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Weldon Spring is consistently enriched in 18 O relative to other karst springs in east-central Missouri and western Illinois, suggesting an evaporated source component. Regional potentiometric head maps of the shallow aquifer suggest that Prairie Lake, an artificial lake built between 1954 and 1982, could represent this component. Isotopic, biological and chemical tracing of the spring conclusively verify the hypothesis that this lake has impacted Weldon Spring. Mixing calculations indicate that Weldon Spring is now comprised of approximately 80% lake water and 20% groundwater. Recent measurements indicate that the discharge rate of the spring is now approximately 10 times the rate prior to the construction of the lake, confirming the augmentation of flow by a new source. Analysis of the isotopic trends indicates that the subsurface travel time is short, and suggests that the conduits connecting the lake and the spring may be progressively enlarging. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Previous studies attribute abnormal boron (B) levels in streams and groundwaters to wastewater and fertilizer inputs. This study shows that municipal drinking water used for lawn irrigation contributes substantial non-point loads of B and other chemicals (S-species, Li, and Cu) to surface waters and shallow groundwaters in the St. Louis, Missouri, area. Background levels and potential B sources were characterized by analysis of lawn and street runoff, streams, rivers, springs, local rainfall, wastewater influent and effluent, and fertilizers. Urban surface waters and groundwaters are highly enriched in B (to 250μg/L) compared to background levels found in rain and pristine, carbonate-hosted streams and springs (<25μg/L), but have similar concentrations (150 to 259μg/L) compared to municipal drinking waters derived from the Missouri River. Other data including B/SO4(2-)-S and B/Li ratios confirm major contributions from this source. Moreover, sequential samples of runoff collected during storms show that B concentrations decrease with increased discharge, proving that elevated B levels are not primarily derived from combined sewer overflows (CSOs) during flooding. Instead, non-point source B exhibits complex behavior depending on land use. In urban settings B is rapidly mobilized from lawns during "first flush" events, likely representing surficial salt residues from drinking water used to irrigate lawns, and is also associated with the baseflow fraction, likely derived from the shallow groundwater reservoir that over time accumulates B from drinking water that percolates into the subsurface. The opposite occurs in small rural watersheds, where B is leached from soils by recent rainfall and covaries with the event water fraction., (Copyright © 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

Temporal variations in the head of wells in the alluvial aquifer along the lower Missouri River are accurately simulated by summation of linear differential terms involving daily variations in river stage and effective precipitation. Scaling parameters were optimized using a fourth order Adams-Bashforth-Moulton method, providing predictions for head that are typically accurate within ±1.5 feet (0.5 m) over intervals of 1 to 15 years. Parameter magnitudes represent the product of realistic aquifer properties and geometric factors., (© 2011, The Author(s). Ground Water © 2011, National Ground Water Association.)