Hydrological modeling of an alpine dolomite karst system

Abstract

In most cases dolomite karst systems show less karstification than limestone karst systems, especially in terms of the formation of a conduit system. This study site is a dolomite karst system located in the northern part of the Kalkalpen national park, Austria. Preceding water balance investigations and information gained by artificial and environmental tracers provided the base for the development of a conceptual model, which represents the dominant processes of this system. Storages and fluxes are described by a series of reservoirs each representing a particular element of the system, i.e., soil, interflow, preferential flow and flow through the fissures. First, the model predicts only runoff. Then, to check the representation of subsystems and the choice of parameters, it simultaneously simulates δ18O composition and runoff. Regional sensitivity analysis shows that including δ18O information changes parameter identifiability but at the same time reduces model performance.