Natural and anthropic effects on hydrochemistry and major and trace elements in the water mass of a Spanish Pyrenean glacial lake set

Abstract

This study presents the key hydrochemical characteristics and concentration levels of major (Ca, Mg, Na, Si, K, Sr, Fe) and trace (Ba, Sc, Cr, Mn, Al, As, Li, Co, Cu, U, Pb, Hg, Au, Sn, Zn, Cd, Ag, Ni) elements in the water mass of four selected Pyrenean cirque glacial lakes (Sabocos, Baños, Truchas and Escalar tarns) with different catchment features, between 2010 and 2013. Resulting data set is statistically analyzed to discriminate between the natural or anthropic origin of the elements. Analyses indicate that in all cases, the main source of most major and trace elements is geological weathering, being thus individual bedrock composition the main driver of differences between lakes. Several anthropogenic sources of airborne Cu, Sc, Co, and Cr must be also considered. The shallowness of the lake is also a factor that may influence element cycling and concentration levels in its water mass. Concentrations of anthropogenic elements were low, comparable to those reported in other glacial lakes, way below the WHO, US EPA, EC, and Spanish legal limits for drinking water quality, indicating the absence of serious pollution. Toxic heavy metals Cd, Pb, Hg, and Zn were not detected in any of the tarns.

The Variability of Lake Water Chemistry in the Bory Tucholskie National Park (Northern Poland)

“…The content of MEs, TEs and REEs in the BTNP lake waters is mainly due to natural geological processes. Similar results were obtained by Santolaria et al [6] in the lakes of the Pyrenees, where the main source of the macro and trace elements is geological weathering. Additionally, Wang et al [59] suggested that atmospheric deposition and weathering of background soils are responsible for a substantial portion of heavy metals in surface water.…”

“…In Poland, it is difficult to identify lakes that are not under the influence of human pressure [66,67]. Pollutants flow directly into the lakes or indirectly by wet and dry atmospheric deposition [6,10,37]. It is therefore essential to distinguish the influence of anthropogenic factors from natural ones, influencing the chemistry of lake waters.…”

“…Lakes show great variability in their characteristics, which is a result of geological history and gradient in climate conditions [1]. The chemical composition of lake waters in natural ecosystems is related to geological and lithological structure, topography, climatic conditions, vegetation and soil properties [2][3][4][5][6][7]. Usually, chemical components are present in the aquatic ecosystems in traces and their natural concentration.…”

An integrated interdisciplinary approach to evaluate potentially toxic element sources in a mountainous watershed

“…We also collected water from small lakes and ponds, where the presence of biota is typically scarce and with water bodies sensitive to atmospheric deposition and to temperature changes, usually freezing during winter (Santolaria et al 2017;Sommaruga-Wögrath et al 1997).…”

Comprehensive assessment of fertiliser-linked environmental externalities and its key determinants: IWRM approach

“…Several studies in literature have reported that various natural activities, as well as man's short-term exploitation and mismanagement of water resources, is the root cause of poor water quality (Akbal et al, 2011;Bellos et al, 2004;Omo-Irabor et al, 2008;Wang et al, 2007). Geological formations, seawater intrusions, and infiltrations from surface water bodies are primary reasons for naturally occurring water contamination (Baba and Tayfur, 2011;Santolaria et al, 2017). Trace elements from a variety of natural sources have contaminated groundwater (Leung and Jiao, 2006;Newcomba et al, 2002;Ramessur, 2000).…”