Using multiple environmental methods to estimate groundwater discharge into an arid lake (Dakebo Lake, Inner Mongolia, China); [Apport des méthodes environnementales multiples pour estimer la décharge des eaux souterraines dans un lac en climat aride (le Lac Dakebo, Mongolie intérieure, Chine)]; [Utilização de vários métodos ambientais para estimar a descarga das águas subterrâneas em um lago árido (Lago Dakebo, Mongólia Interior, China)]; [Uso de métodos ambientales múltiples para estimar la descarga de aguas subterráneas en un lago árido (Dakebo Lake, Inner Mongolia, China)]

It is important to have both a qualitative and quantitative understanding of the hydraulic exchange between groundwater and surface water to support the development of effective management plans for sustainable use of water resources. Groundwater is a major source of surface-water recharge and plays an important role in maintaining the integrity of ecosystems, especially within wetlands in semi-arid regions. The Ordos Desert Plateau of Inner Mongolia (China) is a vulnerable ecosystem that suffers from an extreme lack of water. The hydraulic exchange between groundwater and lake water in Dakebo Lake (the largest of hundreds of lakes on the Ordos Desert Plateau) was evaluated using multiple environmental methods. Continuous monitoring of the groundwater and lake-water levels indicated that the lake was recharged vertically by groundwater. Application of hydrodynamic and temperature tracing methods to the western side of the lake indicated that the rate of groundwater discharge to the lake was about 2 × 10−6 to 3 × 10−6 m/s in spring, summer, and autumn, but that there was no recharge in winter because the hypolentic zone (HZ) was frozen. Mixing ratios of groundwater and lake water in the HZ, estimated from the 18O and 2H ratios, showed that there were spatial variations in the hydrodynamic exchange between groundwater and lake water within the HZ. © 2016, Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg.