Variability of natural effluents as an indicator of groundwater retention in the Carpathian foothills (southern Poland)

 Research into the patterns of natural underground water effluents has been conducted in a small catchment basin (Wierzbanówka) that is representative of the Carpathian foothills. The aim of this study was to understand the long-term dynamics of the effluents and their responses to natural and artificial factors in order to estimate groundwater resources. High variability of the effluent patterns in the Carpathian foothills is a result of precipitation fluctuations, low ground retention capacity, a low rate of absorption in the flysch rock formation areas, and of the Quaternary covers. In addition, the dominance of agricultural land use, low forest coverage, and poor hydrological management are the main causes of this variability. Any local increase in underground water resources would only be possible if forests were planted on some of the agricultural land and changes were made to water management. Received: 16 August 1999 · Accepted: 12 January 2000