ABSTRACT
This chapter introduces the features of the semi-arid Limari Basin and illustrates the findings of synoptic seasonal tracer surveys in two remote mountainous headwater catchments with the aim to improve the understanding about hydrological processes in this data scarce and remote environment. The Limari Basin forms part of the semi-arid Coquimbo region in northerncentral Chile and covers an area of 11.696 km2. It reaches from the Andes at 5.550 m of elevation to the east of the Pacific coast in the west and is a snowmelt-dominated hydrological system. The semi-arid high elevation Andean environments are characterized by sparse shrub vegetation, bare rocks and cacti. Surface water chemistry in semi-arid northern-central Chile is generally controlled by evaporation, interaction of meteoric water with volcanic rocks in groundwater dominated areas and contact with evaporites in aquifer sediments. Surveys in the headwaters will provide valuable insights in the hydrological processes of the Andean headwaters to inform hydrological models and water management.
