The strontium isotope budget of the Warta River (Poland): Between silicate and carbonate weathering, and anthropogenic pressure

Strontium isotope identification of water mixing and recharge sources in a river system (Oder River, central Europe): A quantitative approach

“…Only a few tributaries (Mała Panew, Myśla, and Ruda) and artificial canals (Gliwice Canal, Oder–Spree Canal, and Oder–Havel Canal) exhibit opposite Sr characteristics. As a result, the variations in Sr concentration and 87 Sr/ 86 Sr values in the entire catchment are quite wide, from 0.7080 to 0.7127 and from 0.07 to 1.38 mg/L, respectively (see Zieliński et al, ; Zieliński et al, , and data of this study). The range in the Sr content is especially wide considering that most of the rivers in the Baltic Basin exhibit Sr concentrations below 0.1 mg/L (Löfvendahl et al, ).…”

“…The Warta River, the largest tributary of the Oder, is geochemically diverse and complex (Zieliński et al, ). At the confluence with the Oder, it has Sr characteristics similar to that of the master stream.…”

“…As already mentioned above, both natural and anthropogenic sources contribute to the Sr budget of the Oder. Several previous studies have demonstrated that isotopic composition of Sr dissolved in streamwater, when coupled with Sr concentration data, allows identification of reservoirs that control the 87 Sr/ 86 Sr ratios and mixing processes involved (e.g., Bu et al, ; Jiang, ; Négrel, Petelet‐Giraud, & Widory, ; Zieliński et al, ). The 87 Sr/ 86 Sr ratios plotted versus 1/Sr in Figure for waters of the Oder River reveal a hydrological system with a very complex mixing relationships.…”

“…The natural background, controlled by geology, is now overprinted by mine waters, and the role of natural factors on the downriver Sr isotope evolution of the Oder water appears to be negligible. In contrast, the Sr isotope composition of the Oder tributaries, with the exception of the Warta River (for details, see Zieliński et al, ), reflects their basement geology, but—compared to the importance of mine waters—tributaries appear to exert only subordinate control on the present‐day Sr budget of the Oder. A very high Sr content of the dissolved load of the Oder significantly hinders direct identification of the impacts of local anthropogenic Sr inputs, from sewage disposals of cities and industrial facilities.…”

“…Strontium isotopes have a potential to fingerprint the anthropogenic additives, among which fertilizers, waters from mine drainage, industrial waste waters, municipal sewage, and hydraulic fracturing fluids are the most critical (e.g., Böhlke & Horan, ; Chapman et al, ; Christian, Banner, & Mack, ; Hosono et al, ; Ruhl, Dwyer, Hsu‐Kim, Hower, & Vengosh, ; Vengosh, Jackson, Warner, Darrah, & Kondash, ; Zieliński et al, ). Strontium isotopes have also proved to be a reliable tool for identification of water reservoirs and aquifer interactions in a variety of hydrologic systems (e.g., Frost & Toner, ; Katz & Bullen, ; Négrel & Deschamps, ; Négrel & Pauwels, ; Zieliński et al, ). Among the various geochemical tracers commonly used to fingerprint fluid–rock reactions, strontium isotopes are particularly valuable in studies of weathering processes (e.g., Bu, Song, Zhang, & Burford, ; Jacobson, Blum, & Walter, ; Krishnaswami, Trivedi, Sarin, Ramesh, & Sharma, ).…”