Investigating Recharge Through a Glacial Till Using Sulphur and Strontium Isotopes: An Example from East Anglia, UK

As a result of Pleistocene glaciations, many parts of the UK have a covering of glacial sands, gravels or clays. Where such deposits overlie aquifers, recharge may be impeded. This paper describes the use of sulphur and strontium isotope ratios to determine recharge routes through a thick boulder clay (‘till’) overlying the Chalk aquifer in a part of eastern England, UK. Sulphur isotopes show that two possible sources of S may be contributing to the recharge, but strontium isotopes are more definitive, indicating most interaction is with the unweathered till.