National Park Service U.S. Department of the Interior Natural Resource Stewardship and Science An Environmental Survey of Serpentine Hot Springs Geology, Hydrology, Geochemistry, and Microbiology Natural Resource Report NPS/BELA/NRR—2015/1019 ON THE COVER Bathhouse at Serpentine Hot Springs along Hot Springs Creek with granite tors in background Photograph by: D. Kirk Nordstrom An Environmental Survey of Serpentine Hot Springs Geology, Hydrology, Geochemistry, and Microbiology Natural Resource Report NPS/BELA/NRR—2015/1019 D. Kirk Nordstrom1, Linda Hasselbach2, Steven E. Ingebritsen3, Dana Skorupa4, R. Blaine McCleskey1, Timothy R. McDermott4 1U.S. Geological Survey 3215 Marine St. Boulder, CO 80303 2National Park Service Western Arctic National Parklands PO Box 1029 Kotzebue, AK 99752 3U.S. Geological Survey, Mail Stop 439 345 Middlefield Rd. Menlo Park, CA 94025 4Department of Land Resources and Environmental Sciences Montana State University Bozeman, MT 59717 September 2015 U.S. Department of the Interior National Park Service Natural Resource Stewardship and Science Fort Collins, Colorado The National Park Service, Natural Resource Stewardship and Science office in Fort Collins, Colorado, publishes a range of reports that address natural resource topics. These reports are of interest and applicability to a broad audience in the National Park Service and others in natural resource management, including scientists, conservation and environmental constituencies, and the public. The Natural Resource Report Series is used to disseminate comprehensive information and analysis about natural resources and related topics concerning lands managed by the National Park Service. The series supports the advancement of science, informed decision-making, and the achievement of the National Park Service mission. The series also provides a forum for presenting more lengthy results that may not be accepted by publications with page limitations. All manuscripts in the series receive the appropriate level of peer review to ensure that the information is scientifically credible, technically accurate, appropriately written for the intended audience, and designed and published in a professional manner. Data in this report were collected and analyzed using methods based on established, peer-reviewed protocols and were analyzed and interpreted within the guidelines of the protocols. This report received formal peer review by subject-matter experts who were not directly involved in the collection, analysis, or reporting of the data, and whose background and expertise put them on par technically and scientifically with the authors of the information. Views, statements, findings, conclusions, recommendations, and data in this report do not necessarily reflect views and policies of the National Park Service, U.S. Department of the Interior. Mention of trade names or commercial products does not constitute endorsement or recommendation for use by the U.S. Government. This report is available in digital format from the Natural Resource Publications Management website (http://www.nature.nps.gov/publications/nrpm/). To receive this report in a format optimized for screen readers, please email irma@nps.gov. Please cite this publication as: Nordstrom, D. K., L. Hasselbach, S. E. Ingebritsen, D. Skorupa, R. B. McCleskey, and T. McDermott. 2015. An environmental survey of Serpentine Hot Springs: Geology, hydrology, geochemistry, and microbiology. Natural Resource Report NPS/BELA/NRR—2015/1019. National Park Service, Fort Collins, Colorado. NPS 182/129651, September 2015 ii Contents Page Figures ................................................................................................................................................... v Tables ................................................................................................................................................... vii Executive Summary .............................................................................................................................. ix Acknowledgments ................................................................................................................................. xi Introduction ............................................................................................................................................ 1 Physiography and Climate ..................................................................................................................... 7 Permafrost ...................................................................................................................................... 8 Climate ........................................................................................................................................... 8 Regional Geology .................................................................................................................................. 9 Prior Geologic Investigations ......................................................................................................... 9 Tectonics and Volcanism ............................................................................................................. 10 Bedrock Geology .......................................................................................................................... 11 Methods ................................................................................................................................................ 13 Field Measurements and Sampling .............................................................................................. 13 Water Sampling and Preservation for Chemical Analysis ...................................................... 13 Stable Isotope Sampling .......................................................................................................... 13 Discharge Measurements ......................................................................................................... 17 Microbiological Sampling ....................................................................................................... 17 Methods for Chemical Analysis ................................................................................................... 18 Laboratory Methods ................................................................................................................ 18 Quality Assurance Quality Control ......................................................................................... 18 Methods for Microbiological Analysis ......................................................................................... 18 DNA extraction and PCR ........................................................................................................ 18 Pyrosequencing........................................................................................................................ 19 Data Analysis........................................................................................................................... 19 Results and Discussion ........................................................................................................................ 20 Water Chemistry ........................................................................................................................... 20 Chemical Character of Waters ................................................................................................. 20 iii Contents (continued) Page Temperature and Conductance Profile of Diversion Ditch Water .......................................... 22 Stable Isotope Hydrology ............................................................................................................. 24 Overview: Stable Isotope Hydrology as applied to Geothermal Waters ................................. 24 Serpentine-area Stable Isotope Data Interpretation ................................................................. 26 Hydrologic Discharge and Chloride Load .................................................................................... 30 Hot Springs Creek ................................................................................................................... 30 Serpentine and Arctic Hot Springs .......................................................................................... 33 Thermal Discharge ....................................................................................................................... 37 Overview: Thermal Inventories ............................................................................................... 37 Serpentine-area Thermal Discharge ........................................................................................ 37 Microbiology and its Relation to Human Activity ....................................................................... 38 Introduction ............................................................................................................................. 38 Total and Fecal Coliform Bacteria .......................................................................................... 40 Phylogenetic Diversity ............................................................................................................ 41 Synthesis ....................................................................................................................................... 47 Microbial Diversity in Thermal Waters ......................................................................................