Carbon dioxide emissions from Specchio di Venere, Pantelleria, Italy

Abstract

We have mapped the diffuse CO2 efflux from the Specchio di Venere Lake area using the accumulation chamber method. We calculated a CO2 emission of 43± 5 t day−1 for the area studied, accounting for both diffuse degassing from soil and bubbling through the lake.We also present data on the water composition of Specchio di Venere Lake, the Polla 3 spring, and Liuzza well. On the basis of water chemistry, two physical-chemical processes, evaporation and mineral precipitation of carbonate species, are invoked to explain the CO2 degassing for the lake area.