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Optical approaches were developed to examine the relationship between the optically active and the optically inactive fractions of dissolved organic carbon in inland waters. A multiple linear regression model was developed on the basis of an extensive dataset from Taihu Lake, and validated employing data from another large shallow eutrophic lake (Chaohu Lake) in southern China. The model was used to estimate the concentration of dissolved organic matter ( n = 191) using the absorption characteristics of its chromophoric fraction with a high correlation coefficient ( R ^2 = 0.62) and a low root mean squared error (RMSE = 9.67%). This intra-ecosystem validity allows us to improve our understanding of carbon dynamics using optical remote sensing approaches for these optically complex lakes, where multiple sources and sinks of dissolved organic matter were present.