High-altitude areas are sensitive to environmental changes due to their unique natural condition. In the context of the increasing human activities, sediments of alpine lakes could record the processes of human-nature interaction. Here we present multi-proxy records, including total organic carbon, total nitrogen and n-alkanes along with elementals, inferred from a 37-cm-long sediment core collected from a small alpine lake (Lake Cuoqia) in northwestern Yunnan Province, China. Together with instrumental data and other published regional records, we divide environmental changes into four stages over the past 200 years:ca. 1807-1900:increased lake level and expanded surface area, declined organic matter abundance, and exogenous mainly contributions of organic matter with growing endogenous contributions; ca. 1900-1950:slightly declined lake level and decreased surface area, decreased abundance of organic matter, and slightly increased exogenous organic matter; ca. 1950-1982:further dropped lake level and shrank lake surface, declined abundance of organic matter, and increased exogenous organic matter; ca. 1982-2007:further decreased lake level and surface area, increased organic matter content which was dominated by terrestrial inputs with the addition of endogenous contributions. We also divide the industrial pollutions into three stages based on the heavy metal results:before ca. 1950:very low heavy metal concentration indicating natural background without anthropogenic influences; ca. 1950-1982:beginning of industrial pollutions; after ca. 1982:abruptly increased heavy metal pollutions due to the development of ore industry. As Lake Cuoqia has a very small catchment without any human activity and industry, the heavy mental pollutions are likely transported through atmospheric circulation. Our records indicate the considerable environmental fluctuations over the last 200 years, and suggest that industry pollutants could be transported and influence the remote high-altitude areas.