Angelica Lucchetto publishes research in UW FieldNotes journal

IAS Environmental Science major Angelica Lucchetto published, "Impacts of Floating Woody Debris on Algae Communities: A Comparison between Spirit Lake and Coldwater Lake, Mount St. Helens," a feature article on her research in the UW FieldNotes journal.

The article draws on research Lucchetto conducted with IAS faculty member Avery Shinneman over the past three summers at Mt. St. Helens. In it, she details the impact of the floating log debris from the 1980 volcanic blast on the aquatic ecosystem of Spirit Lake. Over 40 years after the eruption, nearly a quarter of the lake surface remains covered in floating tree and log debris, creating a unique habitat in the lake that, Luchetto details, leads to a community of algae and other primary producers different than expected in otherwise similar mountain lakes.