ORIGINAL RESEARCH
Impact of Anthropogenic Activities on Water
Quality, Pollutant Diffusion in Lake
Waters, and the Level of Eutrophication:
the Case of Batur Lake, Indonesia
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1
Research Center for Environmental and Clean Technology, National Research and Innovation Agency (BRIN),
Kawasan Puspiptek Gd. 820. Serpong 15314, Tangerang Selatan, Indonesia
2
Faculty of Fisheries and Marine Sciences, Universitas Padjadjaran, Jl. Ir. Soekarno KM 21 Jatinangor,
Sumedang, West Java. 45363, Indonesia
3
Faculty of Agro-Industrial Technology Universitas Padjadjaran Jl. Ir. Soekarno KM 21 Jatinangor,
Sumedang, West Java, Indonesia
4
Research Center for Limnology and Water Resources, National Research and Innovation Agency (BRIN),
Jalan Raya Jakarta-Bogor KM. 46, Cibinong, Bogor 16911, Indonesia
5
Research Center for Mining Technology, National Research and Innovation Agency (BRIN),
Jalan Raya Jakarta-Bogor KM. 46, Cibinong, Bogor 16911, Indonesia
Submission date: 2024-12-09
Final revision date: 2025-03-26
Acceptance date: 2025-04-13
Online publication date: 2025-07-12
Corresponding author
Teguh Prayogo
Research Center for Environmental and Clean Technology, National Research and Innovation Agency (BRIN),
Kawasan Puspiptek Gd. 820. Serpong 15314, Tangerang Selatan, Indonesia
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ABSTRACT
Human activities in lake catchments and waterways have a considerable detrimental impact on lake
ecosystems, including processes such as eutrophication and siltation. The study’s objective was to gain
a deeper understanding of the impact of anthropogenic activities on water quality, pollutant diffusion
in Lake Batur waters, and the level of eutrophication. Water samples from nine sampling locations (SLs)
in Lake Batur, Indonesia, were collected and examined for physical, chemical, and biological properties.
The study revealed that Lake Batur receives a considerable quantity of anthropogenic waste on
an annual basis, including 14,776 tons of organic matter (COD), 1,486 tons of total nitrogen (TN),
and 461 tons of total phosphorus. The primary source of these effluents was autochthonous effluents
from FNC operations, which constituted 74.4% of the COD, 86.6% of the TN, and 85.6% of the TP.
The distribution of effluents from community activities across the ECW, WCW, and MLW resulted
in variability in the concentrations of total suspended solids (TSS), nutrients, chlorophyll-a (Chl-a), chemical oxygen demand (COD), total nitrogen (TN), total phosphorus (TP), and fertility levels
in the nine LS. The Chl-a/COD ratio indicated that SL 1, situated in the ECW, exhibited the highest
fertility, whereas SL 5, located in the MLW, demonstrated the lowest. The fertility level was constrained
by phosphorus, as evidenced by a TP/TN ratio exceeding 12 in eight SLs. The Trophic Status Index
(TSI) was calculated using Carlton’s formula, and the results indicated that, with the exception of SL 2,
which was categorized as mesotrophic, the remaining eight SLs were eutrophic. Given that the Trophic
Status Index (TSI) (Chl-a) is greater than the TSI (TP), it can be reasonably concluded that phosphorus
is the limiting factor for algal development in seven of the nine SLs. The TSI (Chl-a) values for some
SLs (SLs 2-4) were observed to be lower than the TSI (SD) values, indicating that non-algal particles
may have exerted a greater influence on lake water clarity.