Ecological Modelling 144 (2001) 231– 244

www.elsevier.com/locate/ecolmodel

A GIS-based method of lake eutrophication assessment

Fu-Liu Xu *, Shu Tao, R.W. Dawson, Beng-Gang Li
Department of Urban and En6ironmental Sciences, MOE Laboratory for Earth Surface Process, Peking Uni6ersity,
Beijing 100871, People’s Republic of China

Received 18 September 2000; received in revised form 30 March 2001; accepted 7 May 2001

Abstract

A geographical information system (GIS)-based method of lake eutrophication assessment was undertaken to study
the spatial distribution of eutrophication conditions in lake environments. A trophic state index (TSI) consisting of
six physical, chemical and biological indicators including total phosphorus (TP), total nitrogen (TN), chemical oxygen
demand (COD), Secchi disk depth (SD), chlorophyll-a concentration (Chl-a) and phytoplankton biomass (CA) was
constructed to describe the eutrophication state of the lake environment. A 0 – 100 eutrophication scale was also
developed to indicate seven different trophic levels within the lake environment: oligotrophic, lower-mesotrophic,
mesotrophic, upper-mesotrophic, eutrophic, hypereutrophic and extremely hypereutrophic. A representation of the
spatial distribution of TSITP, TSITN, TSICOD, TSISD, TSIChl-a and TSICA was developed using the inverse distance
weighted (IDW) interpolation method. By categorizing the interpolated values, a clear illustration of the different
trophic levels was developed on six thematic maps. A GIS overlay technique was applied to synthesize the
information from the six thematic maps into a final map illustrating the spatial distribution of eutrophication
conditions within the study area. The different periods or levels associated with lake eutrophication assessment using
GIS were then discussed. © 2001 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.

Keywords: Eutrophication; Spatial distribution; Trophic state index; Thematic map; Overlay; Geographical information system
(GIS); Lake Chao

1. Introduction vided into abiotic and biotic aspects. Among the

Since the 1960 – 70s, a number of attempts
have been made to quantitatively evaluate the
trophic state of lakes using single-variable
trophic indices or multi-parameter approaches.
The single-variable trophic indices can be di-
* Corresponding author. Tel./fax: + 86-10-6275-1938.
E-mail address: xufl@urban.pku.edu.cn (F.-L. Xu).
abiotic parameters, plant nutrients (phosphate,
nitrate), oxygen demanded (BOD, COD) and
transparency were usually used to assess lake
trophic levels (e.g. Vollenweider, 1968, 1976;
Dobson et al., 1974; Schindler, 1977; Chapra,
1980; Ritter, 1981; Gregor and Rast, 1982;
Persson and Jansson, 1988; Thornton and Rast,
1988; Alvarez Cobelas et al., 1992; Boers et al.,
1993). Also, biotic parameters were often em-
ployed to assess lake trophic conditions, given
the sensitivity of aquatic organisms, especially

0304-3800/01/$ - see front matter © 2001 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.
PII: S 0 3 0 4 - 3 8 0 0 ( 0 1 ) 0 0 3 7 4 - X
232 F.-L. Xu et al. / Ecological Modelling 144 (2001) 231–244
algae and macro-invertebrates, to eutrophication
processes (e.g. Rosenberg and Resh, 1993; Whit-
ton and Kelly, 1995; Brodersen et al., 1998;
Guntzel and Rocha, 1998; Canosa and Pinilla,
1999; Danilov and Ekelund, 2000). Phytoplank-
ton, both in running waters and lakes, turned
out to be a reliable environmental tool when
estimating different levels of eutrophication
(Tate, 1990; Paul et al., 1991; Proulx et al.,
1996; Rolland et al., 1997; Watson et al., 1997;
Smoot et al., 1998). With the exception of
chlorophyll-a concentrations, phytoplankton cell
number, species number and biomass, some
form of index, e.g. Hurlbert’s, Margalef’s, Men-
hinick’s, Shannon’s, Simpson’s, McNaughton’s,
has always been used in assessing eutrophication
conditions in aquatic environments (e.g. Wash-
ington 1984; Ludwing and Reynolds, 1988;
Whitton and Kelly, 1995; Danilov and Ekelund,
1999). However, these relatively simple single-
variable trophic state criteria represent subjective
judgements, and may be limited spatially (e.g.
Therriault and Platt, 1978; Reckhow and
Chapra, 1983; Powell et al., 1989; Boyle et al.,
1990; Whitton and Kelly, 1995; Karydis and
Tsirtsis, 1996; Danilov and Ekelund, 1999). Fur-
ther, the use of descriptive classifications for
lake trophic states such as oligotrophic,
mesotrophic, eutrophic and so on, could create
difficulties when attempting to describe continu-
ous changes in a lake’s trophic state or in study-
ing quantitatively the eutrophication mechanism
(Shannon and Brezonik, 1972b; Carlson, 1977;
Yoshimi, 1987).
The multidimensional nature of the eutrophi-
cation phenomenon means that no single vari-
able is representative of the eutrophication
status of a given water body (Shannon and Bre-
zonik, 1972b; Carlson, 1977; Cruzado, 1987).
More robust trophic state criteria or indices us-
ing multivariate approaches have been proposed
by a number of investigators (e.g., Shannon,
1970; Shannon and Brezonik, 1972a,b; Carlson,
1977; Walker, 1979; Porcella et al., 1980; Ritter,
1981; Swanson, 1998). The contributions of
Carlson, Walker and Porcella et al. offer a 0–
100 scale providing continuous numerical classes
of lake trophic states and a rigorous foundation
for quantitative studies of the mechanisms be-
hind eutrophication. This effectively eliminates
the subjective labeling associated with the use of
oligotrophic, mesotrophic and eutrophic states
as indicators. The trophic state index (TSI)
based on several biological, chemical and physi-
cal indicators, especially the Carlson-type TSI
(e.g. Carlson, 1977; Walker, 1979; Porcella et
al., 1980; Aizaki et al., 1981; Jin et al., 1990;
Swanson, 1998) offers the most suitable and ac-
ceptable method for evaluating lake
eutrophication.
Mathematical methods play a very important
role in lake eutrophication assessment in terms
of parameters chosen, weighting factor calcula-
tion, and sample classification. Exploratory
statistical regression analysis has been used to
investigate relationships between the related
parameters and eutrophication levels (e.g. Vol-
lenweider, 1968, 1976; Shannon, 1970; Shannon
and Brezonik, 1972a; Dillon and Riegler, 1974;
Nicholls and Dillon, 1978; Rast and Lee, 1978;
Chapra and Reckhow, 1979, 1983; Ciecka et al.,
1980; Baker et al., 1981; OECD, 1982; Ahlgren
et al., 1988). Further, cluster analysis (e.g. Shan-
non, 1970; Shannon and Brezonik, 1972a,b; Sch-
ernewski and Schulz, 1999; Danilov and
Ekelund, 2000), fuzzy analysis (e.g. Cai, 1988;
Cao, 1991; Li et al., 1991), principal component
analysis (e.g. Li et al., 1990; Zitko, 1994), and
artificial neural networks (Cai et al., 1995; Li,
1995; Lu and Zhu, 1998), have proven to be
powerful tools in lake eutrophication assess-
ment. Another important attempt at a multi-
parametric classification of trophic conditions
was undertaken by Zurlini (1996) by combining
the exact probabilities from OECD (OECD,
1982) of the log normal frequency distributions
of chlorophyll, nitrogen and phosphorus concen-
trations as well as Secchi depths. Additionally,
several other researchers applied remote sensing
technologies to the lake trophic classification
and assessment process (e.g. Borton et al., 1975;
Novo and Godoy, 1989; Baban, 1996).
The primary disadvantage of such methodolo-
gies, however, has to do with the spatial discon-
tinuity of their data, since their results were
based on fragmentary data collected during sam-
 F.-L. Xu et al. / Ecological Modelling 144 (2001) 231–244
pling surveys. They do not provide an explicit
view of the trophic status of lake eutrophication
nor any clear-cut information related to water
quality for lake researchers and managers. Lake
eutrophication assessment requires not only a
large number of variables, but also a spatial dis-
tribution of eutrophication levels based on each
of the variables. The spatial assessment, how-
ever, of eutrophication levels may become quite
complicated, since the function and dynamics of
each parameter may lead to different eutrophi-
cation trends (e.g. Therriault and Platt, 1978;
Powell et al., 1989; Kitsiou and Karydis, 1998).
There seems to exist, then, a need for appropri-
ate methodologies and tools capable of synthe-
sizing spatially the eutrophication trends
presented by various parameters. By synthesizing
such trends, a final thematic map illustrating the
spatial distribution of eutrophication conditions
can be created. Fortunately, this can easily be
performed through use of a geographic informa-
tion system (GIS).
GIS can be used to perform a number of fun-
damental spatial analysis operations. Its major
advantage is that it allows the user to identify
the spatial relationships between various map
features. More precisely, overlay techniques al-
lows the synthesis of different map layers, based
on a database where the information is stored
as a whole. Comparisons, as well as further
analyses, among and between both variables and
layers can then be easily performed (GIS, 1994).
There is still much to do regarding the integra-
tion of environmental assessment and modeling
with GIS (Fedra and Goodchild, 1993). How-
ever, there are some successful examples of ap-
plications of GIS to environmental modeling
and assessment, e.g. modeling the effects of cli-
mate change on water resources, surface water
flow analysis, groundwater flow analysis, urban
air pollution regimens, regional fish species rich-
ness modeling, community modeling, population
and landscape ecology, and natural resource
management (see Fedra and Goodchild, 1993
for details).
The purpose of the present work is to inte-
grate GIS techniques into the lake eutrophica-
tion assessment process and then to study the
233
resulting spatial distributions of lake eutrophica-
tion conditions.
2. Materials and methods
2.1. Study area and data collection
Lake Chao is located in southeastern China
(Fig. 1A). It has a mean surface area of 760
km2, a mean depth of 3.06 m, and a mean re-
tention time of 136 days. Lake Chao is one of
the five largest fresh-water lakes in China, and
the most eutrophic. Prior to the 1950s, the lake
was well known for its scenic beauty and rich-
ness of aquatic life. Since that time, however,
the lake has suffered from serious eutrophica-
tion. Increasing pressures from population
growth and economic development in the
drainage area are primarily responsible for the
lake’s current eutrophic state. The present con-
ditions have had negative ecological, health, so-
cial, and economic effects on the lake and its
utilization. Lake Chao was selected some time
ago for inclusion in a nation-wide study of lake
eutrophication conditions and processes. Ac-
cordingly, comprehensive research on Lake
Chao has been carried out for more than 20
years (see Tu et al., 1990; Wang et al., 1995;
Xu, 1994, 1996, 1997; Xu et al., 1999a,b,c).
Measurement and sampling of the lake’s wa-
ter for analytical purposes were performed
monthly from April 1987 to March 1988. The
water samples were collected using a van Dorhn
sampler from 34 stations (Fig. 1B) at a depth of
0.5-m. The parameters chosen for measurement
included both physic-chemical parameters (SD,
pH, TN, TP, Si, COD, BOD, DO, etc.) and
biological parameters (chlorophyll-a concentra-
tion (Chl-a), biomass concentration and the dry
weight of both phytoplankton and zooplankton,
and the number of phytoplankton cells). Ther-
mal profiles were taken every 3 h at various
points in the lake by means of a thermograph.
A weather station located on the site provided
3-h measurements of atmospheric pressure, wind
speed and direction, air temperature, humidity
and solar radiation.
234 F.-L. Xu et al. / Ecological Modelling 144 (2001) 231–244

The flow chart of the GIS-based method for the
lake eutrophication assessment is shown in Fig. 2.
2.2. Assessment indicators and their
eutrophication scales
Consulting Carlson (1977) and Porcella et al.
(1980), a trophic state index (TSI) on a scale from
0 to 100 was constructed. The TSIs was based on
total phosphorus (TP, in mg/l of P), total nitrogen
(TN, in mg/l of N), chemical oxygen demand
(COD, in mg/l), Secchi disk depth (SD, in m),
chlorophyll-a concentration (Chl-a, in mg/m3), and
phytoplankton biomass (CA, as C in mg/m3) (see
Table 1). The 0–100 scale was divided into ranges,
each representing a particular trophic state: 0–30
representing oligotrophic, 30–40 lower-mesotro-
phic, 40–50 mesotrophic, 50–60 upper-mesotro-

Fig. 1. Geographical location (A) and distribution of sampling points (B) of Lake Chao.
 F.-L. Xu et al. / Ecological Modelling 144 (2001) 231–244 235

Fig. 2. The flow chart for the GIS-based method for lake eutrophication assessment.

Table 1
The scale of the trophic state index (TSI) and the evaluation standards for Lake Chaoa

TSI Eutrophication level TP (mg/l) TN (mg/l) COD (mg/l) SD (m) Chl-a (mg/m3) CA (mg/m3)

0 Oligotrophic 0.0004 0.010 0.06 48 0 /

10 0.0009 0.070 0.12 27 0.10 B50
20 0.0020 0.150 0.24 15 0.26 50
30 0.0046 0.300 0.48 8.0 0.66 100
40 Lower-mesotrophic 0.0100 0.600 0.96 4.4 1.60 150
50 Mesotrophic 0.0230 1.000 1.80 2.4 4.10 200
60 Upper-mesotrophic 0.0500 1.500 3.60 1.3 10.0 250
70 Eutrophic 0.1100 2.000 7.10 0.73 20.0 300
80 Hypereutrophic 0.2500 3.000 14.0 0.40 40.0 500
90 Extremely 0.5500 4.600 27.0 0.22 100 800
hypereutrophic
100 1.2000 10.00 54.0 0.12 200 \800

a
Consulting the trophic state index and evaluation standards for lake eutrophication of OECD (1982) and Japan National
Environmental Institute (Aizaki et al., 1981), and for Lake Tai eutrophication in China (Jin et al., 1990). TP, total phosphorus; TN,
total nitrogen; COD, chemical oxygen demand; SD, Secchi disk depth; Chl-a, chlorophyll-a concentration; CA, phytoplankton
biomass.

phic, 60– 70 eutrophic, 70– 80 hypereutrophic,
and 80 –100 the extremely hypereutrophic. The
assessment standards for each indicator were
based on those constructed for the Evaluation
Standards for Lake Eutrophication designed for
the OECD (1982) and the Japanese National
Environmental Institute (Aizaki et al., 1981),
and those used in assessing the eutrophication
of Lake Tai in China (Jin et al., 1990) (see
Table 1).
236 F.-L. Xu et al. / Ecological Modelling 144 (2001) 231–244
2.3. Calculation of eutrophication le6els and
generation of thematic maps
The following expression was used to calculate
the lake eutrophication levels for each of the
indicators:
TSIi = (TSIk − 1 +((Ci −Si,k − 1)/(Si,k −Si,k − 1))
*(TSIk − TSIk − 1)) (1)
where Ci is the measured concentration of the i-th
indicator (i=TP, TN, COD, SD, Chl-a and CA),
TSIk and TSIk − 1 are the k-th and (k −1)-th scales
of the i-th indicator, Si,k and Si,k − 1 are the evalu-
ation standards of k-th and (k − 1)-th scales of the
i-th indicator (see Table 1).
The inverse distance weighted (IDW) interpola-
tion method (Lam, 1983) with a spatial resolution
of 500×500 m and ArcView Version 3.1 (ArcView
3.1, ESRI, Inc.) were used to generate the six
thematic maps indicating the spatial distribution of
eutrophication levels based on each indicator. The
IDW interpolation method is based on the principle
of assigning higher weights to data points closest
to an unvisited point relative to those which are
further away (Weber and Englund, 1992, 1994). In
other words, the assigned weight is a function of
inverse distance as represented in the following
formula (Lam, 1983):
 N
n 
f(x, y)= % w(di )zi } % w(di )
N
n (2)
i=1 i=1
where f(x, y) is the interpolated value at point (x, y);
w(di ) is the weighting function; zi is the data value
at point i; and di is the distance from point (x, y).
The interpolated values of any point within the
dataset are bounded by min(zi ) B f(x, y) B max(zi ),
as long as w(di )\ 0 (Lam, 1983). The IDW inter-
polation method has been widely used on many
types of data because of its simplicity in principle,
speed in calculation, easiness in programming, and
credibility in interpolating surfaces (Lam, 1983).
2.4. The o6erlay of the thematic maps
The overlay technique, widely used in GIS appli-
cations (GIS, 1994), was applied to synthesize the
six thematic maps and develop the final eutrophica-
tion map. The following steps describe the synthe-
sizing procedure used to analyze the six thematic
maps:
1. Development of an trophic state index (TSI)
scale from 0 to 100 to label the different
trophic levels (see Table 1).
2. Application of this ordinal scale to all the
pixels/cells on each thematic map; each pixel
was assigned a value from 0 to 100 based on a
comparison between its initial value and the
eutrophication scales in Table 1.
3. Analysis of the six thematic maps on a cell-by-
cell basis. As a result, a final map illustrating
the spatial distribution of eutrophication levels
was produced. The following expression was
used in the overlay operation to produce the
TSI values:
* WTP + TSITN
TSI = (TSITP * WTN + TSICOD
* WCOD
+ TSISD
* WSD + TSIChl-a
* WChl-a
+ TSI*
CAWCA) (3)
where TSITP, TSITN, TSICOD, TSISD, TSIChl-a and
TSICA are the eutrophication levels for TP, TN,
COD, SD, Chl-a and CA on the six thematic
layers; WTP, WTN, WCOD, WSD, WChl-a and WCA
are the weighting factors for each indicator (as-
sumed as 1/6 for each indicator in the operation).
3. Results
The thematic maps of TSITP, TSITN, TSICOD,
TSISD, TSIChl-a and TSICA developed using the IDW
interpolation method and the eutrophication scales,
are illustrated in Fig. 3a–f, respectively. The final
TSI map developed as a result of the overlay
technique is given in Fig. 4.
Fig. 3a shows the spatial distribution of TSITP.
From it, one can see that the western part of Lake
Chao is characterized mainly as severely eutrophic
(TSITP 70–80), while the eutrophic field (TSITP
60–70) is distributed in the eastern part of the lake.
The eutrophication levels near the river mouths are
representative of eutrophic to extremely hyper-
eutrophic (TSITP 60–90) conditions, while the up-
per-mesotrophic and eutrophic (TSITP 50–70)
conditions can be observed in the open water areas.
 F.-L. Xu et al. / Ecological Modelling 144 (2001) 231–244 237

Fig. 3b illustrates the spatial distribution of eastern parts, near the river mouths. Most of the
TSITN. The hypereutrophic field (TSITN 70 – 80) is study area can be characterized as eutrophic
mainly distributed in the northwestern and north- (TSITN 60–70) centered in the southwestern and

Fig. 3. Spatial distribution of the lake trophic state index based on each indicator: (a) TSITP; (b)TSITN; (c)TSICOD; (d)TSISD;
(e)TSIChl-a; (f) TSICA.
238 F.-L. Xu et al. / Ecological Modelling 144 (2001) 231–244

Fig. 3. (Continued)

southeastern parts and upper-mesotrophic (TSITN is extended from the central to the southeastern
50–60) in the central part. part of the lake, with most of the remainder of the
Fig. 3c shows the TSICOD spatial distribution. study area being characterized as eutrophic
Here, the upper-mesotrophic field (TSICOD 50 – 60) (TSICOD 60–70).
 F.-L. Xu et al. / Ecological Modelling 144 (2001) 231–244
Fig. 3d reveals the spatial distribution of TSISD.
The extremely hypereutrophic field (TSISD 80 –
100) covers the entire lake. The eutrophication
level near the river mouths in the western part of
the lake is higher (TSISD 90 – 100) than that found
elsewhere in the study area (TSISD 80 – 90).
Fig. 3e demonstrates the spatial distribution of
TSIChl-a. The central and southwestern parts of
the lake are characterized by mesotrophic and
lower-mesotrophic fields (TSIChl-a 30 – 50), with a
strong mesotrophic field (TSIChl-a 40 – 50) domi-
nance. The northwestern and eastern parts of the
study area are characterized as primarily upper-
mesotrophic (TSIChl-a 50 – 60), with the eutrophic
field (TSIChl-a 60–70) extending mainly near the
river mouths in the same area. The severely eu-
trophic (TSIChl-a 70– 80) and the extremely hyper-
eutrophic fields (TSIChl-a 80 – 90) are limited to
small areas in the central and eastern parts of the
lake.
Fig. 3f indicates the spatial distribution of
TSICA. The mesotrophic field (TSICA 40 – 50) ex-
tends from the southwestern to central parts of
the lake, while the lower-mesotrophic field (TSICA
30–40) is limited to small areas in the same
region. The upper-mesotrophic (TSICA 50 – 60)
covers most of the northwestern and the eastern
parts of the study area. The eutrophic range
(TSICA 60–70) is found principally in the eastern
part of the lake and in limited number of small
Fig. 4. Final map for the spatial distribution of the lake eutrophication based on overlay technique
239
areas in the northwestern part of the lake. The
hypereutrophic field (TSICA 70–80) is only found
near the mouth of the Zhegaohe River in the
eastern part of the lake.
Finally, the overall TSI spatial distribution is
illustrated in Fig. 4. Eutrophic conditions (TSI
60–70) cover most of the study area, while the
hypereutrophic conditions (TSI 70–80) are dis-
tributed mainly near the river mouths in the
northwestern and northeastern parts of the lake.
A very limited area in the central part of the study
area is characterized as upper-mesotrophic (TSI
50–60).
4. Discussions
The spatial distribution of Lake Chao’s eu-
trophication levels derived from this study is
closely correlated with the actual conditions of the
lake. The northwestern and northeastern parts of
the lake, especially the river mouths near the
Nanfeihe and Zhegaohe Rivers, receive much
more wastewater because of their nearness to
Hefei City, the capital of Anhui Province, and
Chaohu City, the second largest city in the lake’s
watershed (see Fig. 1A). The nutrient contents
which are primarily responsible for eutrophication
(Rast and Holland, 1988; Ryding and Rast, 1989;
Cooke et al., 1993) both in the lake’s water and
240 F.-L. Xu et al. / Ecological Modelling 144 (2001) 231–244
sediments, were far higher in these two regions
than anywhere else in the lake (see Fig. 3a,b and
Xu et al., 2000). The concentration of Chl-a and
phytoplankton biomass, two of the more obvious
symptoms of eutrophication (Rast and Holland,
1988; Ryding and Rast, 1989; Cooke et al., 1993),
both followed similar trends in spatial distribution
(see Fig. 3e,f).
Lake eutrophication, however, cannot be sim-
ply evaluated by a single physical, chemical, or
biological parameter. It is a multidimensional fea-
ture (Shannon and Brezonik, 1972b; Carlson,
1977; Cruzado, 1987). These single indicators
cover different aspects of the lake eutrophication
phenomenon. It is necessary, therefore, to apply
several indicators simultaneously (including physi-
cal, chemical, and biological) to derive a more
complete lake eutrophication assessment. Only
through such a multidimensional approach can
one capture all the features needed to yield a fully
informative assessment of the eutrophic condition
of a lake. Unfortunately, the sensitivity of a sin-
gle-parameter and/or its weighting factor may be
different in different lakes depending on the
parameters used in the TSI (e.g. Therriault and
Platt, 1978; Reckhow and Chapra, 1983; Powell et
al., 1989; Boyle et al., 1990; Whitton and Kelly,
1995; Karydis and Tsirtsis, 1996; Danilov and
Ekelund, 1999). The choice of suitable indicators
and their weights is critically important in the
eutrophication assessment of a specific lake.
Hooper (1969) identified four important criteria
useful in the development of eutrophication in-
dices: (1) it should discriminate between changes
associated with nutrient level and those associated
with other categories of environmental change; (2)
it should have considerable sensitivity to levels of
enrichment; (3) it should have properties which
are widespread geographically and short-lived ge-
ologically; and (4) it should be suitable for long-
term surveillance and monitoring, i.e. indices
should both document past changes and serve as
a predictive function.
Most of the current research has focused on the
identification and selection of suitable indicators
relative to assessing the eutrophic condition of a
lake. The spatial distribution of eutrophication
levels, however, is equally important in develop-
ing a complete picture of the trophic state of a
lake. A GIS-based method to spatially assess lake
eutrophication states was proposed in this paper.
GIS technology is mainly adequate for distributed
data which are within the resolution of the GIS
grid, e.g. land use, land cover (both can be de-
duced from sattelite inages), DEM, etc. The ap-
proach in this paper is not the same— the authors
used rather limited number of observation points
and a special technique (IDW) to calculate the
GIS mesh values of variables. The methodology
could have three different approaches depending
on integration style and date exchange methodol-
ogy between the GIS approach and the TSI calcu-
lations (see Fig. 5). The first is shown in Fig. 5a.
Here, both the GIS and the TSI calculations
belong to two separate systems, each having their
own identifiable user interface. The GIS is used
simply to display the results of the TSI calcula-
tions and their integration is limited to file ex-
change activity. The second approach is
illustrated in Fig. 5b. Here, the GIS and the TSI
calculations still belong to two separate systems.
However, they possess a common user interface
that is used to activate the GIS and TSI calcula-
tions as a single system, in addition to managing
common data and file exchanges. This integrating
style reduces errors associated with both data and
file exchanges between separate systems. The third
approach is presented in Fig. 5c. The GIS and the
TSI calculations are now completely integrated as
a Decision-Making Support System for Lake Eu-
trophication Assessment (DMSSLEA), having a
uniform user interface and data sharing. In this
approach, the TSI calculations are treated as an
analysis function of the integrating system. The
calculations are programmed using a specific GIS
programming language, e.g. Avenue in ArcView,
SML in Arc/Info PC version, MapBasic in Map-
Info, or Genius in GanaMap. Here the GIS man-
ages the spatial and attribute data, in addition to
manipulating and displaying the results of TSI
calculations.
The first approach was applied in the case study
presented in this paper. The TSI calculations were
developed using MS Excel 97, while the genera-
tion and synthesis of the six thematic maps was
performed using the IDW interpolation method
 F.-L. Xu et al. / Ecological Modelling 144 (2001) 231–244
Fig. 5. The different periods or levels of GIS-based method for lake eutrophication assessment: (a) the first periods or levels; (b) the
second periods or levels; (c) the third periods or levels.
and overlay technique within the framework of a
Geographic Information System (ArcView 3.1,
ESRI). The results of the TSI calculations were
stored in Dbase format. The map indicating the
boundary and sampling points in the lake served
as the basis for visualizing the resulting spatial
data (Fig. 1B). A DMSSLEA completely inte-
grated with a GIS approach to the TSI calcula-
tions is currently under development with the
financial support of the Natural Sciences Founda-
tion of China (39970121and 40024101).
5. Conclusions
A GIS-based method of lake eutrophication
assessment was proposed with the purpose of
studying the spatial distribution of eutrophication
conditions in the lake environment. The method
included the integration of GIS methodology into
lake eutrophication assessment using a trophic
state index. The IDW interpolation method was
used for generating thematic maps indicating the
spatial distribution of each of the Trophic State
Indices. An overlay technique within the GIS
241
framework was applied to analyze the informa-
tion from the thematic maps in order to develop a
final map illustrating the spatial distribution of
eutrophication conditions in the lake. Results
from the study indicate that the boundaries asso-
ciated with different trophic levels (upper-
mesotrophic, eutrophic and hypereutrophic) could
be clearly defined in a final eutrophication map.
This result comprises the principal advantage of
the proposed methodology when compared with
other attempts based on a multi-parametric clas-
sification and assessment of lake trophic trends.
The latter approach does not lead to a clear
definition of the boundaries associated with differ-
ing trophic levels. As such, the proposed method-
ology could be of special interest to policy makers
involved in lake management and planning, since
policy makers need a more explicit view of trophic
status and clear information on water quality.
Acknowledgements
The authors are greatly indebted to Professor
S.E. Jgensen and Dr S.N. Nielson of the Royal
242 F.-L. Xu et al. / Ecological Modelling 144 (2001) 231–244
Danish School of Pharmacy for their valuable
suggestions. The project (39970121 and 40024101)
was supported by National Natural Science Foun-
dation of China, and the State Education Min-
istry of China.
References
Ahlgren, I., Frisk, T., Kamp-Nielsen, L., 1988. Empirical and
theoretical models of phosphorus loading, retention and
concentration vs. lake trophic state. Hydrobiologia 170,
285 – 303.
Aizaki, M., Iwakuma, T., Takamura, N., 1981. Application of
modified Carlson’s trophic state index to Japanese lakes
and its relationship to other parameters related to trophic
state. Res. Rep. Natl. Inst. Environ. Stud. 23, 13 – 31.
Alvarez Cobelas, M., Munoz Ruiz, P., Rubio Olmo, A., Prat
i Fornells, N., 1992. Current state of eutrophication in
spanish inland waters. Eur. Water Pollut. Cont. 2 (5),
27– 32.
Baban, S.M.J., 1996. Trophic classification and ecosystem
checking of lakes using remotely sensed information. J. Sci.
Hydrol. 41 (6), 939 –958.
Baker, L.A., Brezonik, P.L., Kratzer, C.R., 1981. Nutrient
Loading-Trophic State Relationships in Florida Lakes.
Springfield VA 22161. Publication No 56, p. 126.
Boers, P.C.M., Cappenberg, T.E., Van Raaphorst, W., 1993.
Proceeding of the Third International Workshop on Phos-
phorus in Sediments. Hydrobiologia 253, 17 –376.
Borton, T., Wezernak, C.T., Raney, R.K., 1975. Inland Lakes
Water Quality and Watershed Planning: Remote Sensing
Technology Applications. The USA National Science
Foundation, Report NSF-RA-E-75-036, p. 188.
Boyle, T.P., Smillie, G.M., Anderson, J.D., 1990. Beeson
DR.A sensitivity analysis of nine diversity and seven simi-
larity indices. Res. J. WPCF 62, 749 –762.
Brodersen, K.P., Dall, P.C., Lindegaard, C., 1998. The fauna
in the upper stony littoral of Danish lakes: Macroinverte-
brates as trophic indicators. Freshwater-Biol. 39 (3), 577 –
592.
Cai, Q., 1988. Fuzzy cluster analysis of pollution in Lake
Donghu ecosystem. Acta Hydrobiol. Sinica 12 (3), 193 –
198.
Cai, Y.D., Wang, L., Yao, L.S., 1995. Artificial neural net-
work model for lake eutrophication assessment. China
Environ. Sci. 15 (2), 123 –127.
Canosa, A., Pinilla, G., 1999. Bacteriological eutrophication
indicators in four Colombian water bodies (South Amer-
ica). Lakes and Reservoirs: Res. Manage. 1 – 2, 23–27.
Cao, P., 1991. Fuzzy analysis for lake eutrophication assess-
ment. Environ. Sci. 12 (5), 88 –91.
Carlson, R.E., 1977. A trophic state index for lakes. Limnol.
Oceanog. 22 (2), 361 –369.
Chapra, S.C., 1980. Application of the phosphorus loading
concept to the Great Lakes. In: Loehr, C., Martin, C.S.,
Rast, W. (Eds.), Phosphorus Management Strategies for
Lakes. Ann Arbor Science Publishers, Ann Arbor, MI, pp.
135 – 152.
Chapra, S.C.&, Reckhow, K., 1979. Expressing the phospho-
rus loading concept in probabilistic terms. J. Fish. Res. Bd.
Can. 36, 225 – 229.
Chapra, S.C., Reckhow, K., 1983. Phosphorus Management
Strategies for Lakes, Mechanistic Modelling. Butterworth,
Woburn, MA.
Ciecka, J., Fabian, R., Merilatt, D., 1980. Eutrophication
Measures for Small Lake Water Quality Management.
Water Resources Bull. 16 (4), 681 – 689.
Cooke, D.G, Welch, E.B., Peterson, S.A., Newroth, P.R.,
1993. Restoration and Management of Lakes and Reser-
voirs, Second Edition. Lewis Publishers, p. 548.
Cruzado, A., 1987. Eutrophication in the pelagic environment
and its assessment. In eutrophication in the Mediterranean
Sea: Receiving capacity and monitoring of long term ef-
fects. UNESCO Reports in Marine Science 49, 57 – 66.
Danilov, R., Ekelund, N.G.A., 1999. The efficiency of seven
diversity and one similarity indices based on phytoplank-
ton data for assessing the level of eutrophication in lakes in
central Sweden. Sci. Total Environ. 234 (1 – 3), 15 – 23.
Danilov, R., Ekelund, N.G.A., 2000. The use of epiphyton
and epilithon data as a base for calculating ecological
indices in monitoring of eutrophication in lakes in central
Sweden. Sci. Total Environ. 248, 63 – 70.
Dillon, P.J., Riegler, F.H., 1974. A test of a simple nutrient
budget model predicting the phosphorus concentration in
lake water. J. Fish. Res. Board Can. 31, 1771 – 1778.
Dobson, H.F.H., Gilbertson, M., Sly, P.G., 1974. A Summary
and Comparison of Nutrients and Related Water Quality
in Lake Erie, Ontario, Huron and Superior. J. Fish. Res.
Bd. Can. 31, 731 – 738.
Fedra, K., Goodchild, M.F., 1993. Environmental Modeling
with GIS. Oxford University Press, Oxford, p. 358.
GIS by ESRI, 1994. Cell-based modeling with grid. Environ-
mental Systems Research Institute Inc., USA.
Gregor, D.J., Rast, W., 1982. Simple Trophic State Classifica-
tion of the Canadian Nearshore Waters of the Great
Lakes. Water Res. Bull. 18 (4), 565 – 573.
Guntzel, A., Rocha, O., 1998. Relationships between the
zooplankton community and the trophic state of Caconde
Lake, Osorio, RS, Brazil. Iheringia Serie Zool. 84, 65 – 71.
Hooper, F.F., 1969. Eutrophication indices and their relation
to other indices of ecosystem change. In: Eutrophication:
Causes, Consequences, Correctives. USA National
Academy of Sciences, Washington, D.C, pp. 225 – 235.
Jin, X., Liu, H., Tu, Q., Zhang, Z., Zhu, X., 1990. Eutrophica-
tion of Lakes in China. China Environmental Sciences
Press, Beijing, p. 614.
Karydis, M., Tsirtsis, G., 1996. Ecological indices: a biometric
approach for assessing eutrophication levels in the marine
environment. Sci. Total Environ. 186, 209 – 219.
 F.-L. Xu et al. / Ecological Modelling 144 (2001) 231–244
Kitsiou, D., Karydis, M., 1998. Development of categorical
mapping for quantitative assessment of eutrophication. J.
Coast Conserv. 4, 35 –44.
Lam, N.S.N., 1983. Spatial interpolation methods: a review.
Am Car. Tographer 10 (2), 129 –149.
Li, Z., 1995. Eutrophication assessment based on B-P artificial
neural network and its effectivity. Acta Sci. Circumstant.
15 (2), 186 – 191.
Li, Z., Deng, X., Hong, J., 1990. Application of principal
component analysis on comparison of lake eutrophication
assessment. Acta Sci. Circumstant. 10 (3), 311 – 317.
Li, Z., Deng, X., Zhang, H., Hong, J., Jin, X., 1991. Applica-
tion of fuzzy degree concept to eutrophication assessment
of lake. Res. Environ. Sci. 4 (2), 32 –36.
Lu, W.X., Zhu, T.C., 1998. Artificial neural network evalua-
tion of lake eutrophication. Chinese J. Appl. Ecol. 9 (6),
645– 650.
Ludwing, L.A., Reynolds, J.F., 1988. Statistical Ecology. A
Primer on Methods and Computing. Wiley, New York, p.
337.
Nicholls, K.H., Dillon, P.J., 1978. An evaluation of phospho-
rus– chlorophyll – phytoplankton relationships for lakes.
Int. Revue Ges. Hydrobiol. 63, 141 – 154.
Novo, E.M.L.M., Godoy, M. Jr, 1989. Eutrophication Assess-
ment Through Remote Sensing Techniques, vol. 5. IEEE,
Piscataway, NJ, USA, pp. 2825 – 2828.
OECD, 1982. Eutrophication of Waters. Monitoring, Assess-
ment and Control. OECD, Paris.
Paul, B.J., Duthie, H.C., Taylor, W.D., 1991. Nutrient cycling
by biofilms in running waters of different nutrient status. J.
North Am. Benthol. Soc. 10, 31 –41.
Persson, G., Jansson, M., 1988. Phosphorus in freshwater
ecosystems. Hydrobiologia 170, 1 –340.
Porcella, D.B., Peterson, S.A., Larsen, D.P., 1980. Index to
evaluate lake restoration. J. Environ. Eng. Div. ASCE 106
(EE6), 1151 – 1169.
Powell, T.M., Cloern, J.E., Huzzey, L.M., 1989. Spatial and
temporal variability in south San Francisco Bay USA.I.
Horizontal distributions of salinity suspended sediments
and phytoplankton biomass and productivity. Estuar.
Coastal Shelf Sci. 28, 583 –597.
Proulx, M., Pick, F., Mazumder, A., Hamilton, P., Lean, D.,
1996. Experimental evidence for interactive impacts of
human activities on lake algal species richness. Oikos 76,
191– 195.
Rast, W., Lee, G.F., 1978. Summary of analysis of the North
American (US portion) OECD Eutrophication Project:
Nutrient loading-lake response relationships and trophic
state indices. Environmental Research Laboratory, Corval-
lis, Oregon, USA, p. 454.
Rast, W., Holland, M., 1988. Eutrophication of lakes and
reservoirs: a framework for making management decisions.
Ambio 17, 2 – 12.
Reckhow, K.H., Chapra, S.C., 1983. Engineering Approaches
for Lake Management: Dara Analysis and Empirical Mod-
eling, vol. 1. Butterworth Publishers, Boston, p. 340.
243
Ritter, W.F., 1981. Survey and Classification of Delaware’s
Public Lakes. Report prepared for U.S. Environmental
Protection Agency, Philadelphia, PA, March, p. 459.
Rolland, T., Fayolle, S., Cazaubon, A., Pagnetti, S., 1997.
Methodical approach to distribution of epilithic and drift-
ing algae communities in a French subalpine river: infer-
ences on water quality assessment. Aquat. Sci. 59, 57 – 73.
Rosenberg, D.M., Resh, V.H., 1993. Freshwater Biomonitor-
ing and Benthic Macroinvertebrates. Chapman & Hall,
London, p. 325.
Ryding, S.O., Rast, W., 1989. The Control of Eutrophication
of Lakes and Reservoirs. Man and the Biosphere Series,
vol. 1. UNESCO, Paris, p. 256.
Schernewski, G., Schulz, U., 1999. Changes of water quality in
north German lakes between 1983 and 1993: an applica-
tion of cluster analysis. Limnologica 29 (2), 146 – 159.
Schindler, D.W., 1977. Evolution of phosphorus limitation in
lakes. Science 195, 260 – 262.
Shannon, E.E., 1970. Eutrophication-trophic state relation-
ships in north and central florida lakes. Doctoral disserta-
tion for Ph.D., University of Florida, p. 256.
Shannon, E.E., Brezonik, P.L., 1972a. Eutrophication:
Cause—Effect Relationships. Dept. of Environmental En-
gineering, Florida University, Gainesville, p. 59.
Shannon, E.E., Brezonik, P.L., 1972b. Eutrophication analy-
sis: a multivariate approach. J. San. Eng. Div. ASCE 98
(1), 37 – 57.
Smoot, J.C., Langworthy, D.E., Levy, M., 1998. Periphyton
growth on submerged artificial substrate as a predictor of
phytoplankton response to nutrient enrichment. J. Micro-
biol. Methods 32, 11 – 19.
Swanson, E.R., 1998. Trophic state index revisited. LakeLine
18 (4), 18 – 20.
Tate, C.M., 1990. Patterns and controls of nitrogen in tallgrass
prairie streams. Ecology 71, 2007 – 2018.
Therriault, J.C., Platt, T., 1978. Spatial heterogeneity of phy-
toplankton biomass and related factors in the near-surface
waters of an exposed coastal environment. Limnol.
Oceanogr. 23, 888 – 899.
Thornton, J.A., Rast, W., 1988. Preliminary observations on
comparative limnology of north and south semi-arid man-
made lakes and possible implications for eutrophication
assessment. 8 Annual International Symposium on Lake
and Watershed Management. p. 33.
Tu, Q.Y., Gu, D.X., Yi, C.Q., Xu, Z.R., Han, G.Z., 1990. The
Researches on the Lake Chao Eutrophication. The pub-
lisher of University of Science and Technology of China.
Hefei, pp. 225 (in Chinese).
Vollenweider, R.A., 1968. The scientific basis of lake eutrophi-
cation, with particular reference to phosphorus and nitro-
gen as eutrophication factors. Tech. Rep. DAS/DSI/68.27,
OECD, Paris.
Vollenweider, R.A., 1976. Advances in defining critical loading
levels for phosphorus in lake eutrophication. Mem. Ist.
Ital. Idrobiol. 33, 53 – 83.
Walker, W.W., 1979. Use of hypolimnetic oxygen depletion
rate as a trophic state index for lakes. Water Res. 15 (6),
1463 – 1470.
244 F.-L. Xu et al. / Ecological Modelling 144 (2001) 231–244
Wang, S.Y., Jin, C.S., Meng, R.X., Xu, F.L., 1995. Environ-
mental Research for Lake Chao in Anhui Province. In: Jin,
X.C. (Ed.), Lakes in China (1). China Ocean Press, China,
p. 580.
Washington, H.G., 1984. Diversity, biotic and similarity in-
dices. Water Res. 18 (6), 653 –694.
Watson, S., McCauley, E., Downing, J., 1997. Patterns in
phytoplankton taxonomic composition across temperate
lakes of different nutrient status. Limnol. Oceanogr. 42,
487– 495.
Weber, D., Englund, E., 1992. Evaluation and comparison of
spatial interpolators. Math. Geol. 24 (4), 381 – 391.
Weber, D., Englund, E., 1994. Evaluation and comparison of
spatial. Interpolators II. Math. Geol. 26 (5), 589 – 603.
Whitton, B., Kelly, M., 1995. Use of algae and other plants
for monitoring rivers. Aust. J. Ecol. 20, 45 – 56.
Xu, F.-L., 1994. Scientific decision-making system for environ-
mental management of the Lake Chao Watershed. Envi-
ron. Protect. 21 (5), 36 –39.
Xu, F.-L., 1996. Ecosystem health assessment of Lake Chao, a
shallow eutrophic Chinese lake. Lakes & Reservoirs: Res.
Manage. 2, 101 – 109.
Xu, F.-L., 1997. Exergy and structural exergy as ecological
indicators for the development state of the Lake Chao
ecosystem. Ecol. Model. 99, 41 – 49.
Xu, F.-L., Jorgensen, S.E., Tao, S., 1999a. Ecological indica-
tors for assessing freshwater ecosystem health. Ecol.
Model. 116, 77 – 106.
Xu, F.-L., Jorgensen, S.E., Tao, S., Li, B.G., 1999b. Modeling
the effects of macrophyte restoration on water quality and
ecosystem of Lake Chao. Ecol. Model. 117, 239 – 260.
Xu, F.-L., Tao, S., Xu, Z.R., 1999c. The restoration of wet-
lands and macrophytes in the Lake Chao: possibility and
effects. Hydrobiologica 405, 169 – 178.
Xu, F.-L., Tao, S., Xu, Z.R., Dawson, R.W., 2000. TN, TP
and OM in the sediments of a shallow eutrophic Chinese
lake: distributions, limiting factors and effects. Biogeo-
chemistry (accepted).
Yoshimi, H., 1987. Simultaneous construction of single-
parameter and multi-parameter trophic state indices. Wat.
Res. 21 (12), 1505 – 1611.
Zitko, V., 1994. Principal component analysis in the evalua-
tion of environmental data. Mar. Pollut. Bull. 28 (12),
718 – 722.
Zurlini, G., 1996. Multi-parametric classification of trophic
conditions. The OECD methodology extended combined
probabilities and uncertainties application to the North
Adriatic Sea. Sci. Total Environ. 182, 169 – 185.