Partial pressure (pCO(2)) and flux to the atmosphere of carbon dioxide (CO2) were studied in northern alpine and forest lakes along a gradient of dissolved organic carbon (DOC) content (0.4-9.9 mg L-1). Sixteen lakes were each sampled three times over the course of the ice-free season, and an additional 35 lakes were sampled once at midsummer. pCO(2) data were acquired in the field by a headspace equilibration technique. Most lakes were supersaturated with CO2 along the entire DOC gradient, with relatively small seasonal differences. pCO(2) was positively correlated to DOC content, reflecting a close dependence between allochthonous DOC in-put and heterotrophic respiration in the lakes. Fluxes of CO2 to the atmosphere were estimated from the pCO(2) measurements. Benthic respiration was indicated to be important for CO2 emission in lakes with high DOC concentrations. In lakes with low DOC concentrations, pelagic mineralization alone was sufficient to account for a large part of the estimated fluxes.