The role of geomorphic processes in the transport and fate of mercury in the Carson River basin, west-central Nevada

 The historic processing of precious metal ores mined from the Comstock Lode of west-central Nevada resulted in the release of substantial, but unquantified amounts of mercury-contaminated mill tailings to the Carson River basin. Geomorphic and stratigraphic studies indicate that the introduction of these waste materials led to a period of valley-floor aggradation that was accompanied by lateral channel instability. The combined result of these geomorphic responses was the storage of large volumes of mercury-enriched sediment within a complexly structured alluvial sequence located along the Carson River valley. Much of the contaminated sediment is associated with filled paleochannels produced by the cutoff and abandonment of meander loops, and their subsequent infilling with contaminated particles. Geochemically, these deposits are characterized by variations in mercury levels that exceed three orders of magnitude. Continued lateral instability, coupled with an episode of channel-bed incision, followed the decline of Comstock mining, and has reexposed contaminated debris within the banks of the river. Erosion of bank sediments reintroduces mercury-enriched particles to the modern channel bed. It is suggested on the basis of geochemical and sedimentological data that during the bank erosion process, much of the mercury associated with fine (<63 μ) valley-fill deposits are carried downstream without being incorporated to any appreciable extent within the channel-bed sediments. In contrast, mercury associated with larger and denser particles, particularly mercury-gold-silver amalgam grains, are accumulated in the channel-bed sediments as the river traverses polluted reaches of the Carson River valley. Concentration patterns developed along the modern channel indicate that the valley fill is the primary source of mercury to the river today. Thus, these data imply that efforts to reduce the influx of mercury to the aquatic environment should examine methods for reducing bank erosion rates. Received: 13 December 1996 · Accepted: 15 April 1997     

Mercury speciation in tailings of the Idrija mercury mine

Five hundred years of mercury (Hg) mining activity in Idrija, Slovenia caused widespread Hg contamination. Besides Hg emissions from the ore smelter, tailings have been found to be the major source of river sediment contamination. In the present study, solid phase binding forms and the aqueous mobility of Hg have been investigated in tailings of the Idrija Hg mine by means of a pyrolysis technique and aqueous Hg speciation. Results show that Hg binding forms differ with the age of the tailings due to the processing of different ores with different roasting techniques. In older tailings, the predominant Hg species is cinnabar (HgS), due to incomplete roasting, whereas in tailings of the 20th century the amount of cinnabar in the material decreased due to a higher efficiency of the roasting process and the increasing use of ores bearing native Hg. In younger tailings, metallic Hg (Hg⁰) sorbed to mineral matrix components such as dolomite and Fe-oxyhydroxides became the predominant Hg binding form in addition to unbound Hg⁰ and traces of HgO. Leaching tests show that in younger tailings high amounts of soluble Hg exist in reactive form. In older tailings most of the soluble Hg occurs bound to soluble complexes. It might be assumed that in the long term, matrix-bound Hg⁰ could be bound to humic acids derived from soils covering the tailings. This means that, despite the lower total Hg concentrations found in the younger tailings, the long-term risk potential of its mobile matrix-bound Hg⁰ is higher than that of older tailings bearing mostly immobile cinnabar.     

北京市密云水库上游土壤重金属污染调查评价

2002年9月在密云水库周边及上游地区(北京境内)总共采集土样98个,以《土壤环境质量标准》GB15168-95Ⅰ级标准为评价标准,对密云水库上游地区土壤重金属Cd、Pb、As、Hg、Cr、Cu、Ni、Zn的污染状况作了初步评价。研究结果发现密云水库周边及上游地区重金属污染以Cr和Hg为主,牤牛河上游为污染最严重地区,清水河上游、潮河下游放马峪地区、德田沟--崎峰茶地区受Cr元素轻度污染。该地区土壤重金属污染,主要原因是金属矿山不合理排放的尾砂及废矿石等人为因素所致。     

Mercury speciation and mobilization in contaminated soils of the Valle del Azogue Hg mine (SE,Spain)

Hg mobilization from contaminated soils and mine wastes was the source of environmental contamination in the Valle del Azogue mining area. We researched solid-phase speciation and aqueous mobility of Hg through Scanning electron microscopy-energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy and electron probe microanalysis analysis, solid-phase-Hg-thermo-desorption (SPTD) and laboratory column experiments. We found that in contaminated soils and mine wastes, the predominant Hg species was cinnabar (HgS), mainly formed from the weathering of Hg-rich pyrite, and metallic Hg (0) in the matrix, whereas in calcines and tailings the dominant species was metallic Hg (0). The mobilization of Hg in the aqueous phase seems to have originated from the dissolution of elemental Hg (0) present in soils and wastes, reaching concentrations of up to 67 μg l⁻¹, and showing a higher long-term environmental potential risk, in addition to atmospheric emissions.     

Assessment of Hg-contamination in soils and stream sediments in the mineral district of Nambija,Ecuadorian Amazon (example of an impacted area affected by artisanal gold mining)

The Nambija Mineral District (NMD) is located in the southeastern part of Ecuador, east of Zamora (Zamora Chinchípe's country), Ecuadorian Amazon. In this district, Au occurrences have been know since colonial and pre-colonial times, but only after the early 1980s has intensive artisanal Au mining activity been developed. Currently, the different NMD Au occurrences continue to be exploited by artisanal operations and are difficult to control in the study area. The environmental impacts due to Au mining are a consequence of the illegal situation and deficiency in controlling the techniques of ore exploitation. The Au extraction is carried out by outdoor amalgamation, so the indiscriminate use of Hg by artisanal miners, associated with careless methods of tailings disposal, has caused occupational exposure and environmental degradation. The present study evaluated the geochemical dispersion and concentrations of local contamination of metallic Hg in soils, stream sediments and mine tailings in the NMD area. This article aims to contribute to the discussion of environmental changes caused by the artisanal Au mining in the Nambija district. A total of 82 samples (32 soil, 40 stream sediment and 10 mine tailings) were analyzed. The results were compared with the Hg levels in soil and stream sediments considered not to be contaminated in the Nambija mining area and in other areas where Hg is mined in the Amazon basin. In this work, mean total Hg (T-Hg) concentrations of 1.7 μg g⁻¹ in soils and 2.7 μg g⁻¹ in stream sediments have been found. Mercury values in the mine tailing samples revealed values ranging from 89 to 1555 μg g⁻¹. The results found for Hg in the different analyzed materials pointed to contamination of the studied area by this metal, while soil erosion is responsible for an increase in stream sediment's T-Hg concentrations in the different aquatic ecosystems of the Nambija Creek and Nambija River.     

Impact of tailings dam failure on spatial features of copper contamination (Mazraeh mine area,Iran)

Mining activities pose a potential risk of metal contamination around mining sites. On May 6, 2010, a tailings dam failure of the Mazraeh copper mine near Ahar in East Azerbaijan province, Iran, released vast amounts of mine wastes. To better understand the magnitude of copper contamination in the waste-affected soils, it is important to assess the spatial distribution of soil copper content at unsampled points. A total of 30 soil samples and their surficial sediments together with the 6 uncontaminated control samples (0–10 and 10–30 cm) were collected along the stream flow that joined Ahar-Chai River. Some of soil properties as well as total copper concentration were determined in all samples. The mean value of the latter in the surface contaminated soils was found to be approximately two times more than controls. Furthermore, the mean concentration of copper in the surface loaded material was 10 times more than the soils. High copper concentrations were observed in surficial sediments of the soils near the broken tailings dam. The Inverse Distance Weighting (IDW) method was employed in data analysis. The spherical and Gaussian semivariogram models were properly fitted to the data of copper contents in soils and surficial sediments.     

Geochemical distribution of arsenic in waters,sediments and weathered gold mineralized rocks from Iron Quadrangle,Brazil

The Iron Quadrangle has been the scenery of the most important gold production in Brazil. It is estimated that during the three centuries of gold mining in the Iron Quadrangle, at least 390,000 t of arsenic was discharged into the drainage system. This study presents geochemical data for the three river basins in the region, with focus on surface water and stream sediment monitoring. Samples of primary and oxidized sulfide ores as well as of tailings and groundwater from the major gold mines were also studied. The highest As concentrations in water and stream sediments occur in the vicinity of mining areas. In surface water, up to 300 g As/l were found whereas the As contents in stream sediments were in the range of 20 to 4,000 mg/kg. The As³⁺/As⁵⁺ concentration ratios obtained for some water samples range from 1.10^у to 4.10^ф. The As mobility associated with ore-deposit weathering could be traced in some closed gold mines by observation of in-situ pyrite and arsenopyrite oxidation, precipitation of scorodite and gippsite, As adsorption onto goethite, and final liberation of As into underground and surface waters. This process is likely to produce large volumes of mine effluents containing total As and trivalent As up to 1,960 and 60 g/l, respectively. River sediments and tailings pile samples were submitted to a leaching procedure showing maximal arsenic release from 1 to 4% of the original total As in the samples. There are potential risks for As hazards in some areas induced by, for instance, the dispersion of old tailings by flooding, occupation of poisoned soils for settlements, and occasional consumption of contaminated surface and groundwater.     

陕西潼关金矿区太峪河底泥重金属元素的含量及污染评价

通过对潼关金矿区太峪河和太峪水库底泥中重金属元素总量的调查,探讨了金矿开发活动中重金属元素对河流底泥的污染程度。研究结果表明,除As外,河流底泥中重金属元素的含量与尾矿渣中重金属元素的含量变化一致,表明其主要来源于尾矿渣,但又明显高于尾矿渣。在同一地点河流底泥中重金属元素的含量平均高出河水中的1048.61～666030.08倍,呈显著富集。以邻近地区不受工矿活动影响的河流底泥重金属元素的含量均值作为评价参比值,太峪河底泥受到了Hg、Pb、Cd、Cu、Zn元素的极度污染,单项污染超标倍数及综合污染指数法评价结果表明,Hg、Pb、Cd平均污染超标倍数达366.90、217.42和149.97,是底泥中最主要的污染元素。河流底泥重金属元素的综合污染指数高达278.97,表明河流的复合污染亦呈极度状态。太峪河底泥受重金属元素极度污染的现实提示,矿区的环境防治工作已刻不容缓。     

Effects of acid-sulfate weathering and cyanide-containing gold tailings on the transport and fate of mercury and other metals in Gossan Creek: Murray Brook mine,New Brunswick,Canada

Gossan Creek, a headwater stream in the SE Upsalquitch River watershed in New Brunswick, Canada, contains elevated concentrations of total Hg (Hg_T up to 60 μg/L). Aqueous geochemical investigations of the shallow groundwater at the headwaters of the creek confirm that the source of Hg is a contaminated groundwater plume (neutral pH with Hg and Cl concentrations up to 150 μg/L and 20 mg/L, respectively), originating from the Murray Brook mine tailings, that discharges at the headwaters of the creek. The discharge area of the contaminant plume was partially delineated based on elevated pH and Cl concentrations in the groundwater. The local groundwater outside of the plume contains much lower concentrations of Hg and Cl (<0.1 μg/L and 3.8 mg/L, respectively) and displays the chemical characteristics of an acid-sulfate weathering system, with low pH (4.1–5.5) and elevated concentrations of Cu, Zn, Pb and SO₄ (up to 5400 μg Cu/L, 8700 μg Zn/L, 70 μg Pb/L and 330 mg SO₄/L), derived from oxidation of sulfide minerals in the Murray Brook volcanogenic massive sulfide deposit and surrounding bedrock. The Hg_T mass loads measured at various hydrologic control points along the stream system indicate that 95–99% of the dissolved Hg_T is attenuated in the first 3–4 km from the source. Analyses of creek bed sediments for Au, Ag, Cu, Zn, Pb and Hg indicate that these metals have partitioned strongly to the sediments. Mineralogical investigations of the contaminated sediments using analytical scanning electron microscopy (SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and scanning transmission electron microscopy (STEM), reveal discrete particles (<1–2 μm) of metacinnabar (HgS), mixed Au–Ag–Hg amalgam, Cu sulfide and Ag sulfide.     

Identification of fractions of mercury in water,soil and sediment from a typical Hg mining area in Wanshan,Guizhou province,China

Water, sediment and soil in a region with severe Hg contamination resulting from Hg mining and retorting continue to receive anthropogenic Hg loading from discarded tailings and mine waste calcine piles, even after mining has ended. Crucial for potential long-term mobilization and uptake in biota, however, are chemical forms of Hg in the environment. In order to assess potential mobility and bioavailability of Hg in contaminated areas, a refined sequential extraction technique was used for Hg in soil and sediment, allowing identification of the following conceptual Hg fractions: elemental Hg, exchangeable Hg, strongly-bound Hg and organically-bound Hg.     

华南地区含硫化物金属矿山生态环境中的重金属元素地球化学迁移模型——重点对粤北大宝山铁铜多金属矿山的观察

粤北大宝山是华南金属成矿带的大型铁铜、铅、锌、钼等多金属综合性矿床,富含硫化物,位于北江支流横石河的上游分水岭,流域封闭性很好。矿山开发引起横石河下游的上坝村成为远近闻名的"癌症"村,部分村民出现"痛痛病"疑似症状。由于其特殊的地理位置和对下游引发的严重污染,该矿山成为研究湿热地区含硫化物金属矿山重金属元素生态-环境地球化学迁移的理想场所。以Zn为例,该矿山重金属元素从矿体中向生物体迁移过程经过尾砂/水反应界面、水/沉积物反应界面、土壤/间隙水溶液界面和土壤/植物界面4个重要的反应界面。其中,尾砂/水反应界面控制重金属从源头尾砂中的释放;水/沉积物反应界面控制重金属在水体中与河流沉积物的沉淀与释放的平衡;土壤/间隙水溶液界面控制土壤生物有效性;土壤/植物界面控制生物对重金属的吸收与利用。4个界面的介质间相互作用较好地刻画大宝山矿山因为开采,重金属元素从内生环境中曝露出来,然后在表生环境中释放、迁移、转化、归宿的迁移模式。上述认识对矿山重金属污染治理具有重要的指导意义。通过改变重金属迁移反应界面的条件,可以阻断矿山元素的迁移,达到污染治理的目的。     

Mercury as a useful pathfinder for the Chinkuashih enargite-gold deposits,Taiwan

The Chinkuashih is a group of dacite-related hydrothermal enargite-gold deposits of the Quaternary age, which produced 94 tons of gold and 119,101 tons of copper from 1895 to 1987. It has remaining reserves of 656 tons of gold with an average grade range of 1.5–3.5 g/ton of Au for all orebodies discovered.Mercury content in different media such as stream sediments, heavy minerals in stream sediments, soils, rocks/ores, and pyrite samples was analyzed by a gold–film mercury detector to evaluate whether mercury is a good pathfinder for these types of deposits at Chinkuashih. The gold film technique is more rapid and cheaper than the traditional fire assay or fire assay/ICP-MS gold and trace element analyses.Mercury in stream sediments and soils indicated the border zone of gold mineralization 12 km away from the center of mineralization at Chinkuashih. Mercury in heavy minerals of the stream sediments distinguished the intermediate zone with gold veins and gold/gold–copper breccia pipes from the core or inner zone with the gold–copper zone. It has been found that contours of 1000 or 500 ppb Hg of soil samples can delineate the outcropping gold orebodies. The gold ores generally contain 1000 ppb or more Hg.     

Mercury pollution in two gold mining areas of the Brazilian Amazon

Gold has been exploited intensively in the Brazilian Amazon during the past fifteen years using garimpo methods (small-scale gold mining). In this study, two gold mining areas were investigated, the municipalities of Pocone and Alta Floresta located in the state of Mato Grosso. Central Brazil. The elemental mercury (Hg) used in amalgamating the gold, the final stage of the ore dressing process, has caused abnormal Hg concentrations in waterways. This has occurred principally in the Amazon region, where most of the ore prospected is alluvial. Background levels of metals were determined by analyzing sediments and soils located upstream of the anthropogenic inputs and unaffected by mining activities. The study aimed to evaluate the pollution level in sediments and soils, taking into account drainage waters directly affected by gold mining. ‘Geoaccumulation indexes’ (Igeo) of Hg in sediments from both study areas were used to assesses the pollution level in the aquatic environment. The geoaccumulation indexes of Hg in sediments of the Bento Gomes River in Pocone indicate a relatively high degree of pollution at some sites, even reaching class 4 (1.85 mg/kg). However, when the river reaches the Pantanal swamp, Hg concentrations drop considerably to 0.30 mg/kg. This drop seems to be due to accumulation of metals in the sediments of a lake (sampling site PG-24), which retains most of the sediments transported by the Bento Gomes River. Accumulation of metals in the lake also occurred for Cu, Pb, Zn, Fe and Mn. In the region of Alta Floresta, total Hg concentrations in sediments of the Teles Pires River were studied in the grain size fractions < 74 μm and > 74 μm. Hg concentrations in bottom sediments of this river were higher than those found in the Pocone region, with increases of 1.5 to 30 times the background, and thus reaching an Igeo up to class 5.     

Mercury contamination in Marano Lagoon (Northern Adriatic sea,Italy): Source identification by analyses of Hg phases

Total Hg concentrations and Hg speciation were determined in bottom sediments of Marano lagoon to investigate the consequences of Hg phases on fish farms and shellfish cultivation areas. Mercury phases were separated into cinnabar (HgS) and non-cinnabar compounds, via a thermo-desorption technique, in surface and core sediments; both of which had been contaminated by industrial wastes and mining activity residues. The former are due to an industrial complex, which has been producing cellulose, chlor-alkali and textile artificial fibres since 1940. Processing and seepage wastewaters, which were historically discharged into the Aussa-Corno river system and therefore into the lagoon, have been significantly reduced since 1984 due to the construction of wastewater treatment facilities. The second source is the Isonzo River, which has been the largest contributor of Hg into the northern Adriatic Sea since the 16th century due to Hg mining at the Idrija mine (western Slovenia). Red cinnabar (HgS) derived from the mining area is mostly stable and insoluble under current environmental conditions. In contrast, organically bound Hg, such as Hg bound to humic acids, has the potential to be transformed into bioavailable Hg compounds (for example, methylmercury). The presence of the two Hg forms permitted each Hg source to be quantified. It also allowed the areas with the highest risk of Hg contamination from Hg-rich sediment to be identified; thus potentially avoiding the transfer of Hg from the sediment into the water column and eventually into living biota. The results show that Hg Enrichment Factors in bottom sediments exceed values of 10 and cinnabar dominates the central sector near the main tidal channel where tidal flux is more effective. Non-cinnabar compounds were found to be enriched in fine grained material and organic matter. In fact, up to 98% of total Hg at the Aussa-Corno river mouth and in the inner margin of the basin occurred in an organic form. This evidence, combined with the high contents of total Hg (4.1–6.6 μg g⁻¹ and EF > 10) measured in surface sediments, suggest that Hg in Marano lagoon is involved in biogeochemical transformations (e.g., methylation).     

Mine tailings influencing soil contamination by potentially toxic elements

The potentially hazardous contents of mine tailings can pose a serious threat to the environment. Tailings dispersed around the abandoned Monica mine (Bustarviejo) in the Autonomous Region of Madrid (Central Spain) were studied to determine the concentration of several potential toxic elements and their geochemical impact in the surrounding soils. A total of 17 surface soil samples were collected from both mixed sulfide mine tailings sites and unmined soils, within a radius of 1900 m from the mine entrance. The processing of minerals (basically arsenopyrite, matildite and sphalerite) produced tailings with a pH as low as 2.9. Elements such as As, Cu, Zn, Cd, Pb, W, Ag, Fe were found in very high concentrations, contaminating the soil to varying degrees (these elements were sometimes 10- to 20-times higher in the tailings than in the unmined soils). Given its short distance and accessibility from such a large city as Madrid, it is of undeniable environmental and educational interest. Among other factors, there is a need for improvements to tailings management strategies.     

粤北大宝山矿尾矿铅污染迁移及生态系统环境响应

粤北大宝山铁多金属矿床的开发给环境带来了严重的危害。采选冶产生的废液及固体废弃物堆积的淋滤酸水, 携带浸滤出的大量重金属离子随着酸水排入下游河道, 严重影响矿区及酸水流域的生态环境。将矿床-土壤（含河流底泥）-水体-生命体视为统一的生态环境系统, 从尾砂、水体、河流底泥、土壤以及食用蔬菜等方面探讨整个环境系统对重金属Pb的环境响应。结果表明： 河流水中高Pb含量直接源于尾砂, 并受水体pH值的显著影响; 河流底泥能够大量聚集水体中的Pb, 在高pH值时, 相对稳定存在, 在水体pH值降低时, Pb会被再次从河流底泥中释放出来, 形成河流二次污染; 土壤中Pb含量受土壤pH值和土壤粒度的影响; 食用蔬菜中Pb的高含量受土壤Pb高含量决定, 并受土壤pH值的影响, 通过改善农业灌溉水质, 提高土壤pH值, 可以降低蔬菜重金属Pb含量。     

Patterns in the distribution of several chemical elements in bottom sediments and soils of the Ivankovo Reservoir area,Volga River valley

This paper discusses the distribution of trace elements in certain genetic horizons of flooded soils and riverside soil cover and compares it with the heavy metal distribution in bottom sediments of the Ivankovo Reservoir area in the Volga River valley. We present data on the chemical and grain-size compositions of bottom sediments and the concentrations of biophile elements and humus in these sediments. Correlation and factor analyses were applied to reveal the relationships between the abundances of heavy metals and humus and the grain-size composition.     

Hydrologic controls on water chemistry and mercury biotransformation in a closed river system: The Carson River,Nevada

The Carson River flows in a closed basin system and the total flow of the river water decreases downstream due to both evaporation and consumptive uses. This river system is fed primarily by snow pack in the Sierra Nevada during the winter, which flows down gradient following melting in spring and summer. Water loss through evaporation in the Carson River results in a downstream buildup of conservative elements such as Cl⁻ and certain oxyanion forming elements including Se, Mo and W, which are known to interfere with the transformation of Hg within the S cycle. In addition to these naturally occurring hydrologic processes and the resulting affects on water chemistry, the Carson River Basin has been historically impacted by Au and Ag mining that used Hg amalgamation techniques. Contamination of Hg in the Carson River system is now well documented and published Hg concentrations in different environmental compartments are extremely high. In this study, hydrologically driven changes in water chemistry of the river system and the resulting effects on Hg cycling were examined. Results show that periods of low water flow correspond to high water pH (up to 8.3), relatively high concentrations of oxyanion forming elements (e.g., As, Se, Mo and W), and low Hg methylation potential in sediment. In contrast, periods of high flow bring about dilution, which results in lower pH (∼7), lower concentrations of oxyanion forming elements, but higher Hg methylation potential. Overall, changes in flow regimes likely affect rates of methyl-Hg (MeHg) production through a combination of factors such as high pH, which favors MeHg demethylation, and the occurrence of relatively high concentrations of Group VI oxyanions that could interfere with microbial SO₄ reduction and MeHg production.     

Mercury speciation in soil in vicinity of coal beds using sequential extraction

The sequential extraction procedure was proposed and used to study of mercury speciation in real samples of soil. Samples of soil profiles together with bedrock and coal were taken from sampling spots in the vicinity of surficial coal beds in an area with natural coal outcrops. The proposed sequential extraction procedure involves the following fractionation: organic mercury compounds, extractable mercury in an acidic medium, mercury bound to humic substances, elemental Hg and mercury bound to complexes, HgS and residual mercury. The significant distribution of mercury between the two portions—mercury bound to humic substance and HgS was determined in the majority of samples. The mercury bound to humic substances created a significant contribution, especially to the top layer of soil. On the other hand, HgS was the dominant form in the samples from lower layers of the soil profile. The mercury content in the samples did not show a distinct mobility. The influence of soil parameters on the mercury distribution in the studied samples was investigated and discussed.     

鲁北小清河流域土壤中元素分布特征及环境质量评价

对鲁北小清河流域表层和深层土壤样品进行系统采集，分析土壤中元素全量和有效态含量，利用地球化学方法研究元素在土壤中的丰缺和分布规律，认为Se、Pb、Hg在表层土壤中明显富集，与地表污染有关。通过对表层土壤中元素有效态含量和重金属全量的研究，对区内土壤质量和土壤环境质量进行评价，结果表明区内土壤中除Mo、B、Mn出现大面积缺量区外，其他元素均在适量区以上，土壤质量良好，营养水平较高；单元素土壤环境质量除Cr、Hg、cd出现小范围的严重污染区外，其他元素未出现严重污染区，土壤环境质量较好，但多因子综合环境质量评价起始污染以上的面积已接近70％，应予以重视。