Seasonal variations in the geochemistry of shallow groundwater hosted in granitic till

Abstract

The groundwater chemistry in a small catchment in northern Sweden has been studied for a period of 15 months, including two snowmelt events. The groundwater was sampled from two wells in a slope facing a small stream. One well was placed at the top of the slope (28 m from the stream), and the other was placed closer to the stream (13 m from the stream). Both wells were completed to approximately the same elevation (1.5 m below the stream bed). In addition to groundwater compositions, the chemical composition of precipitation, soil water and stream water was investigated. The chemical composition of the groundwater in the well farther from the stream was fairly constant during the studied period. In the closer well the concentrations of Ca, Mg, Na, Sr, Si, and alkalinity decreased by approximately 10% during snowmelt in May. In contrast, the concentrations of Fe, Al, Ce and Cu increased. After the snowmelt, during June and July, the concentrations of Ca, Mg, Na, Sr, Si, and alkalinity in the closer well increased by a factor of 2–5 compared with the concentrations prior to the snowmelt. By August, the concentrations had decreased to the same levels as before the snowmelt and remained constant until next snowmelt. To explain these variations the Ca/Sr ratio was used as a natural chemical tracer for different water masses. It was found that the increased concentrations of Ca, Mg, Na, Sr, Si, and alkalinity during summer was caused by changes in the groundwater flow direction, which resulted in upwelling of deeper groundwater. At this time the area at the closer well acted as an unsaturated discharge area. The concentrations of Fe, Al, Ce and Cu decreased rapidly after the snowmelt and then remained constant except for two peaks in July and August. These variations were due to mixing with rapidly percolating soil water from the E-horizon and melt water or rain water, which is supported by increased content of dissolved oxygen.