Irrigation alters source-composition characteristics of groundwater dissolved organic matter in a large arid river basin, Northwestern China.

Abstract It has been well documented that agricultural activities lead to significant alterations in surface water dissolved organic matter (DOM), yet their impacts on groundwater DOM remain poorly constrained. The quantity, source, and composition of DOM play a pivotal role in a range of groundwater ecosystem services that are of important ecological and societal values. We assessed the impact of irrigation on the source and compositional characteristics of groundwater DOM in a large river basin supporting intensive agriculture in arid northwestern China. We sampled five water types along a river reach of approximately 40 km, including groundwater, river water, irrigation canal water, hyporheic water, and soil leachates. The excitation-emission matrix (EEM) measurements coupled with parallel factor analysis (PARAFAC) identified two terrestrial-derived, humic-like fluorescent components (C1 and C2) and one protein-like autochthonous component (C3). DOM composition and dissolved organic carbon (DOC) concentration varied as a function of water type, with subsurface waters showing relatively lower DOC and terrestrial humic fluorescence than surface waters. Combining nitrate, electrical conductivity, dissolved inorganic carbon (DIC), and δ13C-DIC, irrigation-influenced samples were identified, and the influence of irrigation on groundwater DOM appeared only in shallow aquifers (