Janusz Siwek

Geology and Land-use related pattern of spring water quality. Case study from the catchments of the Malopolska Upland (S. Poland)

Spring water chemical composition was investigated in three catchments (i.e. Pradnik, Dlubnia and Szreniawa) located within a carbonate-rock monocline from the Upper Jurassic and Cretaceous periods and constituting voluminous aquifers. The total spring water dissolved solids (TDS) displayed a concentration increase between 1974 and 1999. Using principal component analysis (PCA), the authors identified factors determining spring water chemistry. The research focused on making a distinction between the regional (large-area) and the local factors, the latter being related to the land-use in the direct vicinity of the springs. PCA yielded evidence that local sources of pollution can significantly contribute to the differentiation of spring-water chemical composition.

Natural Factors Affecting the Chemical Composition of Water in the Catchment of Wołosatka Stream (High Bieszczady Mts.)

The aim of this study was to identify the natural factors determining spatial differences in spring water chemistry in the flysch Carpathians using the Wolosatka catchment (High Bieszczady Mountains, SE Poland) as an example. A Principal Component Analysis (PCA) was used to find the regularity in the variance of common and biogenic ion concentrations among the surveyed springs. The PCA identified three factors that altogether explain 85 % of the variance. The first factor explained 51 % of the variance and was best correlated with concentration of Ca2+, Mg2+ and HCO3 −. Generally, the fundamental factor shaping the ions concentration is the lithology of aquifer. The second factor, correlated mainly with the concentration of SO4 2− and Cl−, seems to explain the variation in water chemistry resulting from varying elevation of springs. The elevation controls climate conditions and plant communities in the alimentation area. Generally, higher concentrations of sulfates are characteristic of the upper part of the catchment, while the highest concentrations of chlorides are characteristic of springs located on the valley floors. The third factor, reflecting mainly the concentration of nitrates, seems to be related to the role of shallow groundwater circulation in the alimentation of springs after rainfall events.

Effect of Land Use, Seasonality, and Hydrometeorological Conditions on the K+ Concentration–Discharge Relationship During Different Types of Floods in Carpathian Foothills Catchments (Poland)

The purpose of the study was to determine the role of land use, seasonality, and hydrometeorological conditions on the relationship between stream water potassium (K+) concentration and discharge during different types of floods—short- and long-duration rainfall floods as well as snowmelt floods on frozen and thawed soils. The research was conducted in small catchments (agricultural, woodland, mixed-use) in the Carpathian Foothills (Poland). In the woodland catchment, lower K+ concentrations were noted for each given specific runoff value for summer rainfall floods versus snowmelt floods (seasonal effect). In the agricultural and mixed-use catchments, the opposite was true due to their greater ability to flush K+ out of the soil in the summer. In the stream draining woodland catchment, higher K+ concentrations occurred during the rising limb than during the falling limb of the hydrograph (clockwise hysteresis) for all flood types, except for snowmelt floods with the ground not frozen. In the agricultural catchment, clockwise hystereses were produced for short- and long-duration rainfall floods caused by high-intensity, high-volume rainfall, while anticlockwise hystereses were produced for short- and long-duration rainfall floods caused by low-intensity, low-volume rainfall as well as during snowmelt floods with the soil frozen and not frozen. In the mixed-use catchment, the hysteresis direction was also affected by different lag times for water reaching stream channels from areas with different land use. K+ hystereses for the woodland catchment were more narrow than those for the agricultural and mixed-use catchments due to a smaller pool of K+ in the woodland catchment. In all streams, the widest hystereses were produced for rainfall floods preceded by a long period without rainfall.

Hydrographic Maps as Sources of Information About the Polish Carpathians

The chapter is a review of both historical and modern hydrographic maps of the Polish Carpathians. The emphasis of the review is on the Hydrographic Map of Poland (Mapa Hydrograficzna Polski), at a scale of 1:50,000, which has been published since the early 1960s. Special attention is paid to the hydrological characteristics of mountainous areas such as the Carpathians, which contain more water features per unit area than lowlands. Given this diverse water distribution, a different approach is needed for the generalization of map contents, especially with respect to the shape of the river network and groundwater outflows as springs, bog springs, and seeps. Hydrographic maps are sources of information that are useful for different purposes, such as water resource management, land development, spatial management, flood protection, and environmental conservation. The recording of hydrological phenomena allows for an assessment of changes in the aquatic environment over the long-term.