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University of Groningen Natural Isotopes Support Groundwater Origin University of Groningen Natural isotopes support groundwater origin as a driver of mire type and biodiversity in Slitere National Park, Latvia Elshehawi, S.; Vilches, A. Espinoza; Aleksans, O.; Pakalne, M.; Wolejko, L.; Schot, P.; Grootjans, A. P. Published in: Mires and Peat DOI: 10.19189/MaP.2019.SNPG.394 IMPORTANT NOTE: You are advised to consult the publisher's version (publisher's PDF) if you wish to cite from it. Please check the document version below. Document Version Publisher's PDF, also known as Version of record Publication date: 2020 Link to publication in University of Groningen/UMCG research database Citation for published version (APA): Elshehawi, S., Vilches, A. E., Aleksans, O., Pakalne, M., Wolejko, L., Schot, P., & Grootjans, A. P. (2020). Natural isotopes support groundwater origin as a driver of mire type and biodiversity in Slitere National Park, Latvia. Mires and Peat, 26, [01]. https://doi.org/10.19189/MaP.2019.SNPG.394 Copyright Other than for strictly personal use, it is not permitted to download or to forward/distribute the text or part of it without the consent of the author(s) and/or copyright holder(s), unless the work is under an open content license (like Creative Commons). Take-down policy If you believe that this document breaches copyright please contact us providing details, and we will remove access to the work immediately and investigate your claim. Downloaded from the University of Groningen/UMCG research database (Pure): http://www.rug.nl/research/portal. For technical reasons the number of authors shown on this cover page is limited to 10 maximum. Download date: 28-09-2021 Natural isotopes support groundwater origin as a driver of mire type and biodiversity in Slitere National Park, Latvia S. Elshehawi1,2, A. Espinoza Vilches3, O. Aleksans5, M. Pakalne5, L. Wolejko6, P. Schot4, A.P. Grootjans1,8 1Centre for Energy and Environmental Sciences (IVEM), University of Groningen, The Netherlands 2Centre for Isotope Research (CIO), University of Groningen, The Netherlands 3Faculty of Geosciences and 4Copernicus Institute of Sustainable Development, University of Utrecht, the Netherlands 5University of Latvia, Riga, Latvia; 6Westpomeranian Technological University in Szczecin, Poland 8Radboud University of Nijmegen, The Netherlands ______________________________________________________________________________________ SUMMARY Slitere National Park in Latvia is home to rich fens with many endangered and threatened plant species. This study aims to address how the hydrological systems affect vegetation biodiversity (cf. Wolejko et al. 2019) in the mire systems of the National Park: the base-rich inter-dune mires and extremely base-rich calcareous fens. Groundwater samples from these areas were collected for measurements of ion composition and natural isotopes of C, H and O. Also, we simulated groundwater flow paths from the highest local topographical point (a nearby sandy plateau) to the sea, and calculated the residence times of these groundwater flows. The results show that the inter-dune mires are supplied by a mixture of local and regional groundwater systems. The groundwater supply at one of the inter-dune mires was dominated by local groundwater flow from adjacent dunes, but we also detected a small input of calcareous water. This dominance of local groundwater may have resulted from the presence of drainage ditches and a small stream that drains into the Baltic Sea. In contrast, the extremely base-rich fens were found to be solely dependent on regional groundwater which is likely to discharge at the plateau foothills due to the presence of fault structures. Thus, the mires in Slitere National Park are not as undisturbed as was previously believed. Drainage may have affected the original hydrological flow paths. Further research on the extent of these changes is recommended to preserve the endangered species and high biodiversity of these fens. Also, in order to trace the origin of groundwater flows, further investigation into the larger landscape beyond the plateau might be required. KEY WORDS: base-rich fens, ecohydrology, groundwater system analysis _______________________________________________________________________________________ INTRODUCTION to inter-dune fen complexes and calcareous fens (Figure 1). These mires developed in former Littorina Peatlands are wet landscapes with water tables Sea lagoons, where seawater regression and high sustained at or near the surface for extended periods groundwater levels allowed the infilling of inter-dune of time (Joosten & Clarke 2002). When these depressions around 4700 years ago (Kalnina et al. sustained water tables allow for active accumulation 2014). A high proportion of the landscape in Slitere of peat, the resulting peatlands are called mires National Park consists of protected (Natura 2000) (Mitsch & Gosselink 2000, Joosten & Clarke 2002). habitat types, representing Europe’s most valuable Peat is formed through accumulation of senescing dune forests and mires. This classification indicates vegetation that does not completely decompose, with that the landscape structure is considered to be organic matter constituting about 30 % or more of the untouched, and it is used as a reference area for total volume (Clymo et al. 1998). Hence, mires act as conservation and restoration purposes at international important carbon sinks in the carbon global cycle. scale (Wolejko et al. 2019). Furthermore, mires provide refuge to rare and Hydrology plays an important role in sustaining endangered wetland species (Pakalne & Kalnina the functions of mires and, therefore, their 2005). biodiversity (Gilvear & Bradley 2009). Wolejko et Slitere National Park is part of the coastal lowland al. (2019) showed that one of the inter-dune mires region of northwestern Latvia, stretching along the (Kuksuspes) is dependent on exfiltration of base-rich Baltic Sea coastline (Pakalne & Kalnina 2005). Its groundwater flowing from south of the mires to the wetlands range from an active raised bog (Bažu mire) north. This type of base-rich groundwater flow is Mires and Peat, Volume 26 (2020), Article 01, 15 pp, http://www.mires-and-peat.net/, ISSN 1819-754X International Mire Conservation Group and International Peatland Society, DOI: 10.19189/MaP.2019.SNPG.394 1 S. Elshehawi et al. GROUNDWATER ORIGIN AS A DRIVER OF MIRE TYPE AND BIODIVERSITY important for sustaining high vegetation biodiversity METHODS (Grootjans et al. 1993). Furthermore, Wolejko et al. (2019) hypothesise that these inter-dune mire Study area systems also depend on exfiltration of base-rich Slitere National Park is bordered by the Baltic Sea groundwater flowing from other parts of the area, i.e. and the Gulf of Riga to the north and east, the bordering plateau. respectively, and by agricultural and urban The study described here aimed to describe the landscapes to the south and west. The area to the groundwater systems that sustain the mire south is located on the plateau of the former Littorina landscapes, and to follow up on the recent vegetation coastline (Figure 1). As this plateau represents the biodiversity assessment in Slitere National Park highest point in the local topography, the upper (Wolejko et al. 2019). Specific objectives were to (1) reaches of the groundwater flow are found here. determine the groundwater flow systems and origins Below the plateau’s cliffs, a gentle downward slope and (2) assess whether the mires are indeed in pristine continues for a few kilometres landwards forming the state. An ecohydrological approach was used, middle reaches, and this is where calcareous fens are involving a quick scan to analyse the groundwater currently present (LEGMC 2018). The northern parts flows in the area that sustains the natural wet of the National Park are home to sand-dune ridges landscapes of the National Park (Grootjans & Jansen that extend in the east–west direction. Between the 2012). We measured natural isotopes of C, H and O, ridges, there are inter-dune valleys that have together with macro-ions, to verify the water quality accumulated peat over the years, depending on types associated with each mire type; and coupled groundwater supply (Kalnina et al. 2014). Some of this with groundwater simulation. these fens have expanded laterally over the ridges, Figure 1. Study area land cover and distribution of study sites in Slitere National Park (adapted from Wolejko et al. 2019). Map source: GIS_Latvija10.2., LiDAR DEM, LU ĢZZF. Mires and Peat, Volume 26 (2020), Article 01, 15 pp, http://www.mires-and-peat.net/, ISSN 1819-754X International Mire Conservation Group and International Peatland Society, DOI: 10.19189/MaP.2019.SNPG.394 2 S. Elshehawi et al. GROUNDWATER ORIGIN AS A DRIVER OF MIRE TYPE AND BIODIVERSITY thus becoming dependent mainly on rainwater, e.g. unconfined sands, and it consists of sedimentary Bažu bog (Pakalne & Kalnina 2005, Kalnina et al. sandstone rocks (D2ar# aquifer, see Table A1 in 2014). Appendix; Virbulis et al. 2013). Precipitation in Slitere National Park averages around 600–700 mm yr-1, with the highest amount Site selection and sampling occurring during autumn (Remm et al. 2011). Fourteen sites were selected to collect groundwater Evaporation is estimated at about 455 mm yr-1, with samples (Figure 2). Four of these sites were an average precipitation surplus of at least 150 mm established along a south–north transect within a yr-1 in the Baltic Sea region (Omstedt et al. 1997), single inter-dune fen, the Peterezera mire (Pe.ID1 to however site data are not available with regards to Pe.ID4). Four other sites were established to the evapotranspiration. Glacial sand deposits form the south (Pe.IDS1 and Pe.IDS2) and north (Pe.IDN1 underlying unconfined Quaternary aquifer and Pe.IDN2) of the Peterezera mire, with two in (Juodkazis 1994, Virbulis et al. 2013). This each cardinal direction. One site was established in unconfined aquifer is intercalated with a series of the Kuksupes mire (Ku.ID), which intersects the area inter-spaced clay and clay/sand mixtures (moraine studied by Wolejko et al. (2019). This site was sediments), which form aquitards at different depths established in the southern part of mire where we (Zelčs et al.
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