Years-Old Groundwater Dominates Spring Mountain Streams

Years-Old Groundwater Dominates Spring Mountain Streams

As winter gives way to spring, seasonal snowpack in the American West begins to melt. Though some of that melt flows over and through shallow alpine soil, new research shows that much of it sinks into bedrock where it percolates for years before resurfacing. Fresh snowmelt makes up less than half of the water in the region’s gushing spring streams, according to the study. The new finding could improve water resources forecasts. Hydrologic models…