Volcanic ash in soil is a source of strontium in stream water in chert-bedrock forests in Mount Amamaki, Japan

Abstract

Acid deposition is widespread in Japan, but acidification of stream water is rare in forest ecosystems. Bedrock-derived cations, including those released into the soil by weathering of bedrock minerals, generally act to neutralize acid deposition and flow out into streams. Volcanic ash, which is widespread in Japan, may also release cations and neutralize acids, but the contribution of volcanic-ash-derived cations is currently poorly explored. To assess the importance of volcanic ash as a source of base cations, we examined strontium in two catchments underlain by chert bedrock at Mount Amamaki, Japan. Additionally, we obtained comparative data from two sandstone-bedrock catchments in the same area. We measured ⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr ratios in samples of stream water, bulk precipitation, riverbed rock, and soil from the catchments. We used the ⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr data to analyze the relative contributions of atmospheric deposition, bedrock, and volcanic ash in soil as sources of Sr in the stream waters. We estimated volcanic ash in soil to contribute between 46% and 78% of stream-water Sr for one chert-bedrock catchment, and between 0% and 52% for the other. We conclude that volcanic ash in soil is an important source of Sr in stream water. Thus, volcanic ash can act as a source of base cations and hence contribute to the acid-neutralizing capacity of soil in forest ecosystems in Japan.