This text contains the proceedings of the Second International Conference on Limnology and Oceanography held in Evian in May 1993. There were about 200 participants, with 64 communications and 53 posters. 42 manuscripts were selected by the Scientific Committee to provide the material for this book, which successfully shows that the different scientific communities are able to compare their individual approaches and develop new methods in common, paving the way for future and useful co-operation.