TROPHIC STATUS SURVEY OF THE LAGUNA DE YAMBO BASED ON PHOSPHORUS ANALYSIS

Abstract

In this research a characterization of the water quality of the Laguna de Yambo, located in the province of Cotopaxi - Ecuador, 12 km south of Salcedo, was carried out in order to determine the trophic state of this body of water and the detection of eutrophication processes. For this research, five sample points were taken considering a specific method of sampling. First, five points of analysis was defined in different seasons of the year in the lagoon, according to coordinates obtained by GPS, here the samples were obtained at different depth levels, and parameters such as: dissolved oxygen, conductivity, pH, temperature and phosphate concentration were analyzed. In the evaluation of the trophic state index of the Laguna de Yambo, two criteria were used, the Carlson Model and Aizaki Model and a comparison was made between the formulas proposed in both models to determine the total phosphorus concentration and transparency
(Secchi Depth), based on the obtained results, and taking into account the confidence intervals for the Trophic Status Index, in the dry season there are 73.70 ± 3.92 and 78.01 ± 0.29, and in the wet season, 72.22 ± 2.44 and 76.67 ± 1.41, therefore it can be inferred that the Laguna de Yambo is in a eutrophic state.