Hydrologic and geochemical drivers of aluminum, barium, and copper in two drinking water reservoirs in Southwestern Virginia, USA
Year: 2025
Type: article
Abstract: ABSTRACT The water quality of drinking water reservoirs is critical for human and ecosystem health. In this study, we examined the drivers of three metals, aluminum (Al), barium (Ba), and copper (Cu), across two drinking water reservoirs in southwestern Virginia, USA, over 4 years. One reservoir has a hypolimnetic oxygenation system; the other does not. We used time series modeling and multivariate analysis of water column chemistry, suspended sediment, inflow, and precipitation data to assess the relative roles of hydrologic and geochemical drivers of metal behaviors in the two reservoirs. Results suggest that Al concentrations were primarily influenced by high-flow events, consistent with the mobilization of clays from physical weathering. In contrast, Ba showed stronger sensitivity to geochemical drivers, specifically redox conditions. Drivers of Cu behavior were obscured by low Cu concentrations. For all metals, patterns varied among years. Our findings highlight the importance of long-term monitoring and integrated approaches to evaluate the drivers of metal dynamics in reservoir ecosystems and inform strategies for maintaining safe drinking water supplies.
Source: Water Quality Research Journal
Institution: Virginia Tech
Language: English
Subfield: Water Science and Technology
Field: Environmental Science
Domain: Physical Sciences
Open Access status: hybrid
Awards: LTREB: Integrating real-time open data pipelines and forecasting to quantify ecosystem predictability at day to decadal scales, Collaborative Research: Consequences of changing oxygen availability for carbon cycling in freshwater ecosystems, Collaborative Research: CIBR: Cyberinfrastructure Enabling End-to-End Workflows for Aquatic Ecosystem Forecasting, Collaborative Research: URoL:ASC: Applying rules of life to forecast emergent behavior of phytoplankton and advance water quality management, SCC-IRG Track 2: Resilient Water Systems: Integrating Environmental Sensor Networks and Real-Time Forecasting to Adaptively Manage Drinking Water Quality and Build Social Trust
OpenAlex ID: W4416594867