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Dataset: Microplastic addition has no detectable effect on ecosystem metabolism or diel dinitrogen flux in a large in-lake mesocosm experiment under oligotrophic conditions
Summary
This dataset and R code accompany a large mesocosm experiment at the Experimental Lakes Area in Canada that found adding microplastics had no detectable effect on lake ecosystem metabolism or nitrogen cycling under low-nutrient (oligotrophic) conditions. The null result is scientifically important — it suggests that in nutrient-poor lakes, microplastic concentrations tested may not disrupt key biogeochemical processes, though effects could differ under nutrient-richer or higher-dose conditions.
This dataset and R code are relevant to the following: Data location and timeframe: All data were collected in 2021 in Lake 378 at the Experimental Lakes Area in Ontario, Canada Study Title: Microplastic addition has no detectable effect on ecosystem metabolism or diel dinitrogen flux in a large in-lake mesocosm experiment under oligotrophic conditions Authors: Raul Lazcano et al. Overarching project: The "pELAstic" project: A series of experimental additions of microplastics to Lake 378 at ELA, including pelagic mesocosms, littoral mesocosms, and the whole lake. Organization: The published datasets and code are divided into 5 folders. Folders 1 and 2 have the data and code to calculate ecosystem metabolism in the mesocosms and at the whole-lake scale Folder 3 has the data and code to calculate N2 flux in the mesocosms and whole-lake scale Folder 3 also has the data and code to compare the N2 dynamics across mescocosms and between lake habitats (epilimnion and hypolimnion) Folder 4 has the data and code for generalized linear mixed models (GLMM) to compare dissolved oyxgen, temperature, and metabolsim among mesocosms Folder 5 has the data and code for GLMM to compare metabolism and N2 dynamics between the mesocosms and the whole-lake level. Additional context: For the R code files in each folder, the code begins with a heading describing the contents Within the code, directions are noted throughout to describe steps for figure composition and statistical analysis To generate the summary stats tables in the manuscript and supplemental information The output from Rstudio was pasted into excel, and the table formatting completed within excel