Preprint Article Version 1 Preserved in Portico This version is not peer-reviewed

Effect of Snowmelt on Groundwater Bacterial Community Composition and Potential Role of Surface Environments as Microbial Seed Bank in Two Distinct Aquifers from the Region of Quebec, Canada

Version 1 : Received: 30 March 2023 / Approved: 31 March 2023 / Online: 31 March 2023 (02:25:18 CEST)

A peer-reviewed article of this Preprint also exists.

Villeneuve, K.; Turcotte-Blais, V.; Lazar, C.S. Effect of Snowmelt on Groundwater Bacterial Community Composition and Potential Role of Surface Environments as Microbial Seed Bank in Two Distinct Aquifers from the Region of Quebec, Canada. Microorganisms 2023, 11, 1526. Villeneuve, K.; Turcotte-Blais, V.; Lazar, C.S. Effect of Snowmelt on Groundwater Bacterial Community Composition and Potential Role of Surface Environments as Microbial Seed Bank in Two Distinct Aquifers from the Region of Quebec, Canada. Microorganisms 2023, 11, 1526.

Abstract

Events of groundwater recharge are associated with changes in the composition of aquifer microbial communities but also abiotic conditions. Modification in the structure of the community can be the result of different environmental condition favoring or hindering certain taxa or due to the introduction of surface-derived taxa. Yet, in both cases, the local hydrogeochemical settings of the aquifer is likely to affect the amount of variation observed. Therefore, in our study, we used 16S rRNA gene sequencing to assess how microbial communities change in response to snowmelt and the potential connectivity between subsurface and surface microbiome in two distinct aquifers located in the region of Vaudreuil-Soulange (Québec, Canada). At both sites, we observed an increase in groundwater level and decrease in temperature following the onset of snow melt in March 2019. Bacterial community composition of each aquifer was significantly different (p < 0.05) between samples collected prior and after groundwater recharge. Furthermore, microbial source tracking results suggested low contribution of surface environments to groundwater microbiome except for months associated with recharge (March 2019 and April 2019). Overall, despite differences in soil permeability between both sites, the period of snow melt was followed by important changes in the composition of microbial communities from aquifers.

Keywords

Aquifer; Groundwater recharge; Groundwater microbial ecology; Snowmelt; Bacterial communities Perturbation

Subject

Biology and Life Sciences, Other

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