Tracing carbon dynamics of groundwater in an evaporative environment

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dc.contributor.authorMeredith, KTen_AU
dc.contributor.authorHollins, SEen_AU
dc.contributor.authorCendón, DIen_AU
dc.contributor.authorJacobsen, GEen_AU
dc.contributor.authorChisari, Ren_AU
dc.contributor.authorLevchenko, VAen_AU
dc.date.accessioned2022-01-31T05:47:22Zen_AU
dc.date.available2022-01-31T05:47:22Zen_AU
dc.date.issued2015-07-08en_AU
dc.date.statistics2022-01-11en_AU
dc.description.abstractRadiocarbon (14C) is one of the most widely used isotopes to date groundwater. Estimating groundwater 'age' is important for any groundwater resource assessment to provide information on groundwater recharge rates. However, the calculation of a 14C groundwater 'age' still has many challenges associated with it because of the many complex hydrogeochemical reactions and/or physical processes that can dilute the initial 14C activity of the dissolved inorganic carbon (DIC) after recharge and flow through the aquifer. There are a multitude of reasons why traditional correction methods cannot be transferred to arid zone groundwater systems, but in particular most studies typically do not measure all of the variables contained within the equations and hence fundamental assumptions are made. Groundwater samples were collected from nested monitoring wells over an 8 year period along a 7 km transect from the Darling River in northwestern New South Wales, Australia. In this study, we measure groundwater, river water, soil, calcrete, soilßas and vegetation samples to capture the complex carbon isotopic systematics displayed in all the various soil-water-plant components that influence the geochemical evolution of groundwater in an arid zone environment. At first inspection of the data, it appeared that carbonate dissolution was the primary hydrochemical process relating to the high concentrations of DIC and low 14CDl of shallow groundwaters (<20 m below ground surface). Indeed, this was the original hypothesis for this study, but when all the environmental components were measured, the complexity of the carbon cycle was revealed. This study provides insight into the errors that can result from using traditional correction models that were originally designed for northern hemisphere groundwater systems with no supporting data. en_AU
dc.description.sponsorshipAustralian Nuclear Science and Technology Organisationen_AU
dc.identifier.citationMeredith K., Hollins S., Cendón D., Jacobsen G., Chisari R., & Levchenko V. (2015). Tracing carbon dynamics of groundwater in an evaporative environment. Paper presented to the 13th Australasian Environment Isotope Conference (AEIC), Sydney, 8-10th July 2015, (pp. 40.)en_AU
dc.identifier.conferenceenddate10 July 2015en_AU
dc.identifier.conferencename13th Australasian Environment Isotope Conference (AEIC)en_AU
dc.identifier.conferenceplaceSydney, Australiaen_AU
dc.identifier.conferencestartdate8 July 2015en_AU
dc.identifier.pagination40en_AU
dc.identifier.urihttps://apo.ansto.gov.au/dspace/handle/10238/12756en_AU
dc.language.isoenen_AU
dc.publisherUniversity of New South Wales and Australian Nuclear Science and Technology Organisationen_AU
dc.subjectTracer techniquesen_AU
dc.subjectCarbonen_AU
dc.subjectGround wateren_AU
dc.subjectEvaporationen_AU
dc.titleTracing carbon dynamics of groundwater in an evaporative environmenten_AU
dc.typeConference Presentationen_AU
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