Abstract
The stable isotopes of oxygen and hydrogen were used to determine the seasonal contributions of precipitation to groundwater recharge at a forested catchment area in the upper North Han River basin, Korea. A comparison of the stable isotopic signatures of groundwater and precipitation indicates that the precipitations which occurred during both the dry and rainy seasons are the important source of groundwater recharge in this region. A stable isotopic signature shown in the stream waters at the upstream reaches is similar to that of groundwaters, indicating that stream waters are mostly fed by groundwater discharge. Reservoir waters in the downstream flood control dams have lower deuterium excess values or d-values compared with those of the upstream waters, indicating a secondary evaporative enrichment. These results can provide a basis for the effective management of groundwater and stream water resources in the North Han River basin.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Araguás-Araguás L, Froehlich K, Rozanski K (1998) Stable isotope composition of precipitation over southeast Asia. J Geophys Res 103:28721–28742
Asano Y, Uchida T, Ohte N (2002) Residence times and flow paths of water in steep unchannelled catchments, Tanakami, Japan. J Hydrol 261:173–192
Chough SK, Kwon S-T, Ree J-H, Choi DK (2000) Tectonic and sedimentary evolution of the Korean peninsula: a review and new review. Earth Sci Rev 52:175–235
Clark ID, Fritz P (1997) Environmental isotopes in hydrogeology. Lewis, New York, p328
Coleman ML, Shepherd TJ, Durham JJ, Rouse JE, Moore GR (1982) Reduction of water with zinc for hydrogen isotope analysis. Anal Chem 54:993–995
Craig H (1961) Isotopic variations in meteoric waters. Science 133:1702–1703
Cunningham EEB, Long A, Eastoe C, Bassett RL (1998) Migration of recharge waters downgradient from the Santa Catalina Mountains into the Tucson basin aquifer, Arizona, USA. Hydrogeol J 6:94–103
Dansgaard W (1964) Stable isotopes in precipitation. Tellus 16:436–468
Dennis F, Andrews JN, Parker A, Poole J (1997) Isotopic and noble gas study of Chalk groundwater in the London Basin, England. Appl Geochem 12:763–773
Epstein S, Mayeda TK (1953) Variation of O18 content of waters from natural sources. Geochim Cosmochim Acta 4:213–224
Gat JR, Carmi I (1970) Evolution of the isotopic composition of atmospheric waters in the Mediterranean Sea area. J Geophys Res 75:3039–3048
IAEA (1992) Statistical treatment of data on environmental isotopes in precipitation. International Atomic Energy Agency, Technical Report Series 331, Vienna
Jones IC, Banner JL (2003) Estimating recharge thresholds in tropical karst island aquifers: Barbados, Puerto Rico and Guam. J Hydrol 278:131–143
Jones C, Banner JL, Humphrey JD (2000) Estimating recharge in a tropical karst aquifer. Water Resour Res 36:1289–1299
Kim KH, Nakai N (1988) Isotopic compositions of precipitations and groundwaters in South Korea. J Geol Soc Korea 24:37–46 (in Korean with English abstract)
Kwon HJ (1985) Natural Geography, 2nd edn. Bummoonsa, Seoul, Korea (in Korean)
Lee KS, Chang BU (1994) Oxygen and hydrogen isotopic composition of precipitation in Taejeon and Seoul, Korea. J Geol Soc Korea 30:475–481 (in Korean with English abstract)
Lee KS, Lee CB (1999) Oxygen and hydrogen isotopic composition of precipitation and river waters in South Korea. J Geol Soc Korea 35:73–84 (in Korean with English abstract)
Lee KS, Wenner DB, Lee I (1999) Using H- and O-isotopic data for estimating the relative contributions of rainy and dry season precipitation to groundwater: example from Cheju Island, Korea. J Hydrol 222:65–74
Lee KS, Grundstein AJ, Wenner DB, Choi MS, Woo NC, Lee DH (2003) Climatic controls on the stable isotopic composition of precipitation in Northeast Asia. Clim Res 23:137–148
Taniguchi M, Nakayama T, Tase N, Shimada J (2000) Stable isotope studies of precipitation and river water in the Lake Biwa basin, Japan. Hyrol Process 14:539–556
Waseda A, Nakai N (1983) Isotopic compositions of meteoric and surface waters in Central and Northeast Japan. Geochemistry (Japan) 17:83–91 (in Japanese with English abstract)
Wenner DB, Ketcham PD, Dowd JF (1991) Stable isotopic composition of waters in a small Piedmont watershed. In: Taylor Jr, HP, O’Neil JR, Kaplan IR (eds) Stable isotope geochemistry: a tribute to samuel epstein, special publication No. 3, The Geochemical Society, pp 195–203
Winograd IJ, Riggs AC, Coplen TB (1998) The relative contributions of summer and cool-season precipitation to groundwater recharge, Spring Mountains, NV, USA. Hydrogeol J 6:77–93
Yurtesever Y, Gat JR (1981) Atmospheric waters. In: Gat JR, Gonfiantini R (eds) Stable isotope hydrology: deuterium and oxygen-18 in the water cycle. IAEA Tech Rep Ser 210:103–142
Acknowledgment
This work was supported by KBSI grant (N26052) to K. S. Lee.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Lee, KS., Kim, Y. Determining the seasonality of groundwater recharge using water isotopes: a case study from the upper North Han River basin, Korea. Environ Geol 52, 853–859 (2007). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00254-006-0527-3
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00254-006-0527-3