Mass transport triggered by heavy rainfall: the role of endorheic basins and epikarst in a regional karst aquifer

This study aims at recognizing the mechanisms of mass transport between the karst surface and the saturated zone in a morphostructural relief of the Mesozoic karst carbonate platform of Murgia (Puglia, Southern Italy). The large dimension of the karst aquifer, the regional scale of the flow system, the boundary condition constituted by the sea, and the lack of freshwater springs constrain to the use of wells as monitoring points and limit the study area to the recharge area comprising 986 endorheic basins. The concentrations of non‐reactive tracers (nitrates) in the waters of autogenic recharge (from endorheic basins) have been modeled through the evaluation of effective infiltration, land use, and nitrogen surplus, with reference to a time window, which includes a low precipitation period followed by significant rainfall events. The comparison between the modeled nitrate concentrations and the nitrate concentrations measured in ground waters, coupled with the analysis of groundwater chemograms and records of hydraulic heads (all referred to the same time window), allows inferring the mechanism of mass transport between the karst surface and the groundwater table. The mass transport conceptual model requires the presence of the epikarst. The infiltration of significant rainfall in the endorheic basins after a low precipitation period displaces waters stored in the epikarst toward the saturated zone. Ground waters in the post‐event period show higher concentrations of nitrates, lower concentrations of total organic carbon, and higher Mg/Ca ratios than both those of the pre‐event period and the autumn‐winter recharge period. The post‐event recharge from epikarst storage determines a transient hazard of groundwater pollution with a time lag from the occurrence of the heavy rainfall.     

表层岩溶地下水出露地表后的脱气作用——以重庆市南川区柏树湾表层岩溶泉溪流为例

以重庆市南川区柏树湾表层岩溶泉溪流为例,沿柏枝溪流程以一定间距监测水体中HCO3-的浓度及其pH、电导率、溶解氧等水化学参数,并初步探究溪流水的脱气效应.结果显示(1)表层岩溶地下水出露地表后,HCO3-浓度沿流程呈现出递减的规律;(2) HCO3-浓度递减的快慢反映了脱气作用的强弱,溪流脱气速率具有“枯水期＞平水期＞丰水期”的特点;(3)暴雨期间由于稀释效应HCO3-浓度递减趋势不明显,但降雨后期,递减又开始逐渐产生;(4)脱气效应在造成溪流水HCO3-浓度减小的同时,也导致电导率(EC)沿柏枝溪流程逐渐降低,而pH值逐渐升高;(5)沿途溶解氧(DO)昼夜变化表明,水生生物作用对脱气作用可能也有一定的影响,但其影响机制还有待进一步的研究.     

Modelling hydrological processes influenced by soil,rock and vegetation in a small karst basin of southwest China

Hydrological processes in karst basins are controlled by permeable multimedia, consisting of soil pores, epikarst fractures, and underground conduits. Distributed modelling of hydrological dynamics in such heterogeneous hydrogeological conditions is a challenging task. Basing on the multilayer structure of the distributed hydrology‐soil‐vegetation model (DHSVM), a distributed hydrological model for a karst basin was developed by integrating mathematical routings of porous Darcy flow, fissure flow and underground channel flow. Specifically, infiltration and saturated flow movement within epikarst fractures are expressed by the ‘cubic law’ equation which is associated with fractural width, direction, and spacing. A small karst basin located in Guizhou province of southwest China was selected for this hydrological simulation. The model parameters were determined on the basis of field measurement and calibrated against the observed soil moisture contents, vegetation interception, surface runoff, and underground flow discharges from the basin outlet. The results show that due to high permeability of the epikarst zone, a significant amount of surface runoff is only generated after heavy rainfall events during the wet season. Rock exposure and the epikarst zone significantly increase flood discharge and decrease evapotranspiration (ET) loss; the peak flood discharge is directly proportional to the size of the aperture. Distribution of soil moisture content (SMC) primarily depends on topographic variations just after a heavy rainfall, while SMC and actual ET are dominated by land cover after a period of consecutive non‐rainfall days. The new model was able to capture the sharp increase and decrease of the underground streamflow hydrograph, and as such can be used to investigate hydrological effects in such rock features and land covers. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Epikarst hydrology and implications for stalagmite capture of climate changes at Grotta di Ernesto (NE Italy): results from long‐term monitoring

Grotta di Ernesto is a cave site well suited for palaeoclimate studies because it contains annually laminated stalagmites and was monitored from 1995 to the end of 2008 for microclimate, hydrology and hydrochemistry. Long‐term monitoring highlighted that cave drips show three different hydrological responses to rainfall and infiltration: (1) fast seasonal drips in the upper part of the cave, which are mostly fed by fractures, (2) slow seasonal drips, located at mid‐depth in the cave characterized by mixed feeding and (3) slow drips, mostly located in the deeper gallery, which are fed by seepage flow from bulk porosity with a minor fracture‐fed component. The slow drips display daily cycles during spring thaw. Monitoring also indicated that drip waters are only slightly modified by degassing within the soil zone and aquifer and by prior calcite precipitation. Hydrochemical studies show a clear seasonality in calcite saturation index, which results in most cave calcite precipitation occurring during late autumn and winter with similar amounts of precipitated calcite on most stalagmites, regardless of drip rate (discharge) differences. Drip rate, and drip rate variability, therefore, has a minor role in modulating the amount of annual calcite formation. In contrast, drip rate, when associated with moderate reduction in calcite saturation index, clearly influences stalagmite morphology. Increasing drip rate yields a passage from candle‐, to cone‐ to dome‐shaped stalagmites. Very high drip rates feed speleothems with flowstone morphology. In summary, monitoring provides information about the karst aquifer and how hydrology influences those physical and chemical characteristics of speleothems which are commonly used as climate proxies. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

基于在线高分辨率示踪技术的岩溶泉污染来源及含水介质特征分析——以重庆黔江区鱼泉坎为例

在线高分辨率示踪技术以其精度高、成本低的特点在岩溶地下水文系统研究方面得到较为广泛的应用。重庆市黔江区鱼泉坎岩溶泉的污染问题导致蓬东乡、五里乡及其周边3 000居民饮水困难,为了确定水源地主要的污染源,选取荧光素钠、天来宝2种示踪剂,应用在线高分辨率示踪技术确定了重庆某畜禽养殖有限公司的化粪池与鱼泉坎泉之间存在水力联系。两种示踪剂的回收率均较低,分别为：荧光素钠3.51%,天来宝2.56%,且两回收曲线存在一定差别,可能与天来宝的水溶性较荧光素钠低有关。基于荧光素钠初现时间和首个峰值出现时间计算的地下水最大流速与平均流速分别为27.09m/h、22.32m/h,反映鱼泉坎岩溶孔隙、裂隙较小,化粪池污染渗漏缓慢、运移时间长。示踪剂质量浓度历时曲线表现为多峰型,推断化粪池至鱼泉坎泉段至少存在4条较大的径流通道,表明示踪段表层岩溶泉裂隙发育的相对均匀性。欲恢复鱼泉坎泉的水质,须对该养殖场进行防渗处理或勒令关闭。     

湘西洛塔表层岩溶泉的生态环境类型及水文特征

岩溶石山区表层岩溶带的调蓄功能可有效控制石漠化的加剧并为严重缺水地区提供饮用水。文章以湖南洛塔为例,在大量的野外调查基础上,通过对洛塔岩溶区表层岩溶系统生态环境与表层岩溶泉水文特征的对比研究,按生态环境属性将表层岩溶泉分为三种主要类型:森林环境表层岩溶泉、石漠化环境表层岩溶泉及石漠化-森林过渡环境表层岩溶泉。详细论述上述三种表层岩溶泉的发育条件与水文特征:森林环境表层岩溶泉具有持续稳定的水文动态与流量;石漠化环境表层岩溶泉流量与降雨量相对应,动态极不稳定;石漠化与森林过渡环境表层岩溶泉流量排泄峰值具有随泉域植被覆盖率增加而缓和的趋势。按照环境类型对表层岩溶泉进行分类,可直观地显示其特殊的水文特征,有助于岩溶泉的合理开发和综合利用。     

表层岩溶带调蓄系数定量计算--以湘西洛塔赵家湾为例

本文以湖南洛塔赵家湾表层岩溶系统为例,综合利用水位、降雨量、蒸发量及泉流量等长观资料,分别对不同降雨特征下的表层岩溶带调蓄系数进行了定量计算,并对影响表层岩溶带调蓄能力的因素进行了分析。计算得到丰水期赵家湾表层岩溶带调蓄系数为0 14～0 2 8,明显小于枯水期调蓄系数0 44 ;但丰水期久旱后表层岩溶带的调蓄能力接近于枯水期;在丰水期,场雨和连续降雨时的调蓄能力比间歇降雨时的小近1倍。实例计算表明:赵家湾表层岩溶带具有一定的调蓄能力,其地下迳流滞后于降雨至少3d ,调蓄系数确实可以用来定量评价表层岩溶带的调蓄能力。     

西南岩溶地区植被喀斯特效应

西南岩溶地区是我国主要岩溶带之一，也是世界岩溶研究重点地区，区内因人口众多，植被破坏严重，部分地区因人为作用已经产生一系列的环境问题，本文从岩溶地区植被演替规律出发，针对不同植被生态条件，通过对比不同表层岩溶泉的水化学特征和表层土壤空气CO2（g)（表示呀以气相形式存在）的含量，分析了植被在岩溶区，特别在表层岩溶带的喀斯特效应，由此，一方面可以推动岩溶研究的进一步发展；另一方面可以提高人们的岩溶环境保护意识，从而为西南地区生态恢复提供基础资料。     

Interpretation of epikarstic cave drip water recession curves: a case study from Velika Pasica Cave,central Slovenia

ABSTRACT

Recession curves are widely used in hydrological studies and projects, such as in rivers, streams or springs. However, no cave drip water has been analysed with recession curves. In this paper, four cave drips were monitored in the Velika Pasica Cave, in order to discover the water flow and storage properties of the epikarst. Various methods were applied in the recession analysis, combining the hydrological characteristics of the four drips: for the slow water in the epikarst, the matching strip method was the identified as the appropriate model for the drip water recession analysis. According to the recession coefficient k, the water flow in the epikarst was divided into fast flow, intermediate flow and slow flow. The volume of water retained in the reservoir (the epikarst storage) could be presented as a function of its specific recession coefficient.

EDITOR D.Koutsoyiannis; ASSOCIATE EDITOR X. Chen     

表层岩溶带土壤中有机氯农药的分布及来源特征研究——以重庆南川区为例

为了研究有机氯农药(OCPs)在表层岩溶带土壤中的分布趋势、组成特征和来源,采用气相色谱-微池电子捕获检测器(GC-μECD)分析了重庆市南川区水房泉、后沟泉、柏树湾泉、兰花沟泉等典型表层带岩溶泉上覆土层中有机氯农药的浓度。结果显示,总体上表层岩溶带土壤中的OCPs的浓度范围是7.13～323.37ng/g,其中后沟泉、柏树湾泉、兰花沟泉表层土壤中的17种OCPs检出率为100%,水房泉土壤中除p,p’-DDD外其余全部检出,但不同种类有机氯含量差异较大。其中HCHs、DDTs、CHLs、灭蚁灵是主要检出物。研究区内土壤样品中的HCHs来源于工业品HCHs和林丹使用的残留,且由于环境影响,土壤中HCH的同系物组成发生了明显变化。水房泉和柏树湾泉土壤中的DDTs来自于工业DDTs和三氯杀螨醇的混合源,而后沟泉和兰花沟泉土壤中的DDTs可能来自于工业DDTs的使用,而非三氯杀螨醇类型的DDT。对比中国和荷兰的土壤质量标准,柏树湾泉土壤中DDTs浓度接近于荷兰无污染土壤的参考值,兰花沟泉土壤中的DDTs应属于轻度污染,后沟泉土壤中的DDTs和氯丹类化合物污染程度较重,而水房泉土壤为无污染土壤。