÄ Subject classification

Environmental Sciences
Oceanography, Hydrology, Water Resources


Publication identifier

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1579/0044-7447-30.8.467

Permanent link to this page (URI)

https://res.slu.se/id/publ/131602