Geochemical Exports to River From the Intrameander Hyporheic Zone Under Transient Hydrologic Conditions: East River Mountainous Watershed, Colorado

To understand how redox processes influence carbon, nitrogen, and iron cycling within the intrameander hyporheic zone, we developed a biotic and abiotic reaction network and incorporated it into the reactive transport simulator PFLOTRAN. Two-dimensional reactive flow and transport simulations were performed (1) to evaluate how transient hydrological conditions control the lateral redox zonation within an intrameander region of the East River in Colorado and (2) to quantify the impact of a single meander on subsurface exports of carbon and other geochemical species to the river. The meander's overall contribution to the river was quantified by integrating geochemical outfluxes along the outside of the meander bend. The model was able to capture the field-observed trends of dissolved oxygen, nitrate, iron, pH, and total inorganic carbon along a 2-D transect. Consistent with field observations, simulated dissolved oxygen and nitrate decreased along the intrameander flow paths while iron (Fe2+) concentration increased. The simulation results further demonstrated that the reductive potential of the lateral redox zonation was controlled by groundwater velocities resulting from river stage fluctuations, with low-water conditions promoting reducing conditions. The sensitivity analysis results showed that permeability had a more significant impact on biogeochemical zonation compared to the reaction pathways under transient hydrologic conditions. The simulation results further indicated that the meander acted as a sink for organic and inorganic carbon as well as iron during the extended baseflow and high-water conditions; however, these geochemical species were released into the river during the falling limb of the hydrograph. Plain Language Summary Hyporheic zones perform important ecological functions by linking terrestrial and aquatic systems within watersheds. Hyporheic zones can act as a source or sink for various metals and nutrients. Transient hydrologic conditions alter redox conditions within an intrameander hyporheic zone thus affecting the behavior of redox-sensitive species. Here we investigate how transient hydrological conditions control the lateral redox zonation within an intrameander region of the East River and examine the contribution of a single meander on subsurface exports of carbon, iron, and other geochemical species to the river. The simulation results show that exports of carbon and iron are primarily hydrologically driven, yet depend upon intermittent oxic and reductive conditions resulting from river stage fluctuations. In addition, the net exports of different geochemical species increase as the river stage decreases. This study demonstrates the importance of including hydrologic transients, using a modern reactive transport approach, to quantify exports within the intrameander hyporheic zone at the riverine scale.