Fluid Inclusion and Stable Isotope Studies at Don Sixto,a Precious Metal Low Sulfidation Deposit in Mendoza Province,Argentina

The Don Sixto mining area in Mendoza province, central‐western Argentina, contains an epithermal low sulfidation Au–Ag deposit. It is a small deposit (～4 km²), with a gold resource of 36 t. In Don Sixto, ore minerals are disseminated in the hydrothermal quartz veins and hydrothermally altered volcanic‐pyroclastic rock units of Permian–Triassic age. On the basis of the texture, ore mineral paragenesis and cross cutting relationship of gangue minerals, seven stages of mineralization were recognized and described. The first six stages are characterized by quartz veins with minor amounts of base metal minerals and the last stage is represented by fluorite veins with minimal quantities of base metal minerals; the precious metal mineralization is mainly related to the fourth stage. The hydrothermal veins exhibit mainly massive, crustiform and comb infilling textures; the presence of bladed quartz replacement textures and quartz veins with adularia crystals are indicative of boiling processes in the system. Fluid inclusion and complementary stable isotope studies were performed in quartz, fluorite, and pyrite samples from the vein systems. The microthermometric data were obtained from primary, biphasic (liquid‐vapor) fluid inclusion assemblages in quartz and fluorite. The maximum values for salinity and homogenization temperature (T_h) came from the stage IV where quartz with petrographic evidence of boiling has average values of 4.96 wt% NaCl_equiv. and 286.9°C respectively. The lower values are related to the last stage of mineralization, where the fluid inclusions in fluorite have average salinities of 1.05 wt% NaCl_equiv. and average homogenization temperatures of 173.1°C. The oxygen and sulfur isotopic fractionation was analyzed in quartz and pyrite. The calculated isotopic fractionation for oxygen in the hydrothermal fluid is in the range of δ¹⁸O_H2O = ?6.92 up to ?3.08‰, which indicates dominance of a meteoric source for the water, while sulfur reaches δ³⁴S_H2S = 1.09‰, which could be reflecting a possible magmatic, or even a mixed source.     

A millennial‐scale Late Pleistocene–Holocene palaeoclimatic record from the western Chihuahua Desert,Mexico

We present elemental concentrations and magnetic susceptibility data from a new 270‐cm‐long sediment core collected from the western part of palaeolake Babicora and infer millennial‐scale hydrological variations over the last 27 cal. ka in the western Chihuahua Desert. Variations in the available water content at the sediment–air interface of the watershed, lake salinity and lake productivity are inferred from values of the chemical index of alteration (CIA), CaCO ₃ and C_org, respectively. An abrupt increase in runoff at c. 24 cal. ka BP appears correlative with the Heinrich 2 (H2) event. Except for this event, diminished runoff between c. 27 and 19 cal. ka BP indicates lower annual precipitation (weak summer rainfall) during the Last Glacial Maximum. The deposition of chemically altered sediments between c. 25 and 22 cal. ka BP results from the higher sediment–water interaction in the watershed owing to lower evaporation, cooler conditions and higher precipitation during the H2 event. Since 19 cal. ka BP the runoff has been characterized by high‐amplitude fluctuations with intervals of reduced precipitation identified at c. 19, 18, 17.5, 13–14, 11.5, 10, 7.5 and 3 cal. ka BP.     

Salt-water intrusion and nitrate contamination in the Valley of Hermosillo and El Sahuaral coastal aquifers, Sonora, Mexico

 The Valley of Hermosillo coastal aquifer, state of Sonora, northwestern Mexico, has been over-exploited for the last four decades, in order to maintain agricultural activity in one of the most important irrigation districts of the Mexican Republic. The over-exploitation has resulted in the development of several drawdown cones and in the lowering of the water table to as much as 50 m below mean sea level. Contamination of the aquifer in the form of salt-water intrusion from the Gulf of California and high nitrate concentrations is the consequence of human activities. A hydrogeochemical zonation of the aquifer, based on the presence of different water families, led to the identification of a coastal band approximately 30 km wide that is affected by salt-water intrusion. Conductivity of the sampled water and the interpretation of the ratio Na/Cl×1000 was used to identify the location of three major intrusion plumes in this coastal band. The background nitrate contamination of the aquifer is about 4 ppm, but contents as great as about 17 ppm occur in some wells. Irrigation with raw sewage and movement of contaminants in areas of high hydraulic gradients within the drawdown cones probably are responsible for localized peaks of the nitrate concentration. Received, October 1996 Revised, September 1997, May 1998 Accepted, July 1998     

Partition of arsenic in soils sediments and the origin of naturally elevated concentrations in groundwater of the southern pampa region (Argentina)

Excessive arsenic concentrations above the Argentinean and WHO guidelines for drinking water (10 μg L⁻¹) affects shallow aquifers of the southern Pampean Plain (Argentina) hosted in the Pampean and the Post Pampean formations (loess and reworked loess; Plio-Pleistocene–Holocene). Health problems related to high As concentrations in drinking waters are known as Endemic Regional Chronic Hydroarsenicism. Hydrochemistry of shallow groundwaters and soil geochemistry were investigated aiming to (1) understand the partition of As in the solid phase and its relationship with unacceptable As concentrations in waters, (2) identify the provision source of As to groundwaters. Only 5% of the samples had As concentrations <10 μg L⁻¹; in 27% As concentrations ranged from 10 to 50 μg L⁻¹ and in 58% it reached 60–500 μg L⁻¹. The coarse fraction (50–2,000 μm) hosts about 27% of the total As in the solid phase, being positively correlated to Ba (p < 0.01; r ² = 0.93). About 70% is included in the <2 μm fraction and had positive correlations of As–Fe (p < 0.05; r ² = 0.85) and As–Cr (p < 0.05; r ² = 0.68). Soils and sediment sand fractions of vadose zones are the primary sources of As in shallow groundwater while adsorption–desorption processes, codisolution–coprecipitation, and evaporation during the dry seasons raise As concentrations in waters exceeding the guideline value for drinking water.     

The Son Poc rockfall (Mallorca,Spain) on the 6th of March 2013: 3D simulation

The Son Poc rockfall took place on the 6th of March 2013 in the municipality of Bunyola, on the southern side of the Tramuntana Range (Mallorca) and after a rainy and cold period on the region. A volume of rock of 4.000 m³ was detached from the cliff crowning the peak falling down by toppling. The impact of the boulder caused its fragmentation, and numerous boulders bounced and rolled downslope with volumes from 1 to 35 m³, following two trajectories: southwest (SW) and southeast (SE). The SE trajectory, with a larger runout (376 m), reached an urban area, where some of the boulders hit the roofs and walls of nearby houses, stopping others in their gardening areas. Fortunately, no fatalities occurred despite of the presence of some people at that moment, but the event caused great concern in a region which lives from and for tourism. The Son Poc rockfall has been simulated using RocPro3D software which uses GIS technology to produce 3D rockfall trajectories lines, estimated velocity and energy of falling blocks, as well as bounce heights, impacts, and stopping points. The results are in agreement with field observations and with a very good accuracy between real and modeled outcomes.     

Magma chamber growth models in the upper crust: A review of the hydraulic and inertial constraints

Finite volumes of magma moving in confinement, store hydraulic potential energy for the generation,control and transmission of power. The Pascal's principle in a hydraulic jack arrangement is used to model the vertical and lateral growth of sills. The small input piston of the hydraulic jack is equivalent to the feeder dike, the upper large expansible piston equivalent to the magmatic chamber and the inertial force of the magma in the dike is the input force. This arrangement is particularly relevant to the case of sills expanding with blunt tips, for which rapid fracture propagation is inhibited. Hydraulic models concur with experimental data that show that lateral expansion of magma into a sill is promoted when the vertical ascent of magma through a feeder dike reaches the bottom contact with an overlying, flat rigid-layer. At this point, the magma is forced to decelerate, triggering a pressure wave through the conduit caused by the continued ascent of magma further down(fluid-hammer effect). This pressure wave can provide overpressure enough to trigger the initial hydraulic lateral expansion of magma into an incipient sill, and still have enough input inertial force left to continue feeding the hydraulic system. The lateral expansion underneath the strong impeding layer, causes an area increase and thus, further hydraulic amplification of the input inertial force on the sides and roof of the incipient sill, triggering further expansion in a self-reinforcing process. Initially, the lateral pressure increase is larger than that in the roof allowing the sill to expand. However, expansion eventually increases the total integrated force on the roof allowing its uplift into either a laccolith, if the roof preserves continuity, or into a piston bounded by a circular set of fractures. Hydraulic models for shallow magmatic chambers, also suggest that laccolith-like intrusions require the existence of a self-supported chamber roof. In contrast, if the roof of magmatic chambers loses the self-supporting capacity, lopoliths and calderas should be expected for more or less dense magmas, respectively, owing to the growing influence of the density contrast between the host rock and the magma.     

Morphometric analysis of Colangüil river basin and flash flood hazard,San Juan,Argentina

This work analyzes various morphometric characteristics of the Colangüil river basin in order to evaluate flash flood hazards. Such high-water events pose a risk to the similarly named small village located at the basin’s foot area. For this purpose, the basin is divided into seven sub-basins and some basic measurements (surface, perimeter, basin length, river beds, elevations and slope of the main river bed, and of a number of minor river beds) are calculated. These measurements permit to predict approximately the behavior of the basin in the presence of a series of theoretical rainstorms that may generate unusual runoff volumes that make up such flash floods.     

Reconstruction of hydrocarbons accumulation in sediments affected by the oil refinery industry: the case of Tehuantepec Gulf (Mexico)

The Isthmus of Tehuantepec corresponds to the shortest distance (~200?km) between the Gulf of Mexico and the Pacific Ocean in Southern Mexico, and the main economical activity of this region is oil extraction and refining. Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) and total petroleum hydrocarbons (TPHs) were determined in a ²¹⁰Pb dated sediment core collected from the continental shelf of Tehuantepec Gulf, in the vicinity of the oil refinery of Salina Cruz, Oaxaca, the main oil refining facility of the country. The sediments were mostly of coarse nature and hence PAHs and TPHs concentrations throughout the core (61?C404???g?g^?1 and 29?C154?mg?kg^?1, respectively) were below international quality benchmarks. Depth profiles of both PAHs and TPHs concentrations showed increasing trends since the early 1900s but the higher values were found from the 1950s to present. PAH congener ratios showed that these contaminants had both petrogenic and pyrolitic sources, although the former has been predominant since the 1970s. The Salina Cruz refinery started operations in 1978 but the oil industry activities in the Tehuantepec Isthmus go back to the beginning of the twentieth century with the operation of Minatitlan refinery in the Gulf of Mexico, and the Gulf of Tehuantepec being the main conduit for oil distribution in the Pacific coast. The observed changes in contaminant distributions described well the oil industry development in the area.     

Recent changes in flood risk in the Gran La Plata,Buenos Aires province,Argentina: causes and management strategy

The paper analyses the causes of flood occurrence in the Gran La Plata, Buenos Aires Province, Argentina, and the changes that have occurred since the 1970s. The area is characterized by serious deficiencies in the use and management of water resources. The main factors are: (1) flood risk information is not updated; (2) urban building organization does not consider the flood risk; (3) the topography and other physical features are not taken into account in urban development. This research considers some specific problems, especially in data availability, and suggests ways to solve them, including improved analytical methodology. One of the main objectives is to analyse flood risk in social terms, producing a map of flood risk from the “human social vulnerability” point of view. The results suggest that flood risk has increased since the 1980s and that this is associated with changes in precipitation patterns that have also been aggravated by lack of controls on urban development. The poorer areas with the lowest level of infrastructure and public services, many of them developed over the last quarter-century, are especially vulnerable.