Home – Home – Jornals – Geography and Natural Resources 2023 number 3

This article presents the results from studying the Engorboi thermal spring located in the Zakamensky district of the Republic of Buryatia (southwestern Transbaikalia). This spring is unique in its chemical composition and geological conditions. It is the only nitrogen thermal spring outside the Baikal Rift Zone in Western Transbaikalia. It belongs to the Baikal arch Neogene-Quaternary uplift. Its discharging takes place in the spurs of the Dzhida Range which belongs to the Khamar-Daban mountain system. The geological and geographical structure features of the surrounding territory and the hydrogeological conditions of water discharging are presented. The spring is unloaded in fissured rocks formed under tension conditions during uplift of the Paleozoic granite massif. The spring outlet is located at the intersection of a large northwest-trending fault with a sublatitudinal fault. The water composition is formed upon contact with intrusive, effusive, metamorphic and sedimentary rocks of Paleozoic, Mesozoic and Quaternary age. New data on the macro- and microcomponent composition of water are provided. According to its chemical composition, water belongs to the hydrocarbonate-chloride-sulfate calcium-sodium type with a mineralization above 1 g/L. It is demonstrated that the spring is characterized by high content of balneologically active components: chloride, fluoride, and silicic acid. Using a silicon geothermometer, the water spring temperature and the formation depth of hydrotherms were estimated as 82 °C and 3,6 km, respectively. A characteristic of the current status and prospects for using the spring for medical and recreational purposes are given.