Regional groundwater flow in mountainous terrain: Three‐dimensional simulations of topographic and hydrogeologic controls

Gleeson, Tom; Manning, Andrew H.

doi:10.1029/2008wr006848

Cited by 198 publications

(234 citation statements)

References 53 publications

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“…Furthermore, the results suggest that the longterm near-chemostatical behavior reported for a considerable range of catchments (e.g. Godsey et al, 2009;Basu et al, 2010) could at least partially be explained by the persistence of water, and thus tracer, stored especially in S P,SS of a catchment. As can be seen in p F (Fig.…”

Section: Resident Water Age Distributions P Rmentioning

confidence: 86%

“…Godsey et al, 2009;Rouxel et al, 2011). This is true in particular for systems with pronounced switches between rapid shallow subsurface (e.g.…”

Section: Static Partial Mixingmentioning

confidence: 92%

“…Asano and Uchida, 2012) and relief (e.g. Gleeson and Manning, 2008). In contrast, substantial proportions of stream flow are generated by the propagation of pressure waves whose celerity is different to the particle flow velocities (Beven, 1981) and which are controlled by the pressure head or, in other words, the storage height above the stream level alone, i.e.…”

Section: Mixing Modelsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…While some argue that p T is generally characterized by sharp initial peaks (e.g. Kirchner et al, 2000;Godsey et al, 2010), Dunn et al (2010), using a conceptual model could only reproduce delayed peaks in p T . Here it was found that p T can potentially be characterized by both shape types (e.g.…”

Section: Transit Time Distributions P Tmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Destouni et al, 2001;Cvetkovic and Haggerty, 2002;Lindgren et al, 2004;Fiori and Russo, 2008;Botter et al, 2009) or used relatively simple black-box models to estimate integrated catchment descriptors of flow path distributions such as TTD and mean transit times (MTT) (e.g. Kirchner et al, 2000;McGlynn et al, 2003;McGuire et al, 2005;Soulsby et al, 2006;Hrachowitz et al, 2010a;Godsey et al, 2010;Tetzlaff et al, 2011). While transport process studies provided crucial insights in small-scale dynamics, black-box model inter-comparison studies have shed light on the physical controls of the long-term average TTDs on the catchment scale (e.g.…”

Section: Hrachowitz Et Al: What Can Flux Tracking Teach Us Aboutmentioning

confidence: 99%

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What can flux tracking teach us about water age distribution patterns and their temporal dynamics?

Hrachowitz

Savenije

Bogaard

et al. 2013

Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci.

272

443

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Abstract. The complex interactions of runoff generation processes underlying the hydrological response of streams remain not entirely understood at the catchment scale. Extensive research has demonstrated the utility of tracers for both inferring flow path distributions and constraining model parameterizations. While useful, the common use of linearity assumptions, i.e. time invariance and complete mixing, in these studies provides only partial understanding of actual process dynamics. Here we use long-term (< 20 yr) precipitation, flow and tracer (chloride) data of three contrasting upland catchments in the Scottish Highlands to inform integrated conceptual models investigating different mixing assumptions. Using the models as diagnostic tools in a functional comparison, water and tracer fluxes were then tracked with the objective of exploring the differences between different water age distributions, such as flux and resident water age distributions, and characterizing the contrasting water age pattern of the dominant hydrological processes in the three study catchments to establish an improved understanding of the wetness-dependent temporal dynamics of these distributions.The results highlight the potential importance of partial mixing processes which can be dependent on the hydrological functioning of a catchment. Further, tracking tracer fluxes showed that the various components of a model can be characterized by fundamentally different water age distributions which may be highly sensitive to catchment wetness history, available storage, mixing mechanisms, flow path connectivity and the relative importance of the different hydrological processes involved. Flux tracking also revealed that, although negligible for simulating the runoff response, the omission of processes such as interception evaporation can result in considerably biased water age distributions. Finally, the modeling indicated that water age distributions in the three study catchments do have long, power-law tails, which are generated by the interplay of flow path connectivity, the relative importance of different flow paths as well as by the mixing mechanisms involved. In general this study highlights the potential of customized integrated conceptual models, based on multiple mixing assumptions, to infer system internal transport dynamics and their sensitivity to catchment wetness states.

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Section: Resident Water Age Distributions P Rmentioning

confidence: 86%

“…Godsey et al, 2009;Rouxel et al, 2011). This is true in particular for systems with pronounced switches between rapid shallow subsurface (e.g.…”

Section: Static Partial Mixingmentioning

confidence: 92%

Section: Mixing Modelsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Transit Time Distributions P Tmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Hrachowitz Et Al: What Can Flux Tracking Teach Us Aboutmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 3 more Smart Citations

What can flux tracking teach us about water age distribution patterns and their temporal dynamics?

Hrachowitz

Savenije

Bogaard

et al. 2013

Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci.

272

443

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Shallow, old, and hydrologically insignificant fault zones in the Appalachian orogen

Malgrange

Gleeson

2014

JGR Solid Earth

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The permeability of fault zones impacts diverse geological processes such as hydrocarbon migration, hydrothermal fluid circulation, and regional groundwater flow, yet how fault zones affect groundwater flow at a regional scale (1-10 km) is highly uncertain. The objective of this work is to determine whether faults affect regional patterns of groundwater flow, by using radioactive radon and chloride to quantify groundwater discharge to lakes underlain by faults and not underlain by faults. We sampled lakes overlying the Paleozoic Appalachian fold and thrust belt in the Eastern Townships in Québec, and compared our results to a previous study in a crystalline watershed in the Canadian Shield. The field data was analyzed with an analytical geochemical mixing model. The uncertainties of model parameters were assessed in a sensitivity analysis using Monte Carlo simulation, and the difference between lakes tested with statistical analysis. While the model results indicate non-negligible groundwater discharge for most of the lakes in the Paleozoic orogen, the difference between the groundwater discharge rate into the lakes located on faults and the other lakes is not statistically significant. However, the groundwater discharge rate to lakes in the Paleozoic orogeny is significantly higher than lakes that overlay crystalline bedrock, which is consistent with independent estimates of permeability. The rate of groundwater discharge is not significantly enhanced or diminished around the thrust fault zones, suggesting that in a regional scale, permeability of fault zones is not significantly different from the bedrock permeability at shallow depth in this old, tectonically-inactive orogen.

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Controls on groundwater flow in a semiarid folded and faulted intermountain basin

Ball

Caine

2014

Water Resources Research

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The major processes controlling groundwater flow in intermountain basins are poorly understood, particularly in basins underlain by folded and faulted bedrock and under regionally realistic hydrogeologic heterogeneity. To explore the role of hydrogeologic heterogeneity and poorly constrained mountain hydrologic conditions on regional groundwater flow in contracted intermountain basins, a series of 3-D numerical groundwater flow models were developed using the South Park basin, Colorado, USA as a proxy. The models were used to identify the relative importance of different recharge processes to major aquifers, to estimate typical groundwater circulation depths, and to explore hydrogeologic communication between mountain and valley hydrogeologic landscapes. Modeling results show that mountain landscapes develop topographically controlled and predominantly local-scale to intermediate-scale flow systems. Permeability heterogeneity of the fold and fault belt and decreased topographic roughness led to permeability controlled flow systems in the valley. The structural position of major aquifers in the valley fold and fault belt was found to control the relative importance of different recharge mechanisms. Alternative mountain recharge model scenarios showed that higher mountain recharge rates led to higher mountain water table elevations and increasingly prominent local flow systems, primarily resulting in increased seepage within the mountain landscape and nonlinear increases in mountain block recharge to the valley. Valley aquifers were found to be relatively insensitive to changing mountain water tables, particularly in structurally isolated aquifers inside the fold and fault belt.

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Regional groundwater flow in mountainous terrain: Three‐dimensional simulations of topographic and hydrogeologic controls

Cited by 198 publications

References 53 publications

What can flux tracking teach us about water age distribution patterns and their temporal dynamics?

What can flux tracking teach us about water age distribution patterns and their temporal dynamics?

Shallow, old, and hydrologically insignificant fault zones in the Appalachian orogen

Controls on groundwater flow in a semiarid folded and faulted intermountain basin

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