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Tracing groundwater-surface water interactions in a volcanic maar lake using stable isotopes and radon-222
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  • Germain Esquivel-Hernandez,
  • Emanuel Montealegre-Viales,
  • Rolando Sánchez-Gutieerez,
  • Mario Villalobos-Forbes,
  • Roy Pérez-Salazar,
  • Ricardo Sánchez-Murillo,
  • Leonardo Mena-Rivera,
  • Christian Birkel,
  • Lucia Ortega
Germain Esquivel-Hernandez
Universidad Nacional Costa Rica

Corresponding Author:[email protected]

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Emanuel Montealegre-Viales
Unversidad Nacional Costa Rica
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Rolando Sánchez-Gutieerez
Universidad Nacional
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Mario Villalobos-Forbes
Universidad Nacional Costa Rica
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Roy Pérez-Salazar
Universidad Nacional Costa Rica
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Ricardo Sánchez-Murillo
Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of Texas at Arlington
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Leonardo Mena-Rivera
Universidad Nacional Costa Rica
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Christian Birkel
University of Costa Rica
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Lucia Ortega
International Atomic Energy Agency
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Abstract

Groundwater-surface water interactions are important in controlling lake water residence time, biogeochemistry, and water availability for downstream communities in tropical volcanic catchments. To better understand these complex seasonal interactions, a multi-tracer approach including water and inorganic carbon stable isotopes (δ2H, δ18O, δ13CDIC), hydrochemistry, and 222Rn was applied in Lake Hule, northern Costa Rica. Seasonal isotope mass balance calculations using lake, stream, precipitation, and groundwater isotope compositions were supplemented with local hydrometeorological information. Evaporation to inflow ratios (E/I) revealed a small variability between the dry (December-April) and wet seasons (May-November), with relatively low evaporation losses, 2.9±1.0 % and 3.2±1.8 %, respectively. Bayesian end-member analysis indicated that annual inputs from groundwater, precipitation, and runoff represented 61.3±8.1%, 24.4±8.4, and 14.3±5.9% of total inflow, respectively. Temporal variations of δ13CDIC also confirmed the key role carbonate buffering plays in this lake and indicated greater CO2 degassing from groundwater sources in the wet season. This first tracer-aided assessment in a volcanic lake maar of northern Costa Rica provides evidence of previously unknown groundwater-surface water interactions and poses a promising tool for estimating seasonal variability of groundwater discharge into natural lakes across the volcanic front of Central America.
01 May 2024Submitted to ESS Open Archive
08 May 2024Published in ESS Open Archive