A new look at Grand Canyon springs and possible threats from uranium mining
March 25, 2024 - Steve Carr
A new research paper published recently in Annual Reviews of Earth and Planetary Sciences, coordinated by scientists from The University of New Mexico and collaborating institutions, addresses the complex nature and societal importance of Grand Canyon’s springs and groundwater.
The paper, Hydrotectonics of Grand Canyon Groundwater, recommends sustainable groundwater management and uranium mining threats that require better monitoring and application of hydrotectonic concepts.
The data suggest an interconnectivity of the groundwater systems such that uranium mining and other contaminants pose risks to people, aquifers, and ecosystems. The conclusion based on multiple datasets is that groundwater systems involve significant mixing.
"This is unsurprising for anyone who has looked at the mixing of rivers, but similar processes are more hidden and incompletely understood in groundwater," said Department of Earth & Planetary Sciences Distinguished Professor Karl Karlstrom, one of the paper's authors. "Water flows down gradient, and fault pathways control where groundwater ponds in sub-basins. In the Grand Canyon region, these sub-basins are each vented by major springs on tribal or Park lands."
Read more in the UNM Newsroom
