Isotopic and chemical signatures of high mountain rivers in catchments with contrasting glacier and rock glacier cover

Glaciers and rock glaciers are key elements of mountain hydrological systems, but their relative influence on the chemical and isotopic conditions of streams within the river continuum is still overlooked. During three consecutive years (2019-2021), we studied 24 stream sections in two catchments (Plima and Schnals, Eastern Italian Alps) with varying cover of glaciers and rock glaciers. End-member mixing models based on 62H and dexcess revealed a large spatial and temporal variability in the contribution of different water sources to stream runoff. Overall, snowmelt (77 & PLUSMN; 17 %) and rainwater (5 & PLUSMN; 5 %) were the largest and the smallest runoff components, respectively. The ice melt contribution was high in streams fed by glaciers (23 & PLUSMN; 15 %) and rock glaciers (16 & PLUSMN; 16 %). In the highly-glacierised Plima basin, the tracer-based estimation of annual ice melt fraction matched reasonably well (90-167%) the mean annual glacial ice loss estimated by geodetic mass balance. In contrast, we found a large overestimation of the ice melt component derived from mixing models in the poorly glacierised (but rock glacier-rich) Schnals catchment. In streams influenced by rock glaciers, at both catchments the particular temporal patterns of electrical conductivity resulted in unreliable estimates of the meltwater/ groundwater fractions of runoff. Depending on the local lithology, concentrations of trace elements (Sr, Ni, Ba, Mn, Zn, Al) were high in streams fed by rock glaciers and glaciers, and close/below the limits of quantification in non-glacial streams. In alpine areas, the abundance of rock glaciers can confound the isotopic and chemical signature imparted by glaciers, thus hindering the use of tracer-based methods for hydrograph separation. Under the combined influence from glaciers and rock glaciers, concentrations of trace elements can surpass the limits for drinking water quality even in downstream areas, as we observed at the Schnals catchment for nickel.

Automated summary

Glaciers and rock glaciers play important roles in mountain hydrological systems, but their effects on the chemical and isotopic conditions of streams have been overlooked. This study examined stream sections in two catchments in the Italian Alps and found that different water sources contribute to stream runoff. Snowmelt and rainwater were the largest and smallest components, respectively, while ice melt was significant in streams fed by glaciers and rock glaciers. The presence of rock glaciers can complicate the isotopic and chemical signatures of glaciers, making hydrograph separation challenging.