Physico-chemical and biological water quality analysis of Ambuwaya Lake in Kiangan, Ifugao, Philippines

Freshwater lakes offer a wide range of essential ecosystem services. Physico-chemcical and biological assessment was carried out to determine properties against set standards for Ambuwaya Lake in Kiangan, Ifugao, Philippines. The average pH level of the lake was 7.55±0.39 and the reading was within the set standard of the authorities. The dissolved oxygen and temperature were slightly beyond the set standard but still tolerable by aquatic organisms in the lake. The average Secchi disk visibility reading of 35.56±3.00 cm suggest that the lake was hypereutrophic. Nitrite and total dissolved solids were within the set standards. The lake had high level of ammonia with an average of 2.16±1.18 ppm. Thirteen taxa of plankton were identified. Phylum Myzozoa had the highest abundance due to the dominance of Peridinium spp. Diversity index of zooplankton and phytoplankton were considered very low. The evenness of both phytoplankton and zooplankton were categorized as depressed community. The dominance of phytoplankton in the lake was high while the dominance of zooplankton was considered low. The pollution status of Ambuwaya Lake through the Palmer pollution index scored 20 which confirms high organic pollution.