You are here:
CHEMISTRY OF DISSOLVED ORGANIC CARBON AND ORGANIC ACIDS IN TWO STREAMS DRAINING FORESTED WATERSHEDS
Citation:
David, M., G. Vance, AND J. Kahl. CHEMISTRY OF DISSOLVED ORGANIC CARBON AND ORGANIC ACIDS IN TWO STREAMS DRAINING FORESTED WATERSHEDS. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Washington, D.C., EPA/600/J-92/453.
Description:
The concentration, major fractions, and contribution of dissolved organic carbon (DOG) to stream chemistry were examined in two paired streams draining upland catchments in eastern Maine. oncentrations of DOC in East and West Bear Brooks were 183 +/- 73 and 169 +/- 70 umol CL-1 (mean plus or minus one standard deviation), respectively. rganic acids were the dominant fractions of the stream DOG, with hydrophilic and hydrophobic organic acids representing 44 and 39% of total DOG (average of both streams), respectively. ast and West Bear Brooks had mean organic anion concentrations of about 20 ueq L-1 during episodic events and 12-13 ueq L-1 during base flow. uring the episodic events, the maximum organic anion values were 51 and 36 ueq L-1, respectively, for East and West Bear Brooks. lthough SO2 was the dominant stream anion, followed by Cl-, organic anions were also determined to be an important component of these stream waters, especially during storm events. his illustrates that even in streams with low DOG, such as these studied here, organic anions can contribute significantly to stream acidity.