Hydrogeochemical responses of forested catchments

Abstract

The AGU Chapman Conference on Hydrogeochemical Responses of Forested Catchments was held September 18–21, 1989, in Bar Harbor, Maine, and brought together geochemists with interests in determining the effects of different geochemical processes on resulting surface water chemistry and hydrologists with interests in explaining flow generation in catchments with the aim of fostering better communication between the two groups on the topic of geochemical and hydrological interactions in intermediate‐size watersheds. An important point of consideration was the emphasis on intermediate‐size watersheds, which we defined operationally as watersheds of sufficient size to yield flow and habitat suitable for supporting at least a marginal recreational fishery, for example, on the order of at least a few square kilometers in the northeast United States. This emphasis is important because it is the potential effects of pollutants, as modified by watershed geochemical and hydrological processes, in watersheds of this scale that drive much of the concern of the nation's regulatory agencies with regard to adverse environmental effects and required water quality legislation. A good example of this is the current concern over potential adverse effects of acidic deposition on surface water quality, especially in streams that support upland sport fisheries.