Page 26 - Soil and water contamination, 2nd edition

General introduction 13
12
10
Global biogeochemical cycles

Contaminant transport
9 in large river basins
10

1 year

10 6

1 day
Time (s) Contaminant transport
in small catchments
10 3

Contaminant redistribution
on fields

Contaminant leaching
1 in soil profiles

Contaminant sorption
to solid surfaces
6642 10 -3
10 -9 10 -3 1 10 3 10 6
Space (m)
Figure 1.3 Correlation between spatial and temporal scale in environmental research.

of inhabitants, the state of wastewater treatment , the intensity of agriculture in the river
basin, and nitrogen transfer controlled by lithology, soil texture , and net annual precipitation
(De Wit, 1999). At the global scale, the mean annual nitrate concentration and the nitrate
export to coastal areas is primarily controlled by the human population within the river basin
(Peierls et al., 1991).
The coupling of scales or the question how information at one scale can be implemented
at another scale, often referred to as upscaling and downscaling, is an ongoing challenge
in environmental sciences. This issue is, however, beyond the scope of this text; for further
information on this topic, see the literature (e.g. Bierkens et al., 2000).

1.6 OUTLINE AND RATIONALE OF THIS BOOK
This book aims to give a broad introduction to the basic concepts of the processes and
patterns of contaminants in soil and fresh water (surface water and groundwater) at scales
ranging from the microscale of molecules to the regional scale of ecosystems and catchments
(typical synonyms: drainage basins, river basins, watersheds). It does not deal with air

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