The New Spirit Lake: Changes to Hydrology, Nutrient Cycling, and Biological Productivity

Spirit Lake was changed biologically, chemically, and physically by the 1980 eruption of Mount St. Helens and the concurrent landslide that essentially buried the old lake and created a new one in its place. Recent changes to the surrounding watershed, spurred by ever-increasing regrowth of terrestrial vegetation, continue to alter the biogeochemistry of Spirit Lake. Here the authors outline over a decade of work developing a hydrologic and nutrient model for the lake and discuss preliminary work to elucidate the ecological role of the floating logs in Spirit Lake