Linking Hydrological, Geochemical, and Soil Chemical Processes on the Catchment Scale: An Interplay Between Modeling and Field Work

Abstract

Quantification of the major processes controlling soil, soil water, and stream water chemistry are hampered by the traditional divisions within the terrestrial sciences. Here a line of investigation within acid rain research starting in Norway in the late 1970s, and characterized by a close connection between modeling and field work, is outlined. In 1982 the Birkenes model offered an integrated picture of the link between acid deposition and acid freshwaters. Since that time, new field data from Birkenes and other sites have been collected to test and improve the model. The picture now emerging is that stream water can be considered as a mixture of observed soil waters (end‐members), with contributions depending on the hydrological conditions. Thus the hydrological question of water flow paths is elucidated using chemical information. It is suggested that sufficient motivation for interdisciplinary research can be obtained if scientists become more willing to pursue problems and not disciplines.