CGRG Bibliography of Canadian Geomorphology
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Author : Gibson, J.J.; Fitzgerald, D.F. ; Aravena, R.; and Price, J.S.
Date : 2000.
Title : Stable isotopes of water in a temperate rainforest: unique opportunities for tracing hydrological processes.
Publication : Annual Scientific Meeting, Canadian Geophysical Union, Banff, Alberta, May 23-27, 2000.
Issue : Abstract.
Page(s) :
Abstract
To understand natural watershed processes and potential impacts of planned clear-cut harvesting, a multi-disciplinary study of hydrology, geochemistry and peat development has been underway since 1997 in hypermaritime bog-forest uplands of north coastal British Columbia. Pre-cut hydrologic data collected to date, including detailed characterization of the stable isotope composition of water in rainfall, throughfall, and groundwater in forested hillslopes and blanket bogs, reveals systematic isotope effects which present unique opportunities for tracing groundwater residence time and soil storage capacity. Tracing of water residence time is possible due to generally low levels of evaporative isotopic enrichment in groundwater and seasonal labelling of deuterium excess in precipitation and recharge, which combined provide a direct index of flushing rates. Tracing of soil storage capacity is also possible due to the frequent occurrence of distinct isotopically labelled rainfall episodes. In areas with shallow soil development, such events produce short-term perturbations in the isotopic composition of event streamflow but more importantly can produce persistent step-wise shifts in the isotopic composition of baseflow which may be useful for estimating effective water storage.
Bibliography of Canadian Geomorphology