| Abstract: | Previously unpublished water quality data are used to explore the potassium chemistry of a small upland stream following the 1976 drought in England. The behaviour of potassium is a complex response to several factors: hydrological pathways operating during periods of storm runoff; sediment inputs; and the chemical properties of the transporting water. Analyses of ‘hysteresis loops’ for a series of storms show that the relationship between suspended sediment and potassium concentrations is not simple; spatial and temporal variations in surface and subsurface stormflow add complexity. In addition to the specific discussion of potassium, data are presented to show the recovery of stream discharge, and of sediment and solute concentrations during the immediate post-drought period. © 1997 by John Wiley & Sons Ltd. |
