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Global warming is affecting the Arctic more significantly as it is warming faster than other places on Earth. The consequences for Arctic as well as sub-Arctic environment are not well understood. Observations in the past decades and climate change impact analysis predicts clear changes in snow cover and snow melt but consequences to frozen soil and related phenomena such as frost quakes are unclear. Frost quakes are non-tectonic seismic events that occur when freezing of water in saturated soils or rocks results in sudden release of seismic energy. Compared to traditional tectonic earthquakes in seismology, frost quakes are much less studied, as they usually occur at random, or less predictable, rarely instrumented locations. Reports and news of frost quakes, resulting in mechanical damage to the pavements, roads and buildings have been received recently from different locations in Finland, Canada and USA and connections between air temperature and frost quakes have been found. The conceptual model of frost quakes is well known but a methodology to predict the occurrence of frost quakes have been missing. In our study, we present a methodology to investigate the connection between thermal stress and frost quakes. Thermal stress is a function of temperature, which can be measured or calculated. We used a hydrological model to calculate snow depth, snow melt rate and soil temperature at different depths in soil. We show that rapid decrease in temperature can cause a thermal stress that is higher than fracture toughness and strength of the soil‐ice mixture. A swarm of frost quakes occurred on 6 January 2016, in in the city of Oulu in Central Finland (sub-Arctic environment). Some of the frost quakes created ruptures in soil, building foundations, and roads. We show that origin of frost quakes was related to rapid decrease in air temperature from -12 °C to –29 °C that created thermal stress in frozen soil and roads which could not withstand the stress.

In sub-Arctic environment as in Finland, soil moisture and temperature dynamics affect the development of soil frost that controls snowmelt runoff, infiltration and recharge in winter periods. This study was initiated to investigate the performance of integrated hydrology model Amanzi-ATS, in simulating dynamics of soil moisture and temperature at different depths to assess recharge rate in unconfined aquifer in Central Finland. Our objective is to study intra- and inter-annual recharge rates, and the impacts of soil ice on groundwater recharge rate. Hourly soil water content and temperature was measured at ten different depths. The groundwater depth and temperature were measure daily from the borehole located 2 meters from the soil monitoring station and the climate data was obtained around 5 km from the soil station. 1D model with varying soil texture was developed to predict recharge rates. Measured soil water content, soil temperature and groundwater temperature were used to calibrate the 1D numerical model. The implications of this study will be understanding the freezing and thawing of soil on groundwater recharge rate and how recharge rate may change from one year to the next in the sub-Arctic environment.

Continuous data on spatial and temporal patterns of snowmelt rates are essential for hydrological studies, but are commonly not available, especially in the subarctic, mainly due to high monitoring costs. In this study, temperature loggers were used to measure local and microscale variations in snowpack temperature, in order to understand snowmelt processes and rates in subarctic northern Finland. The loggers were deployed on six test plots along a hillslope with varying topography (elevation and aspect) and vegetation (forest, transitional zone and mires, i.e. treeless peatlands) during two consecutive winters (2014 and 2015). At each test plot, the sensors were installed in five locations, at two heights in a snow profile. Algorithms were developed to analyse the snowmelt rates from high-resolution snowpack temperature data. The validity of the results was evaluated using snow depth and soil moisture data from adjacent reference sensors and the results were tested using an empirical degree-day snow model calibrated for each test plot. Snowmelt rates were relatively similar in mires (median 2.3 mm d−1 °C−1) and forests (median 2.6 mm d−1 °C−1) with apparent inter-annual variation. The observed melt rates were highest in the highest elevation plots, in transition zone in 2014 (median 4.6 mm d−1 °C−1) and southwest-facing forest line in 2015 (median 3.2 mm d−1 °C−1). The timing of the modelled meltwater outflow and snowpack ablation showed good agreement with the snowpack temperature-derived estimates and the soil moisture and snow depth measurements. The simple approach used represents a novel and cost-effective method to improve the spatial accuracy of in situ snow cover ablation measurements and melt rates and the precision of snowmelt models in the subarctic. An open-access R-based model is provided with this paper for analysis of high-frequency snow temperature data.

Capture zones of water supply wells are most often delineated based on travel times of water or solute to the well, with the assumption that if the travel time is sufficiently large, the concentration of chemical at the well will not exceed the drinking water standards. In many situations, the likely source concentrations or release masses of contamination from the potential sources are unknown; therefore, the exact concentration at the well cannot be determined. In situations in which the source mass can be estimated with some accuracy, the delineation of the capture zone should be based on the maximum chemical concentration that can be expected at the well, rather than on an arbitrary travel time. We present a new capture zone delineation methodology that is based on this maximum chemical concentration. The method delineates capture zones by solving the adjoint of the advection-dispersion-reaction equation and relating the adjoint state and the known release mass to the expected chemical concentration at the well. We demonstrate the use of this method through a case study in which soil heat exchange systems are potential sources of contamination. The heat exchange fluid mixtures contain known fluid volumes and chemical concentrations; thus, in the event of a release, the release mass of the chemical is known. We also demonstrate the use of a concentration basis in quantifying other measures of well vulnerability including exposure time and time to exceed a predefined threshold concentration at the well.

Groundwater provides one option to utilise renewable energy sources. The long-term groundwater energy potential for three building complexes, situated at latitude of 64°, was investigated by combining an energy demand simulation for the buildings with hydrogeological modelling. First, a reference year for the building energy demand was created. Secondly, groundwater flow requirements were calculated. The results of the previous stages were utilised in groundwater heat transport modelling in an environment where the natural temperature of groundwater was 4.9°C. Finally, the long-term (50 years) groundwater energy potential was calculated. The groundwater maintained its heating potential during 50 years of operation. When both heating and cooling power were demanded, the long-term pumping rate of groundwater decreased by 60,000 m3/a. Energy utilisation created a cold groundwater plume downstream, in which the temperature decreased by 1 to 2.5°C within a distance of 300 m from the site. Groundwater can provide a long-term energy source for large building complexes in the Nordic climate. Results indicate that groundwater could effectively be utilised until the temperature reaches approximately 4°C. Accurate information on the building energy demand and hydrogeology is essential for successful operation.

The groundwater in a shallow, unconfined, low-lying coastal aquifer in Santala, southern Finland, was chemically characterised by integrating multivariate statistical approaches, principal component analysis (PCA) and hierarchical cluster analysis (HCA), based on the stable isotopes δ2H and δ18O, hydrogeochemistry and field monitoring data. PCA and HCA yielded similar results and classified groundwater samples into six distinct groups that revealed the factors controlling temporal and spatial variations in the groundwater geochemistry, such as the geology, anthropogenic sources from human activities, climate and surface water. High temporal variation in groundwater chemistry directly corresponded to precipitation. With an increase in precipitation, KMnO4 consumption, EC, alkalinity and Ca concentrations also increased in most wells, while Fe, Al, Mn and SO4 were occasionally increased during spring after the snowmelt under specific geological conditions. The continued increase in NO3 and metal concentrations in groundwater indicates the potential contamination risk to the aquifer. Stable isotopes of δ18O and δ2H indicate groundwater recharge directly from meteoric water, with an insignificant contribution from lake water, and no seawater intrusion into the aquifer. Groundwater geochemistry suggests that local seawater intrusion is temporarily able to take place in the sulfate reduction zone along the freshwater and seawater mixed zone in the low-lying coastal area, but the contribution of seawater was found to be very low. The influence of lake water could be observed from higher levels of KMnO4 consumption in wells near the lake. The integration of PCA and HCA with conventional classification of groundwater types, as well as with the hydrogeochemical data, provided useful tools to identify the vulnerable groundwater areas representing the impacts of both natural and human activities on water quality and the understanding of complex groundwater flow system for the aquifer vulnerability assessment and groundwater management in the future.

Shallow seismic reflection surveys were conducted at five different locations in central Finland during the period of 2008–2011 in order to test the applicability of this method and different seismic energy sources in providing accurate images of the underlying seismic structure and geology in unconfined and confined esker aquifers. The depth of the aquifers varied from 15 m to 140 m. Reflections from the water table and the bedrock were generally detected. In the deepest aquifers, several features of the inner structure were visible. In the shallowest aquifer (15 m thick), seismic detection of the stratigraphic units proved difficult. Analysis of the theoretical travel times and the shallow structure suggested that a higher frequency seismic source might have been needed. In the deeper aquifers, reflections near the bedrock were detected, but information regarding their thicknesses could not be obtained. An unsaturated layer with a thickness of 25 m did not completely attenuate the seismic signal, and reflections from the water table and bedrock (~80 m) could still be obtained. For the amount of explosives and the type of vibrator used in this study, explosives generally produced clearer reflections due to the higher signal-to-noise ratio compared with the vibrator source. On the other hand, shot-to-shot fluctuations in signal-to-noise ratio and source irreproducibility were found to be greater for explosives than for the vibrators. Loose lake sediments above the aquifer inhibited seismic energy transmission to the bedrock. In such situations, the use of explosives is recommended in order to obtain clearer reflections from the subsurface soil boundaries.

Summary The time-stability concept suggests that the spatial pattern of the soil water content does not change with time when the observations are ranked according to the magnitude of the soil water. The time-stability holds for soils in agricultural fields and forest compartments, yet broader scale effects of boreal climate on time-stability are poorly understood. We studied the spatial persistence of soil water through the boreal climatic gradient (60–68°N) on the Baltic Shield using multi-year (2002–2010) automatic monitoring at sites (up to 18 in number) with diverse soil texture and land use. We found that the soils exhibited significant time-stability, Spearman’s rank correlation coefficients rs = 0.94–0.95, p

A shallow unconfined low-lying coastal aquifer in southern Finland surrounded by the Baltic Sea is vulnerable to changes in groundwater recharge, sea-level rise and human activities. Assessment of the intrinsic vulnerability of groundwater under climate scenarios was performed for the aquifer area by utilising the results of a published study on the impacts of climate change on groundwater recharge and sea-level rise on groundwater–seawater interaction. Three intrinsic vulnerability mapping methods, the aquifer vulnerability index (AVI), a modified SINTACS and GALDIT, were applied and compared. According to the results, the degree of groundwater vulnerability is greatly impacted by seasonal variations in groundwater recharge during the year, and also varies depending on the climate-change variability in the long term. The groundwater is potentially highly vulnerable to contamination from sources on the ground surface during high groundwater recharge rates after snowmelt, while a high vulnerability to seawater intrusion could exist when there is a low groundwater recharge rate in dry season. The AVI results suggest that a change in the sea level will have an insignificant impact on groundwater vulnerability compared with the results from the modified SINTACS and GALDIT. The modified SINTACS method could be used as a guideline for the groundwater vulnerability assessment of glacial and deglacial deposits in inland aquifers, and in combination with GALDIT, it could provide a useful tool for assessing groundwater vulnerability to both contamination from sources on the ground surface and to seawater intrusion for shallow unconfined low-lying coastal aquifers under future climate-change conditions.

Samples of groundwater, surface water, snow and precipitation were collected to identify potential end-members for aquifer recharge in an unconfined esker aquifer connected to nearby surface waters. Concentrations of Ca 2 + , Cl − , NO 3 –N and SiO 2 and electrical conductivity were determined in these water samples. Time series, ANOVA followed by HSD test and biplots were used to investigate temporal and spatial variations in surface water and groundwater chemistry. Examination of the spatial and temporal variations in groundwater solutes revealed that water quality was similar in perched groundwater and the main aquifer. The exception was NO 3 –N concentration, which increased in the perched groundwater with rising groundwater level, indicating a nitrogen source from the overlying airport. In the main aquifer, solute concentrations generally decreased during and immediately after snowmelt periods, indicating the importance of snowmelt input for groundwater quality. Groundwater solute concentrations generally decreased with declining groundwater level. During the spring melt period, the surface water level rise higher than groundwater level and the Cl − concentration in groundwater decreased showing a seasonal surface water intrusion. During the anomalously warm period in winter (T > 0 °C) the solute concentration decreased, implying that groundwater quality may be sensitive to future warming.

Summary Methodology was developed to estimate surface water–groundwater interactions in a changing climate in cold, snow-dominated regions and tested on an unconfined esker aquifer in northern Finland. The Watershed Simulation and Forecasting System (WSFS) model was used to simulate surface water levels. A coupled heat and mass transfer model for soil–plant–atmosphere systems (CoupModel) was used to simulate recharge. The CoupModel is able to simulate water flow through frozen soil. The simulated surface water level and recharge data were linked to the Groundwater Modelling System (GMS) version 6.5, and the three-dimensional groundwater flow model MODFLOW was used to study the impact of climate variability on groundwater levels and groundwater–surface water interactions. In addition, under A1B climate change scenario changes in aquifer storage and groundwater–surface water interactions were studied through the end of the 21st century. Recharge was shown to be sensitive to changes in soil frost and hence modelling approaches should include a soil frost component to account for the impact of frost on hydraulic conductivity. Under A1B climate change scenario study, groundwater recharge is projected to increase in winter months due to increase in snowmelt and decrease in soil frost depth. The spring snowmelt peak in late spring will decrease. This will reduce aquifer storage in early spring, increasing the vulnerability to summer droughts.

Summary A robust conceptual and statistical approach is presented for the study of ground water table fluctuations with precipitation and temperature as input variables. A conceptual hydrological model was developed to generate daily rainfall, snowmelt and evapotranspiration values and these values were cross-correlated with observed ground water levels to find representative time lags and significant correlations to describe the ground water system. A statistical model linking rainfall, snowmelt, evapotranspiration and ground water level was then developed and validated for an unconfined esker aquifer in boreal environment in central Finland. The model predicted very well fluctuation of ground water level and timing of the minimum and maximum water levels. A future climate change scenario for the years 2010–2039 was subsequently simulated. The simulation indicates higher ground water levels in milder winter climate. This is due to increase in winter recharge. The model provides a new tool to assess the impacts and address the uncertainties related to climate variation and change in complex ground water systems in cold regions with snow cover.

A literature review of the impacts of anticipated climate change on unconfined aquifers is presented, along with a conceptual framework for evaluating the complex responses of surface and subsurface hydrology to climate variables in cold regions. The framework offers a way to conceptualize how changes in one component of the system may impact another by delineating the relationships among climate drivers, hydrological responses, and groundwater responses in a straight-forward manner. The model is elaborated in the context of shallow unconfined aquifers in the boreal environment of Finland. In cold conditions, climate change is expected to reduce snow cover and soil frost and increase winter floods. The annual surface water level maximum will occur earlier in spring, and water levels will decrease in summer due to higher evapotranspiration rates. The maximum recharge and groundwater level are expected to occur earlier in the year. Lower groundwater levels are expected in summer due to higher evapotranspiration rates. The flow regimes between shallow unconfined aquifers and surface water may change, affecting water quantity and quality in the surface and groundwater systems.

In this study, the effects of ozonation on municipal treated wastewater were investigated. Batch experiments were conducted using two water samples from the same plant: post precipitation plant effluent and the same effluent after a polishing treatment in a wetland. The effects of ozonation on chemical oxygen demand (COD), biological oxygen demand (BOD(7)), colour and turbidity were investigated. Ozonation with dosages up to 2.7 mg/L substantially decreased the COD of biochemically treated municipal wastewater. One gram of ozone decreased the amount of COD by 1.5 g. With higher dosages, the effectiveness of ozone on COD decreased rapidly. Ozone was a very effective colour and turbidity reducer.

In this research the characteristics of fresh wastewater were studied by filtration of organic material and nutrients. Besides the short-term dissolving of phosphorus was determined. The size fractions of oxygen demand for 7 days (BOD7), total organic carbon (TOC), phosphorous (P) and nitrogen (N) were separated to 0.1 microm. Most of the phosphorous, nitrogen and organic carbon was under 0.1 microm fractions. Most of the biological oxygen demand was over 12 microm fractions although the fraction under 0.1 microm was 37%. The amount of phosphorus over 0.45 microm increased 25% after 3 days' storage.