Radon is a significant component of the groundwaters that discharge in the springs of Szczawno Zdrój and are recognized as
medicinal. However, among the five exploited springs adjoining each other, it is only in Marta Spring that radon occurs in
large concentrations (up to 325.6 Bq/dm
3). Therefore, the authors have made an attempt to describe and clarify this fact. They found out from their own research and
archival data that
222Rn dissolves in the waters of Marta Spring after acidulous waters of deep circulation have mixed with poorly mineralized shallow
waters in their outflow zone. The genesis of the gas is determined by the content of its parent nuclide,
226Ra, in the sandstones in the vicinity of the intake. The volume of the rocks providing radon to the waters of this intake
has been estimated at several hundred cubic metres. No seasonal fluctuations in radon concentration have been observed and
222Rn concentration changes do not seem to be influenced by changes in the concentration of other chemical components of the
waters or by the discharge of the intake. The process of dissolving
222Rn in the medicinal groundwaters of Marta Spring is the last, the shortest, and the most local of the processes that form
the chemical composition and the physical properties of these waters.
Keywords CO2-rich waters - Groundwater - Radium - Radon - Sudety Mountains - Radon waters
Received: 7 January 2000 · Accepted: 12 August 2000