Naturally acidic and metalliferous waters at unmined volcanogenic massive sulfide deposits in the Bonnifield mining district, Alaska Range, east-central Alaska

The Bonnifield district hosts 26 tmmined volcanogenic massive sulfide （VMS） occurrences. Environmental geochemical samples of water and stream sediment were collected at several occurrences, concentrating on the two best-exposed and largest deposits, Red Mountain （RM） and Sheep Creek （SC）. Limited samples were also collected at the poorly exposed WTF deposit. The deposits are Late Devonian to Early Mississippian, and are hosted by felsic metavolcanic and carbonaceous schist members of the Totatlanika Schist or Keevy Peak Fm. Spring and stream waters at RM and SC have pH values commonly 〈3.5 （as low as 2.4 at RM and 2.5 at SC）, high conductivity （up to 11000 μS/cm）, and very high （Is to 100s mg/L） dissolved contents of Al, Cd, Co, Cu, Fe, Ni, and Pb. Waters at RM are characterized by extremely high REE contents （summed REE median 3200 μg/L, n=33）. At both RM and SC, pyrite oxidation and dissolution produce low pH waters that interact with and dissolve bedrock minerals, resulting in acidic, metal-laden, naturally degraded streams that are mostly devoid of aquatic life. Ferricrete is common. In contrast, WTF barely produces a surficial environmental footprint, mostly due to topography and relief. RM and SC are well exposed in the areas of relatively high relief, and both exhibit extensive areas of quartz-sericite-pyrite-alteration. While WTF shares many of the same deposit-and alteration characteristics, it is concealed by tundra in a large, nearly flat area. Surface water at WTF is absent and outcrops are sparse. Even though WTF is roughly the same size as Red Mountain （both around 3 million tonnes） and has similar base- and precious-metal grades, the surficial geochemical manifestation of WTF is minimal. However, exposure through mining of the altered, mineralized rock at WTF potentially could initiate the same processes of pyrite oxidation, acid generation, and mineral dissolution that are observed naturally at RM and SC.     

Quantification of the risk associated with high levels of mercury pollution at Temirtau, Kazakhstan

This research aims to establish the risks of hurnan exposure to modeling approach. The study site was located on the River Nura 1990s, an acetaldehyde production plant located in the industrial high environmental mercury levels, based on a quantitative risk in central Kazakhstan. From the 1950s until its closure in the mid city of Temirtau released mercury-containing wastewater into the river. River sediments are highly contaminated with mercury up to a distance of 25 km and beyond. In addition, a local power station released an estimated 6 million tonnes of fly-ash into the water and the mercury has become quite tightly associated with the ash deposits. River water, fish and agricultural land in the floodplain are also contaminated with mercury, yet the risks posed to the local population have not been evaluated to date. In June and July 2005, we took samples of soil, interior and exterior dust, drinking water, and food from individual households, communal areas and markets. Additionally, water and sediment samples and fish were taken from the river. Interviews were conducted with householders to establish their age and body weight, general living conditions and sources of irrigation and drinking water. A food frequency questionnaire （FFQ） was designed to investigate the frequencies of consumption of several common regional food items, including fish from the fiver and/or local market. Human hair samples were also collected to estimate the mercury bioburden and to enable the validity of the modeling approach to be established. The paper expands on the main pathways of contamination and looks at linkages between exposure pathways and mercury concentrations found in human hair. Uncertainties inherent in risk analysis as well as their influence on the relative importance of different exposure routes are also discussed.     

Changes to cadmium associations in canal sediments on drying and oxidation

The mainly 19th Century canal system in the UK, largely managed by British Waterways, has been increasingly brought back into operation over the last few decades, and is now widely used for both leisure, and, increasingly, transport. Both initial and routine dredging of the canal sediment is carried out and these sediments are generally disposed of to land. Because many of the canals were connected with primary industries, their sediments can locally be significantly contaminated with heavy metals, and the behaviour of these metals under differing redox conditions, when introduced into a new environment （i.e., on land） is of importance for environmental risk-assessment purposes. Canal sediments are often rich in sulfidic mineral phases, and we have attempted to quantify the influence of these sulfidic phases on the release and retention of metals in dredged canal sediments, using a combination of traditional chemical techniques （e.g. sequential extraction） and X-ray absorption spectroscopy （XAS）. Sediment samples have been collected from urban fresh-water canals, one in the British Midlands and one in Northern France. It appears from XAS that Cd is largely associated with oxygen in air-dried sediment, and with sulphur in vacuum-dried sediment.     

Petrogenesis and geotectonic setting of the PanAfrican basement rocks in Bamenda Massif, Obudu Plateau, southeastern Nigeria： Evidence from trace element geochemistry

1 IntroductionThe study area is part of the Obudu Plateau,which forms part of the Precambrian Pan-African tec-tonothermal belt, lying between the West African Cra-ton and the Gabon-Congo Craton ( Fig. 1). It isbounded by the Benue Trough, in the NE-SW axi…     

The chromite deposits associated with ophiolite complexes, Southeastern Desert, Egypt： Petrological and geochemical characteristics and mineralization

1 Introduction The association of massive Fe-Ni-Cu sulfides andchromite is a very unusual feature of podiformchromitites occurring in mantle tectonites of ophioliticcomplexes. It has only been described in theSoutheastern Desert, Egypt, where sulfides a…     

美国地质调查局激光雷达应用新进展

随着激光雷达(Light detection and ranging,Lidar)技术的成熟,美国地质调查局(U.S.Geo-logical Survey,USGS)在这个方向开展了许多应用研究。科学家们正在发展表达、使用高分辨率Lidar数据的新型技术;同时,为方便公众获取相应信息,数据及提取信息的发布手段也在研究之中。以下通过几个实例做一简要介绍。1典型研究1.1数据分发建立国家地图集(National Map)的一个目标是向公众发布基础数字地理信息。该地图集的高程部分是通过USGS地球观测系统(EROS)数据中心的国家高程数据集(National ElevationDataset,NED)维护的。NED提供3种…     

工业革命以来青藏高原与南极冰芯高分辨率甲烷记录对比研究

自工业革命以来全球大气CH4含量呈快速的增长趋势, 但达索普冰芯记录所显示的北半球中低纬度地区大气CH4增长的启动时间要晚于极地冰芯记录近100 a. 由于受北半球人类活动CH4排放、CH4在大气中的寿命及大气中CH4的传输等过程的影响, 最近150 a以来, 中低纬度大气CH4与南极大气CH4含量在不同的时段表现出不同的净积累量和增长速率, 且20世纪两次世界大战期间达索普冰芯记录明确显示出人类活动排放的减缓使大气CH4呈负增长. 对比研究认为, 到20世纪中叶人类活动的甲烷排放已达到极高值, 中低纬度大气中CH4增长率及年积累逐步趋于平稳且略有降低. 可以认定, 工业革命以来中低纬度地区大气CH4与南极大气CH4含量的变化在不同的时段在受控于人类活动影响的同时, CH4在大气中的行为和传输过程以及东亚中低纬度季风气候的影响决定了两地之间大气CH4含量变化存在显著的差异.     

澳大利亚的第三纪及第三纪—第四纪过渡期(英文)

第三纪的板块运动驱动着澳大利亚的气候和植被进行演化。广布的湿润森林区是澳大利亚老第三纪的特征。一直到始新世 ,生物多样性都在不断地提高。毫无疑问 ,这是澳大利亚由高南纬区向北部中纬区运移的结果。从始新世到上新世 ,澳大利亚的气候总体上要比现在湿润 ,但降水量季节性变化的增强推动了中新世以后硬叶植物和旱生植物的发展。上新世晚期似乎与第四纪一样 ,都出现过周期性干旱。这种干旱与冰期条件有关 ,至少由南澳大利亚晚第四纪的记录可以认识到这一点 ,澳大利亚的这段历史与东亚的气候变迁是同步发生的。在东亚 ,印—澳板块的运动致使青藏高原抬升 ,从而引发了区内乃至全球气候的巨变。穿越赤道区的季风和信风的环流格局 ,致使新第三纪和第四纪中国与澳大利亚的气候系统的相关性更强。     

成像雷达干涉测量数据相关性与干旱-半干旱地区地表类型特征的关系

利用欧洲资源卫星1号和2号获取的重轨干涉测量雷达数据，首先进行干涉测量数据相关性估测，并结合干涉测量数据的振幅信息，开展新疆喀什试验区地表土地类型的识别与分类，区分和识别出裸土、盐碱地、灌丛、裸岩/戈壁、沼泽和水体 6类土地类型。最后通过对不同土地类型的后向散射特性和相关性的分析，探讨了干涉测量数据相关性与干旱-半干旱地区地表特征的关系。     

俄罗斯西西伯利亚和外贝加尔区古河道型铀矿床

本文系统地介绍了俄罗斯3个具有工业意义的古河道型铀矿化发育区（外乌拉尔，西西伯利亚和外贝加尔）的地质背景，铀矿化特征和铀成矿条件，指出切割到基底的古河道型铀矿床，既可产于跨地区的造山周围，也可产于活化的年青地台和古老地盾，既可形成于干燥的气候条件，也可形成于潮湿的气候条件。古河道型铀矿化可以从含矿层的沉积开始一直延续到被泥岩层或玄武岩层完全封盖。古河道的后成氧化分带有两种形式：氧化带－铀矿化带－原生灰色岩石；氧化带－氧化铁再沉积带－漂白带－原生灰色岩石。古河道型铀矿床具宽广的元素谱，这主要是与含矿围岩富含有机质和在氧化带尖灭处存在各种地球化学障有关。