The hydrochemical characteristics of watersheds are influenced by many factors, with chemical weathering and human activities exerting the most substantial influence. Performing a quantitative evaluation of the factors contributing to the chemical weathering of rocks is of significant scientific importance. This research zeroes in on the Qingtang River basin to elaborate on the hydrochemical characteristic, explore the origins of ions, and quantify the influence of anthropogenic discharges amidst cation interferences, thus improving the accuracy of chemical weathering rate estimations. The samples encompassed surface water, groundwater, and water from dripping in karst caves. The findings indicate that human-induced alterations significantly influence hydrogeochemical dynamics, although chemical weathering of rocks in their natural state is the controlling factor. The mean contributions of cations from atmospheric deposition, human inputs, carbonate weathering, and silicate weathering were 17.56%, 21.05%, 51.77%, and 9.54%, respectively. The chemical weathering rate for carbonate rocks was 62.4 t·km⁻²·a⁻¹, which increased by 27.87% due to the influence of exogenous acids. The anthropogenic impact is predominantly evident in two aspects: (1) the alteration of hydrochemical processes within the watershed through direct input of ions, and (2) the acceleration of rock weathering rates in the watershed due to the exogenous acids.

Understanding the recharge and runoff processes of the vadose zone is significant for water resource management and utilization in karst mountain areas. Hydrological modeling of the vadose zone in karst caves has provided new methods of evaluating water resources in vadose zones. This paper provides modeling of vadose zone hydrology in a subtropical karst cave. The monitoring was conducted in Yuanyang Cave, Fengshan County, Guangxi Province, Southwest China. By monitoring the water level of a pool recharged by drop water in a cave, a model was established to calculate the natural leakage from the bottom and the infiltrated recharge from the vadose zone above. Combined with meteorological data records, the occurrence of recharge events in the vadose zone was analyzed. The correlation between them was established by multiple linear regression. The results showed that the infiltration ratio of precipitation was 20.88%. Recent rainfall of 4–7 days had shown a greater impact on recharge events than that of 3 days. The effect of evaporation was significant. The regression model in the cave pool was used to understand the hydrological process of the vadose zone, which provided a useful method for water resource management and evaluation in the remote karst mountain area.