Hydrogeochemistry of the deglaciated lacustrine systems in Antarctica: Potential impact of marine aerosols and rock-water interactions

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2019.135822Get rights and content

Highlights

  • Factors influencing the hydrochemistry of Antarctic lakes were assessed.

  • Sea spray effect followed by melt water and bed rock interaction was noticed.

  • Chloro-alkaline indices reveal ion exchange and reverse ion exchange process.

  • Trace element analysis highlights the possibility of aeolian dust sources.

  • Multivariate statistical analysis was used to infer the source.

Abstract

The deglaciated lacustrine systems in Grovnes, Larsemann Hills, East Antarctica was assessed for its solute dynamics and hydrogeochemical interactions. These pristine high latitude lacustrine systems serve as a natural laboratory to understand the interaction between hydrosphere, lithosphere and atmosphere thus providing valuable insights on the functioning of major biogeochemical cycles. A total of 14 fresh water lakes were identified and the water samples were analysed for its physico-chemical characteristics. The abundance of anions and cations in the lake water samples were in the following order of Cl > HCO3 > SO42 > NO3 and Na+ > Mg2+ > Ca2+ > K+ respectively. Moreover, the lakes exhibit slightly alkaline condition due to dissolution of alkaline earth metals and atmospheric fallout. Na+-Cl–HCO3 and Na+-Cl are the commonly noticed water type in the study area and higher concentration of Na+-Cl were due to the effect of sea spray through marine aerosols. Reverse ion exchange is noticed in most of the lakes due to saline influence. Three major mechanisms such as rock dominance, precipitation/snow and evaporation/sea spray controls the lake water geochemistry in the study area. Silicate weathering and evaporite dissolution also contribute ionic load to the lake water. Significant positive correlations (p < .01) among major ions reveal sources from bedrock weathering along with marine aerosols. Trace element chemistry shows that rock-water interaction is the primary source for dissolved metals in the lake water followed by long range atmospheric transport in the form of aeolian dust. Mineral groups such as evaporites, sulphates, carbonates, metal oxides and hydroxides are responsible for the dissolution of metal complexes in the lake water. Furthermore, lakes falling within a micro basin have shown higher Na+-Cl content which is due to the catchment effect where snow enriched with sea spray melts during the austral summer feeding these lakes.

Introduction

Lakes represent a fairly small share of Earth's water and yet form an integral part in the global hydrological system and support a unique ecosystem for all forms of life from the poles to the tropics (Winter, 2004). Lacustrine systems are composed of physical, chemical and biological components that partake in many ecological and biogeochemical processes (Bhateria and Jain, 2016). The quality of lake water is controlled by its catchment which includes lithology, soil, topography and vegetation, followed by chemical weathering, atmospheric precipitation and evapo-crystallization processes (Gibbs, 1970; Jiang et al., 2015). The transport of materials within the catchment through hydrological processes reflects the composition of lake water with distinct geochemical properties (Dong et al., 2010). For instance, the major source of Ca2+, Mg2+, and HCO3 in the hydrosphere is generally associated with lithospheric minerals along with atmospheric CO2 interactions, whereas Na+, Cl, SO42 and NO3 have numerous sources from atmosphere, lithosphere, biosphere and anthroposphere (Huang et al., 2009; Haidary et al., 2013). Moreover, the influence of anthropogenic activities has deteriorated lake water quality throughout the world. A wide variety of pollutants generated by such activities end up either in oceans or locally in the lakes thus affecting the overall limnological structure.

Similarly, trace metals are linked with major elements and they play a pivotal role in carbon and nitrogen cycles (Martin, 1990; Morel et al., 1994). Most of the metals are associated with enzyme activity, stress factor (toxic levels) and essential micro nutrients to aquatic life and associated ecosystems (Sunda and Guillard, 1976; Maldonado et al., 2002; Klevenz et al., 2012). The sources of trace metals are either geogenic or anthropogenic and quantifying their association and interaction in biogeochemical cycles needs natural laboratories unperturbed from anthropogenic contaminants. Antarctica is remote and acts as a potentially pristine ecosystem that could provide records of natural metal interaction in the environment. Archives of sediment and ice cores collected from Antarctica could provide valuable insights on global metal circulation through atmospheric transport and the data can be used to understand the magnitude of metal accumulation through human activities.

Land-locked lakes in Antarctica have a great significance in maintaining a unique ecosystem. Due to its remoteness and high latitudes with harsh climate and frozen conditions, the lakes of Antarctica remain less explored than other parts of the world (Vincent and Laybourn-Parry, 2008). Thus, preserving a sensitive reference system for global climatic change and other anthropogenic activities is important (Schmidt and Psenner, 1992; Quesada et al., 2006; Bhat et al., 2011). Airborne and waterborne contaminants such as organic and inorganic pollutants reach Antarctica through global circulation thus deteriorating the pristine environment (Marchetto et al., 1995; Carrera et al., 2002; Rogora et al., 2006). Such contaminants in the environment alter the water quality and depreciate the sensitive lake ecosystems (Hofer et al., 2001; Psenner, 2002). Generally, Antarctic lakes are oligotrophic in nature and due to its low nutrient content the primary productivity is meager. As the existing lakes and pools are of paramount importance from a physical, chemical, and biological point of view, understanding chemical composition of the lake water and its quality are pertinent. A number of studies regarding snow and lake water chemistry over various regions of the continent of Antarctica have been carried out (Gjessing, 1984; Isaksson, 1994; Stenberg et al., 1998; Isaksson et al., 2001; Siegert et al., 2001; Bertler et al., 2005; Karkas et al., 2005; Ali et al., 2010; Lecomte et al., 2020).

A wide variety of studies have been conducted in the lakes of Signy Island, Marion Island, Ross Island, McMurdo Sound and Schirmacher Hills (Bardin and Leflat, 1965; Komarek and Ruzicka, 1966; Sengupta and Qasim, 1983; Matondkar and Gomes, 1983; Ingole and Parulekar, 1987, Ingole and Parulekar, 1990). The de-glaciated terrain of Larsemann Hills, East Antarctica has many freshwater lakes. These lakes are formed by the process of glacial abrasion and occupy natural depressions within a watershed. Thus, they offer an opportunity to investigate the hydrogeochemistry in a de-glaciated landscape having proximal ice-sheet and sea-ice. Studies suggest that most of the Antarctic lakes undergo an evolutionary sequence through de-glaciation (Priddle and Heywood, 1980; Burgess et al., 1994). Significant works on the environmental domain in the Larsemann Hills were carried out by various researchers (Gillieson, 1991; Verleyen et al., 2004; Hodgson et al., 2005). Studies on hydrogeochemistry in the lakes of Larsemann Hills are limited. Some work describing the ionic character in the lakes of Grovnes promontory, Larsemann Hills was conducted by Shrivastava et al. (2011). However, the factors controlling the hydrogeochemistry and the role of sea spray through marine aerosols followed by rock water interaction on these lakes are not well documented. Moreover, the dissolution of possible mineral phases and their interaction in the lake water is unknown. These processes have a significant impact on the freshwater lacustrine systems and controlling the associated biogeochemical cycles. Therefore, the aim of the present study is to fill the mentioned gap with major objective to assess the factors controlling the hydrogeochemistry of Grovnes, Larsemann Hills, East Antarctica and the role of sea spray through marine aerosols and rock water interaction on the ionic load of lake water.

Section snippets

Study area

The ice-free area of the Larsemann Hills covers approximately 50 km2 in the Ingrid Christensen Coast of Princess Elizabeth Land in East Antarctica (Fig. 1). The landmass is surrounded by the Bolingen Islands and the Amery ice shelf in the West-Southwest and the Rauer Islands and the Vestfold Hills in Northeast. The Ingrid Christensen Coast, a group of small islands and promontories exists along the East of Lambert Glacier known as Larsemann Hills. The Larsemann Hills is encompassed by a

Physical parameters and major ion chemistry

The concentrations of measured physico-chemical parameters and their mean values are shown in Table 1 and their corresponding analytical data is shown in Table S1. These values are compared with published dataset from other parts of Antarctica and the world. TDS in the lake water of Grovnes reveals that they are suitable for drinking purpose and are within the permissible limit of WHO guidelines (2017). However when compared with the world average (120 mg/L; Wetzel, 1975), the concentration of

Discussion

The chemical evolution of Antarctic lake water is controlled by melt water chemistry, rock-water interaction (includes mineral precipitation, mineral dissolution and ion exchange), reactive organic matter, bedrock composition of the catchment and residence time in the case of closed basins. Generally, ionic composition in the lake water is governed through three general processes such as evaporite dissolution, silicate weathering and carbonate dissolution (Garrels and MacKenzie, 1971). However

Conclusions

Water samples from the lacustrine systems of Grovnes Promontory in Larsemann Hills, East Antarctica have indicated the source of salinity and origin of water type. Characterization of hydrogeochemical facies reveals that the lake water has Na+-Cl–HCO3 and Na+-Cl dominant water types followed by alkalies exceeding alkaline earths and strong acids exceeding weak acids. As per the CCME-WHO-WQI, the lake waters fall under good water category for drinking purpose. Chloro-alkaline indices suggest

Declaration of competing interest

None.

Acknowledgement

The authors would like to convey gratitude to Dr. M. Rajeevan, Secretary to Government of India, Dr. M. Ravichandran, Director, ESSO-NCPOR for approving the project and to visit Antarctica. We acknowledge Dr. Manish Tiwari, Dr. Waliur Rahaman and Mr. Vikash Kumar, Scientists at ESSO-NCPOR for their timely help in trace element analysis. The authors would like to thank Professor K. Balakrishna, Manipal University for collecting the lake water samples under approved project “EIA of Anthropogenic

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