How is the aging of ponds and lakes affected by pollution?

Question

How is the aging of ponds and lakes affected by pollution?

Answer 1

I am not sure what you mean by aging. In general, higher levels of pollution changes the ecology of water bodies, due to multiple reasons. Different species (both plants and animals) are adapted differently to higher level of nutrients and toxins. A highly polluted lake in general, ends up getting more algae or other aggressive aquatic plant species (duck week, hyacinth) on the surface, reducing air diffusion, and light to inner layers. Usually, resulting in more dead matter in the water, more decomposing material, less oxygen, more organic carbon, and eventually a more eutriphied water.

Assuming the pollution is not highly toxic but brings more nutrients, it eventually results in a different ecology as I mentioned, once it comes to a stable state. If it is toxic, it is usually an irreversible, one way tendency to move towards lesser and lesser life.

Overall, pollution alters the aging process - things now take more time to decompose as healthy balance is lost or shifted to some other spectrum.

Answer 2

Ponds or small lakes may "age" (over long periods of time) by getting filled with mineral and/or organic material, getting shallower, and turning into bogs, wetlands, perhaps eventually even dry land.

Pollution such as nutrient enrichment and sedimentation speeds up this process.