Acidification recovery in a changing climate: Observations from thirty-five years of stream chemistry monitoring in forested headwater catchments at the Turkey Lakes watershed,Ontario

Long-term ecosystem studies are valuable for understanding integrated ecosystem response to global changes in atmospheric deposition and climate. We examined trends for a 35-year period (1982/83–2017/18) in concentrations of a range of solutes in precipitation and stream water from nine headwater catchments spanning elevation and surficial geology gradients at the Turkey Lakes watershed (TLW) in northeastern Ontario, Canada. Average annual water year (WY, October to September) concentrations in precipitation significantly declined over the period for sulphate (SO₄²⁻), nitrate (NO₃⁻) and chloride (Cl⁻), while calcium (Ca²⁺) and potassium (K⁺) concentrations increased, resulting in a significant pH increase from 4.2 to 5.7. Trends in stream chemistry through time are generally consistent with expectations associated with acidification recovery. Concentration of many stream water solutes (SO₄²⁻, Cl⁻, calcium [Ca²⁺], magnesium [Mg²⁺] and NH₄⁺ generally decreased, while others (silica [SiO₂] and dissolved organic carbon [DOC]) generally increased. Increases were also observed for alkalinity (six of nine catchments), acid neutralizing capacity ([ANC]; six of nine catchments) and pH (eight of nine catchments), while conductivity declined (six of nine catchments). Variability in trends among catchments are associated with differences in surficial geology and wetland cover. While absolute solute concentrations were generally lower at bedrock dominated high-elevation catchments compared to till dominated lower elevation catchments, the rate of change of concentration was often greater for high elevation catchments. This study confirms continued, but non-linear stream chemistry recovery from acidification, particularly at the less buffered high and moderate elevation sites. The heterogeneity of responses among catchments highlights our incomplete understanding of the relative importance of different mechanisms influencing stream chemistry and the consequences for downstream ecosystems.     

Olivine basalt and trachyandesite peperites formed at the subsurface/surface interface of a semi-arid lake: An example from the Early Miocene Bigadiç basin,western Turkey

Miocene successions in western Turkey are dominated by lacustrine, fluvial and evaporitic sedimentary deposits. These deposits include considerable amounts of volcaniclastic detritus derived from numerous NE-trending volcanic centres in western Turkey as well as in the Bigadiç region. Early Miocene syn-depositional NE-trending olivine basalt and trachyandesite bodies that formed as intrusions and lava flows occur within the Bigadiç borate basin. Olivine basalts occur as partly emergent intrusions, and trachyandesite dykes fed extensive lava flows emplaced in a semi-arid lacustrine environment.Peperites associated with the olivine basalt and trachyandesites appear to display contrasting textural features, although all the localities include a large variety of clast morphologies from blocky to fluidal. Fluidal clasts, mainly globular, ameboidal and pillow-like varieties, are widespread in the peperite domains associated with olivine basalts, apparently due to large-volume sediment fluidisation. In contrast, fluidal clasts related to trachyandesites are restricted to narrow zones near the margins of the intrusions and have commonly elongate and polyhedral shapes with digitate margins, rather than globular and equant varieties. Blocky and fluidal clasts in the olivine basalt peperite display progressive disintegration, suggesting decreasing temperature and increasing viscosity during fragmentation. Abundance of blocky clasts with respect to fluidal clasts in the trachyandesite peperite indicates that the fluidal emplacement and low-volume sediment fluidisation in the early stages were immediately followed by quench fragmentation due to the high viscosity of the magma.Size, texture and abundance of the blocky and fluidal clasts in the olivine basalt and trachyandesite peperites were mainly controlled by sediment fluidisation, pulsatory magma injection and magma properties such as composition, viscosity, vesicularity, and size, abundance and orientation of phenocrysts. Variously combining these contrasting features to varying degrees may form diverse juvenile clast shapes in peperitic domains.