Tales of Scales: Advances in Characterizing Groundwater-Stream Water Interactions

Professor Mike Gooseff, Department of Civil & Environmental Engineering, Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA

There has been an increasing research focus on groundwater-stream water (gw-sw) interactions in the past 30 years, largely due to recognition that these connections underpin important water quality and ecological processes. However, the techniques used to characterize gw-sw interactions have not advanced at a rate comparable to the interest in these processes. Recently, we have been exploring new techniques to 1) estimate reach-scale stream water mass balances, 2) investigate multiple spatial scales of gw-sw interaction and 3) relate gw-sw connections to landscape position. Field examples from projects in mountain catchments in Montana will be discussed. The potential for advances in our understanding of gw-sw interactions and related implications for solute transport and fate in surface systems will also be presented.