Abstract
Anthropogenic S emissions have been declining in eastern North America since the early 1970s. Declines in atmospheric S deposition have resulted in decreases in concentrations and fluxes of SO4 2− in precipitation and drainage waters. Recent S mass balance studies have shown that the outflow of SO4 2− in drainage waters greatly exceeds current S inputs from atmospheric deposition. Identifying the S source(s) which contribute(s) to the discrepancy in watershed S budgets is a major concern to scientists and policy makers because of the need to better understand the rate and spatial extent of recovery from acidic deposition. Results from S mass balances combined with model calculations and isotopic analyses of SO4 2− in precipitation and drainage waters at the Hubbard Brook Experimental Forest (HBEF) suggest that this discrepancy cannot be explained by either underestimates of dry deposited S or desorption of previously stored SO4 2−. Isotopic results suggest that the excess S may be at least partially derived from net mineralization of organic S as well as the weathering of S-bearing minerals.
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Mitchell, M.J., Mayer, B., Bailey, S.W. et al. Use of Stable Isotope Ratios for Evaluating Sulfur Sources and Losses at the Hubbard Brook Experimental Forest. Water, Air, & Soil Pollution 130, 75–86 (2001). https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1012295301541
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1012295301541