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Hydrobiogeochemical Controls on the Delivery of Dissolved Organic Matter to Boreal Headwater Streams

Journal Article · · Water Resources Research
DOI:https://doi.org/10.1029/2022wr033358· OSTI ID:2341762
 [1];  [2];  [3];  [1];  [3]
  1. Memorial University, St. Johns, NL (Canada); Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States). Marine and Coastal Research Laboratory
  2. University of Maryland, College Park, MD (United States)
  3. Memorial University, St. Johns, NL (Canada)
Understanding controls on the delivery of dissolved organic matter (DOM) from terrestrial to aquatic systems is key for constraining carbon balances and fluxes in boreal headwater catchments. The largest export of DOM generally occurs during intense periods of water delivery to the landscape (e.g., rain events); however, the timing and magnitude of DOM is complicated by geomorphological, hydrometeorological, and biogeochemical variability. To better assess mechanisms controlling the delivery of DOM to boreal streams, DOM was investigated in two morphologically distinct catchments of an experimental forest watershed in western Newfoundland, one dominated by low relief wetlands and the other by steep hillslopes. The DOM was compared during two fall storms of similar magnitude but contrasting moisture conditions during the autumn transition. Variable concentrations and optical character highlighted antecedent conditions are important for the delivery of DOM to boreal streams. Concentration-discharge relationships with stream hydrograph separation analysis suggest preferential flowpaths through shallow mineral horizons as a key pathway for delivery of DOM in the hillslope dominated catchment compared to rapid input from near-stream wetlands in the low relief catchment. Loss of DOM via preferential pathways suggests an additional mechanism for surface soil carbon loss not directly informed by lateral flow and soil hydrology, which has important implications for our conceptualization and modeling of carbon fluxes in boreal systems. These results suggest watershed scale responses of DOM in boreal headwater catchments are complex, and better linkages between catchment scale hydrology and landscape hydrobiogeochemistry are required to constrain terrestrial to aquatic carbon fluxes in boreal landscapes.
Research Organization:
Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States)
Sponsoring Organization:
Canadian Forest Service; Government of Newfoundland and Labrador; Natural Resources Canada; Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC); USDOE Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE)
Grant/Contract Number:
AC05-76RL01830
OSTI ID:
2341762
Report Number(s):
PNNL-SA--177279
Journal Information:
Water Resources Research, Journal Name: Water Resources Research Journal Issue: 10 Vol. 59; ISSN 0043-1397
Publisher:
American Geophysical Union (AGU)Copyright Statement
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English

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