COMPARISON OF SEASONAL TEMPERATURE CHANGE WITH CHEMICAL VARIABILITY TO UNDERSTAND THE TIME OF TRAVEL FROM RECHARGE TO SPRING DISCHARGE; AN EXAMPLE FROM MONROE COUNTY, WV (Invited Presentation)

The time of transport from recharge to spring discharge has often been assessed using the temporal chemical variability in spring water chemistry. In general, springs with shorter flow paths are more variable over time and are interpreted as being more closely connected to the land surface and thus, are more vulnerable to potential harmful impacts from surface and near-surface spills. Using carbonate and shale-sourced springs in Monroe County WV, we compare seasonal spring temperature patterns with chemical data for assessing time of transport from recharge to spring. Seasonal spring temperature data were fit to a modelled cosine function and compared to a modeled signal for local air temperatures. This modeling technique has been used to access diel cycles in water and to estimate baseflow stream conditions for ecology. The damping of seasonal recharge temperature and lag in the overall curve, when compared to atmospheric temperatures, are used to assess the relative times of transport from land surface to spring. Spring water with the most variable chemistry consistently had the least damping and shortest lag of the modelled recharge temperature curve. In general, there was good correspondence between variability in chemistry and changes to the modeled temperature data. Reasonably inexpensive temperature loggers are now readily available or can be built using electronic components, making it increasingly easy and cost effective to collect long-term detailed temperature data. Although temperature data have long be collected along with chemical data, they can also be used as an independent assessment of spring water vulnerability. This study demonstrates that seasonal temperature models can also be useful in addressing spring water vulnerability.