A study on water quality and trophic state of Akgöl Lagoon (Mersin, Turkey).

Alp, Mehmet Tahir | Fakıoğlu, Yunus Emre | Özbay, Özgür

This study aimed to determine the physicochemical characteristics of the water quality and trophic state of Akgol Lagoon located in the eastern Mediterranean. Cluster analysis clearly revealed the € spatial heterogeneity classifying sampling stations as saline and freshwater/brackish water sites. A multivariate analysis of variance followed by principal component analysis supported that salinity was major factor affecting physicochemical water quality variations in the lagoon. As salinity was mainly governed by freshwater inflows depending on agricultural irrigation, it can be proposed that water quality was significantly influenced from freshwater use by human activities. The parameters used as predictors (total nitrogen, total phosphorus, chlorophyll a and Secchi disk transparency) yield...