Arc Sediments are a Major source of Juvenile Sr in the Northern Cordillera's Taku River Basin: Potential Implications for the Global Sr Cycle

Abstract

Dendritic network models have proven valuable in predicting variation in strontium concentrations [Sr] and isotope ratios (87Sr/86Sr) across large river systems. These models also support inference about sources and processes controlling Sr fluxes from such systems, although this capacity has not been exploited in previous work. Here, we apply these methods to model [Sr] and 87Sr/86Sr values of a large river draining accreted volcanic arc terranes of the northern Cordillera of North America. The [Sr] and 87Sr/86Sr river models have excellent fit to measured river waters with RMSE = 0.05: r2 = 0.67 and RMSE = 0.0004: r2 = 0.87, respectively. The results strongly indicate that mixed siliciclastic sedimentary units dominate the Sr weathering flux within these systems. Extrapolation using global arc sediment distributions suggests arc sedimentray units could source ∼30% of the modern riverine Sr flux, constituting a major source of juvenile Sr to the ocean. Because the weathering of arc sediments can lag arc growth and may persist over 100's of millions of years, we suggest that the preservation and accretion of mixed siliciclastic units formed in these settings should be considered when scaling arc weathering contributions through geologic time. Contributions from such sediments could amplify or smooth the arc-derived rock weathering and 87Sr/86Sr flux over long timescales, altering interpretations of biogeochemical cycles and the silicate weathering feedback.