The natural waters of the Sikhote-Alin Nature Reserve are insufficiently studied compared to its flora and fauna. Hydrochemical studies of small lakes of the reserve began in 2004 and 2008 (Sikhote-Alin Nature Reserve, 2009). In recent years, lakes Blagodaty and Golubichnoe were studied by scientists from the geochemistry laboratory of PGI FEB RAS (Chernova et al., 2014). The data obtained describe the content and spatial–temporal dynamics of the macro- and microelements, the patterns of distribution of the microelements in particulate matter and the plankton. A distinctive feature of Lakes Blagodaty and Golubichnoe is the high bogginess of their catchments, as a result of which bog waters with a high content of organic matter (OM) enter the lakes. Flows of allochthonous organic matter of soil and plant origin fall into the lakes from the catchment area. The main sources of intrabasin organic matter are phytoplankton, submerged aquatic vegetation, zooplankton and zoobenthos. The study of the organic forms of carbon present helps to shed light on the biogeochemical details of how lake ecosystems function.
The aims of this work were to evaluate the content of carbon in dissolved organic matter (DOM) and particulate organic matter (POM), identify the organic carbon in the suspended matter and characterise the optical properties of DOM in the lagoon lakes Blagodaty and Golubichnoe of the Sikhote-Alin Nature Reserve. For comparison, a small lake of tectonic origin Vaskovskoe, located in the Dalnegorsk urban district of Primorsky Krai, was included in the study.