Project Description and Goals: Strategic Initiative funds supported the initial development of new hydrological capabilities at LDEO. In September of 1993, Lamont-Doherty's Geochemistry group requested support for research development activities aimed at broadening the Institute's environmental agenda. They proposed a two-year funding period for six groups of scientists and graduate students to undertake the following projects: gas exchange experiments in the Hudson River and in estuaries; shallow groundwater research; numerical modeling of water flow and transport of tracers and pollutants in the unsaturated soil zone and in shallow aquifers; hardware and software support for geophysical studies; unsaturated soil zone research; and an upgrade to a chemistry laboratory.

Status and Accomplishments

FY 1994: The project team designed and constructed a new gas chromatographic system for measurement of sulfurhexafluoride (SF-6) and tested it in a pilot study on the Hudson River. The system allows the labeling of certain water parcels (e.g., waste water outlets) in rivers and estuaries and tracing their spread over periods of several weeks. This is an advance over conventional dyes such as rhodamine both in methodology (SF-6 can be followed for longer periods of time) and in costs (SF-6 is roughly a factor of ten cheaper than rhodamine). During the SF-6 release experiment, a second gas (Helium-3) was added to the released SF-6 in order to quantify the exchange of gaseous substances between the water and the atmosphere.

The shallow groundwater research project included implementation of modeling capability and the use of hardware and software to run groundwater flow models. This modeling capability, in combination with analytical facilities for measurement of tracers of groundwater flow, allows the performance of quantitative studies of groundwater flow and the application of the results of these studies to assessment of pollutant transport. Additional components of groundwater research included measurements of tracers in several groundwater flow systems and support of the sabbatical of Dr. Allen Shapiro, a hydrologist from the USGS (Dr. Shapiro spent one year at LDEO). Finally, the seed money was used to purchase hardware for research in the unsaturated soil zone, as well as for an upgrade of the chemistry laboratory.

FY 1995: Three proposals were written for support of the above activities. Additional proposals will be drafted as the projects continue. The Keck Foundation awarded a grant of $245,000 for the "Acquisition of a Mass Spectrometric System for Geochemistry Research." Eventual USGS funding is expected. This grant supports the continuation and expansion of the development of an environmental science research program at LDEO.

FY 1996: Proposals were submitted relative to a number of activities. Thus far, grants total approximately $1,650,000. Research grants to date are as follows: Hudson River Foundation $15,000; U.S. Geological Survey $ (multiple grants); National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration $25,000; National Science Foundation OCE $185,000; and Office of Naval Research $100,000.

FY 1997: Fundraising activities in FY 1997 included securing the following grants: NSF GER $225,000; NSF OPP $290,000; NASA Fellowship $66,000; and University of E. Anglia, UK $70,000.

Activities over FY 1997 included the following:

• SF-6 Release Experiments: In order to understand the balance of gaseous pollutants and the nutrient cycle in rivers, we have to better understand the gas exchange within the atmosphere. The team continued SF-6 and He-3 release experiments at several locations (rivers, estuaries). During the past year, we studied the impact of rain on gas exchange using the NASA rain facility at Wallops Island. These studies resulted in a first-order parameterization of the gas exchange by rain.
• Shallow Groundwater Research: The project continues to develop groundwater age dating tools and to ‘market’ this technique. The team has already been approached by scientists from the USGS and other institutions for assistance in the evaluation of groundwater flow systems. The project was extended by several field studies to test the tritium/He-3 dating method in complex hydrological settings, especially in fractured rock. Additionally, the team is in the process of completing about four manuscripts with results at least partially supported by the Strategic Initiative Fund. Meanwhile, the team is starting to attract funding from outside sources.
• Arctic Ocean Pollution: The project intends to calibrate Arctic Ocean circulation models with transient tracer data and to use these models for simulations of various release scenarios of pollutants into the Arctic Ocean. Such studies are important in order to understand the impact of pollution from the cold war era on the Arctic ecosystem. The Arctic is probably the most sensitive marine ecosystem with respect to chemical and radioactive pollution. Two proposals were submitted for support of this work to the Office of Naval Research and the National Science Foundation (both noted above). Another proposal to the Hudson River Foundation for $160,000 was denied.

Project Leader: Peter Schlosser, Professor, Earth and Environmental Sciences