Role of a groundwater–lake interface in controlling seepage of water and nitrate

The effects of the hydraulic characteristics of a groundwater–lake interface on discharge and nitrate loading to a lake were investigated. The interface is defined as the zone separating the adjacent aquifer (10’s of m) and the lake bed (10’s of cm) itself. The study combines field data using several tracers (water, oxygen isotopes, and nitrate) and numerical modeling. The hydraulic head distribution, a nitrate plume and seepage rates were...