ISOTOPIC IDENTIFICATION OF THE SOURCES OF NITRATE IN WELLS AND SPRINGS OF A KARST PLAIN IN SOUTHWESTERN ILLINOIS
Water samples were collected from 10 springs and 17 wells during different seasons of the year. Several nitrate end-member samples were also collected including: N-fertilizers, livestock waste, septic effluent, field runoff, and atmospheric NO3- from precipitation. Five wells had NO3- concentrations in excess of the USEPA¢s drinking water standard of 10 mg-N/L. Relative to background levels (£1.4 mg-N/L), the NO3- concentrations were anomalously high in most the wells and all the springs, suggesting that sources other than naturally occurring soil-organic matter have contributed NO3- to the groundwater. Agriculture is the dominant land use in the area, and the number of private septic systems is increasing due to urban development.
Chemical and isotope results of some dissolved constituents varied seasonally in the springs, attesting to rapid infiltration of surface and soil water to the karst aquifer. Isotopic data were the most definitive for distinguishing NO3- sources. d15N and d18O of the NO3- ranged from 3.2 to 25 o/oo and 7.2 to 18.7 o/oo respectively. Isotope results suggest the sources of NO3- in the springs are dominated by N-fertilizer with some possible influence of atmospheric NO3- and, to a lesser extent, animal/septic waste. The trend of the d15N and d18O data also suggests denitrification occurs in the shallow karst hydrologic system prior to discharging in the springs.
Nitrate concentrations in the well samples varied greatly. Isotope results indicate the source of NO3- in wells with high concentrations (13 to 80 mg-N/L) originated primarily from septic/livestock waste, while the dominant source of NO3- in wells with lower concentrations (2 to 12 mg-N/L) was N-fertilizer.