14 D3. Recent Advances in Hydrogeology of the Mountain West

Wednesday, 16 March 2022
8:00 AM - 12:00 PM
WRI 144

CHANGES IN GROUNDWATER CONTRIBUTION TO MOUNTAIN RIVERS UNDER VARYING TECTONIC AND CLIMATE CONDITIONS: OBSERVED INTERACTIONS BETWEEN BASEFLOW AND FORCINGS

Paper number: 14-3
Program: Technical Sessions
Time: 8:25 AM – 8:45 AM

Authors

  • Kyungdoe Han Presenting Author
    New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology, Socorro, NM
  • John L. Wilson
    New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology, Socorro, NM

Abstract

Tectonic and climatic variations affect the amount and location of groundwater upwelling. In headwater streams that reside in arid to semi-arid regions, the long-term history of changes in groundwater flow regime is of utmost importance for aquatic and riparian species since hydrologic connections established by groundwater provide dispersal pathways and nutrients. To better understand how upwelling has been changing, it is necessary to track changes associated with the long-term coevolution of landscape and groundwater under varying tectonic and climatic conditions within the area of interest.

This study demonstrates the degree of correlation between groundwater discharge to the surface and tectonic and climatic forcings. A landscape evolution model coupled with deep, 3D groundwater simulation is thus constructed to accommodate the variabilities. We examined changes in groundwater upwelling characteristics in several hypothetical topographic settings for dozens of million years. In addition, we present several metrics that represent the overall “connectedness” of surface flow (i.e., mountain rivers) supported by baseflow.

The constructed history of groundwater contribution to mountain rivers and resulting stream connections through time can indicate the importance of baseflow on characteristics of fluvial geomorphic processes and species evolution. This work supports our currently ongoing project aimed at developing an integrated understanding of geology, ecology, and hydrology.

Geological Society of America Abstracts with Programs. Vol. 54, No. 2

doi: 10.1130/abs/2022CD-374370

© Copyright 2022 The Geological Society of America (GSA), all rights reserved. Permission is hereby granted to the author(s) of this abstract to reproduce and distribute it freely, for noncommercial purposes. Permission is hereby granted to any individual scientist to download a single copy of this electronic file and reproduce up to 20 paper copies for noncommercial purposes advancing science and education, including classroom use, providing all reproductions include the complete content shown here, including the author information. All other forms of reproduction and/or transmittal are prohibited without written permission from GSA Copyright Permissions.