Bennion, H; Burgess, A; (2007) Palaeoecological study of Loch Ussie. (ECRC Research Report 114 ). UCL Environmental Change Research Centre: London, UK.

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Abstract

Loch Ussie is a relatively shallow, mesotrophic loch located near Dingwall in the Scottish Highlands which has been designated as a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) and a Special Area of Conservation for its freshwater habitat, particularly its diverse submerged macrophyte flora. There are increasing concerns about water quality with at least one major algal bloom occurring in recent years and the apparent loss of Pillularia globulifera, a notified interest in the SSSI. Catchment management plans are being drafted that will consider incentives to reduce nutrient input from the agricultural areas of the catchment and proposals to manage loch water levels. In order to inform these plans, information about past nutrient conditions in the loch is desirable. This project aimed to build on an earlier palaeolimnological study of diatom assemblages in a sediment core from the loch to fully assess the magnitude and trends in water quality change at Loch Ussie over the last 150 years, and particularly over the last two or three decades. This report examines diatoms in an additional 10 samples from an archived sediment core, USSI1, and involves application of a diatom transfer function to infer past total phosphorus concentrations in the loch.

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