Meteoric waters affected by Copahue volcano gas and ash emissions

LLANO, J.; LAMBERTI, M.C.; AGUSTO, M.; D'ALESSANDRO, W.; GARCÍA, S.; CALABRESSE, S.; CARBAJAL, F.

Heraclión

Conferencia; Cities on Volcanoes 11; 2022

The Copahue-Caviahue VolcanicComplex (Neuquén province, Argentina) is one of the most studied volcanicsystems in the south American Andean range. Here, the Copahue volcano is in anactive cycle, which the proximity of two important touristic localities(Caviahue and Copahue) to the emission center have generated great interest inthis volcano by the scientific community during the decades.The acid gases that are constantlyemitted from the deep magmatic chamber interact and acidify the waters of theshallow aquifer near the top of the volcano and in the deep aquifer related tothe geothermal reservoir. Additionally, the ash and plume emissions can affectnot only the meteoric waters located near the volcano but also theprecipitations of the area, acidifying and increasing the anionic content ofthese waters.The meteoric waters of the area aremainly utilized for: human consumption, as Las Mellizas lake neutral waterswhich are used as drinking water supply for both touristic localities; animalconsumption by the farmer animals; and recreational activities by theresidents. These waters may be affected by acidic precipitations and ashesemission during eruptive cycles. Nevertheless, only few studies have analyzedthe impact of the gases and ashes emission over the meteoric waters of thearea. Therefore, this work presents geochemical results of the meteoric watersaffected by these emissions, with particular emphasis on the elements that canbe harmful for human and animal consumption.