The assessment of environmental pollution caused by mining and metallurgy wastes from highly polluted post-industrial regions in Southern Poland

Stored metallurgy and mining wastes contain relatively high amounts of potentially toxic elements. To monitor the distribution of contaminants originating from dumps, the chemical and physical properties of the wastes must be characterised. In this study, the chemical properties of wastes deposited in two different locations in Southern Poland (Szklary and Zloty Stok) were evaluated. Heaps located in Zloty Stok contain wastes from gold mineralisation comprising arsenic while wastes in Szklary originate from a factory that produced an iron-nickel alloy. In Szklary the total concentrations of Ca, Mg, Fe, Zn, Mn, Cr, Co, Cu, Ni, Tl, Ag, Cd and Pb were determined, while in Zloty Stok also As is an important contaminant. To assess the risk of contamination of the surrounding environment and to select the proper method for removing the contaminants, information on the distribution of elements between operationally defined phases must be obtained. For this purpose, a six-step sequential extraction was used. The mobility of most elements in the wastes from Szklary and Zloty Stok was relatively low; however, the large amount of As, 40–180 mg L^?1, that could be released to environment in case of Zloty Stok was high. The results of fractionation studies indicated that Ag, Cd, Tl, Co, Cu, Cr, Pb, Zn and Mn may be released into environment under low pH and low redox potential conditions, which can be induced by bacterial activity.     

Flash Code Simulations of Rayleigh-Taylor and Richtmyer-Meshkov Instabilities in Laser-Driven Experiments

We present two- and three-dimensional simulations involving Richtmyer–Meshkov and Rayleigh-Taylor instabilities run with the adaptive mesh refinement code, flash. Variations in the rate of mixing layer growth due to dimensionality, perturbation modes, and simulation resolution are explored. These simulations are designed for detailed comparisons with experiments run on the Omega laser to gain understanding of the mixing processes and to prepare for validation of the Flash code.     

Optimum stochastic modeling for GNSS tropospheric delay estimation in real-time

GPS Solutions - In GNSS data processing, the station height, receiver clock and tropospheric delay (ZTD) are highly correlated to each other. Although the zenith hydrostatic delay of the...     

Dasycladacean alga <Emphasis Type="Italic">Palaeodasycladus</Emphasis> in the northern Tethys (West Carpathians,Poland) and its new palaeogeographic range during the Early Jurassic

The green alga Palaeodasycladus was recognized in Lower Jurassic shallow-marine high-energy calcarenites of the Cho? Nappe (Hronicum Domain) in the Tatra Mts in Poland. This occurrence indicates the most Northern record of Palaeodasycladus as it is known mostly from the southern part of the Western Tethys. The stratigraphic range of Palaeodasycladus (Norian, Sinemurian–Pliensbachian) and the upper Pliensbachian age of the overlying calcarenites (previous data on the basis of brachiopods) suggest that the studied part of the section was deposited during the Sinemurian–early Pliensbachian. The previous and current reports on occurrences of Palaeodasycladus allowed determination of a new northern palaeogeographic range of the shallow-marine Mediterranean biota during the Early Jurassic time.     

Frost peat mounds on Hermansenøya (Oscar II Land,NW Svalbard) – their genesis,age and terminology

Here we present research on previously uninvestigated frost peat mounds occurring on a peat bog in the southern part of Hermansenøya, NW Svalbard. Detailed characteristics are given of the environmental conditions of the peat bog and of the morphological features and surface structure of the frost peat mounds, as well as an analysis of the internal structure of one mound. Three types of frost peat mounds have been distinguished: disc‐shaped mounds (low), mid‐sized mounds with gentle sides, and high mounds with steep sides. Radiocarbon dating of the peat within the frost peat mound performed for the first time on Svalbard and a detailed analysis of the deposits demonstrated that in the high mound (1.3 m) there is an ice‐peat core and peat cover without ice. There are three layers of peat of different ages separated by at least two hiatuses. A generalized history of the development of the peat bog from about 8 ka BP is established. The studied mound displays two development cycles unknown elsewhere. The older relict part of the peat mound was formed during a climatic cooling about 3.0–2.5 ka BP, while the younger part originated during the Little Ice Age (c. AD 1550–1850). Despite certain similarities of these mounds to some palsas, this term should not be applied to the mounds because they are smaller and their cores consist mostly of layers of massive injection ice, the presence of which indicates a pressurized system in their genesis.     

CN, C2 radicals and dust in Comets Shoemaker-Levy 1991 T2 and P/deVico 1995 S1

The results of the multiaperture photometry of Comet Shoemaker-Levy 1991 T2 in the pre-perihelion and P/deVico in the post-perihelion period with the narrowband CN, C₂ and Blue Continuum (BC) IHW filters are presented. A Haser model of the molecular coma was used for the determination of the parent and daughter scale-lengths and production rates of the radicals. The comets showed some substantial differences between their parent scale-lengths. The CN parent scale-length (at 1.0 AU) was 16×¹⁰³ km for Comet Shoemaker-Levy and 39×¹⁰³ for P/deVico, the C₂ parent scale-lengths were respectively 29×¹⁰³ and 54×¹⁰³ km. Such divergences could be interpreted in the frame of different scenarios of emission of cometary parents, either from a nucleus or from a volume source. The daughter scale-lengths for these comets were quite similar, namely: 306×¹⁰³ and 318×¹⁰³ km for CN and 69×¹⁰³ and 66×¹⁰³ km for C₂. We determined the Afρ parameter for apertures of different radii. A Monte Carlo model of the dust coma was used to obtain the dust ejection velocity. It was of the order of 0.1 km s⁻¹ for both comets. The power index of the distribution of the β-parameter of dust particles (ratio of light pressure to the solar gravitation) was of the order of 3 for C/Shoemaker-Levy and close to 2 for P/deVico. The dependence on heliocentric distance (rh) of the radical and dust production rates for P/deVico in the range of 0.7-1.0 AU was described by the power law function with a power index equal to: 5.55±0.14 for CN, 5.70±0.24 for C₂ and 5.22±0.19 for dust. Relative abundances of the dynamically new Comet Shoemaker-Levy and short-period P/deVico were quite similar with an enhancement of C₂ comparing with standard values taken from A'Hearn et al. (1995).     

The Role of Dissolved Organic Carbon in a Shallow Lowland Reservoir Ecosystem — A Long‐term Study

Long‐term studies were conducted on the polymictic Siemianówka reservoir (SR), situated in a seminatural forest‐peat catchment in NE Poland. The studies were started on the second year of the reservoir's existence. The records showed dissolved organic carbon (DOC) concentrations gradually increasing up to 25…30 mg/L. The largest DOC pool in the reservoir comes from the spring load input, supplemented by the excessive development of phytoplankton with cyanobacteria dominance. The DOC limited the range of the photic zone, eliminated the occurrence of aquatic plants, and was a significant carrier of nutrients, which were gradually released to water, bringing about the “humoeutrophication” of the reservoir.     

Enrichment of rare earth elements as environmental tracers of contamination by acid mine drainage in salt marshes: A new perspective

Rare earth elements (REE) were analyzed in surface sediments from the Guadiana Estuary (SW Iberian Pyrite Belt). NASC (North American Shale Composite) normalized REE patterns show clearly convex curvatures in middle-REE (MREE) with respect to light- and heavy-REE, indicating acid-mixing processes between fluvial waters affected by acid mine drainage (AMD) and seawater. However, REE distributions in the mouth (closer to the coastal area) show slightly LREE-enriched and flat patterns, indicating saline-mixing processes typical of the coastal zone. NASC-normalized ratios (La/Gd and La/Yb) do not discriminate between both mixing processes in the estuary. Instead, a new parameter (E(MREE)) has been applied to measure the curvature in the MREE segment. The values of E(MREE)>0 are indicative of acid signatures and their spatial distribution reveal the existence of two decantation zones from flocculation processes related to drought periods and flood events. Studying REE fractionation through the E(MREE) may serve as a good proxy for AMD-pollution in estuarine environments in relation to the traditional methods.     

Crustal Architecture of the Inverted Central Lapland Rift Along the HUKKA 2007 Profile

We have studied the lateral velocity variations along a partly buried inverted paleo–rift in Central Lapland, Northern Europe with a 2D wide-angle reflection and refraction experiment, HUKKA 2007. The experiment was designed to use seven chemical explosions from commercial and military sites as sources of seismic energy. The shots were recorded by 102 stations with an average spacing of 3.45 km. Two-dimensional crustal models of variations in P-wave velocity and Vp/Vs-ratio were calculated using the ray tracing forward modeling technique. The HUKKA 2007 experiment comprises a 455 km long profile that runs NNW–SSE parallel to the Kittilä Shear Zone, a major deformation zone hosting gold deposits in the area. The profile crosses Paleoproterozoic and reactivated Archean terranes of Central Lapland. The velocity model shows a significant difference in crustal velocity structure between the northern (distances 0–120 km) and southern parts of the profile. The difference in P-wave velocities and Vp/Vs ratio can be followed through the whole crust down to the Moho boundary indicating major tectonic boundaries. Upper crustal velocities seem to vary with the terranes/compositional differences mapped at the surface. The lower layer of the upper crust displays velocities of 6.0–6.1 km/s. Both Paleoproterozoic and Archean terranes are associated with high velocity bodies (6.30–6.35 km/s) at 100 and 200–350 km distances. The Central Lapland greenstone belt and Central Lapland Granitoid complex are associated with a 4 km-thick zone of unusually low velocities (<6.0 km/s) at distances between 120 and 220 km. We interpret the HUKKA 2007 profile to image an old, partly buried, inverted continental rift zone that has been closed and modified by younger tectonic events. It has structural features typical of rifts: inward dipping rift shoulders, undulating thickness of the middle crust, high velocity lower crust and a rather uniform crustal thickness of 48 km.