Mobility of aqueous contaminants at abandoned mining sites: insights from case studies in Sardinia with implications for remediation

Public awareness of environmental health issues has increased significantly in recent years, creating the need for detailed scientific studies that can identify potential environmental problems. This paper reports the results of hydrogeochemical surveys carried out in Sardinia, an Italian region with a long mining history. When mining operations in Sardinia ceased, actions for limiting the potential adverse effects of mine closure on the water system were not undertaken. Drainages from flooded mines and seeps from mining residues left on the ground are the main mining-related sources of contamination in Sardinia. Due to the proximity of mining sites to water resources and land that is within reach of animals and humans, the major risks to human health are associated with the direct discharge of contaminated waters into the streams and soils located down-gradient of the abandoned mines. Results of hydrogeochemical surveys carried out under different seasonal conditions showed that the dispersion of toxic and harmful elements (As, Cd, Ni, Pb, Sb and Zn) increases during the rainy season, especially under high runoff conditions. These results should help regional and national authorities to address present environmental regulations, particularly those regarding the quality of water resources. Furthermore, the results might be useful elsewhere for planning remediation actions at abandoned mining sites. Lessons learned by past mining in Sardinia indicate that correct disposal and management of mining residues should be mandatory from the beginning of exploitation and processing at each active mine. This would allow reduction of the environmental risks as well as the cost of remediation.     

Geology and geochronology of the Xilamulun molybdenum metallogenic belt in eastern Inner Mongolia,China

The Xilamulun molybdenum metallogenic belt, located in eastern Inner Mongolia, China, has great economic potential as a major producer of molybdenum. Four major types of Mo deposits have been recognized in the Xilamulun molybdenum metallogenic belt: porphyry, quartz vein, volcanic-hosted, and greisen. These Mesozoic Mo deposits are closely related to Si- and K-rich intrusives and are usually hosted by granite plutons or located at the endo- or exo-contact zones of the granite porphyry. SHRIMP zircon U–Pb dating gives the emplacement ages of the intrusions related to Mo mineralization as 245.1 ± 4.4, 152.4 ± 1.6, and 139.1 ± 2.3 Ma. Re–Os analysis of five molybdenite samples from the Chehugou porphyry Mo deposit yields an isochron age of 245 ± 5 Ma (2σ), indicating that the mineralization age of the porphyry Mo deposit is about 245 Ma. Re–Os analyses of six molybdenite samples from the Nianzigou quartz-vein-type Mo deposit yield an isochron age of 154.3 ± 3.6 Ma (2σ), constraining the mineralization age of the quartz-vein Mo deposit to 154 Ma. Our results suggest that the Mo mineralization in the Xilamulun belt formed during at least three stages, i.e., the Triassic, Late Jurassic, and Early Cretaceous, and is coeval with the granitic magmatism. The corresponding geodynamic background covers the syncollision between the North China and Siberian plates during the Early to Middle Triassic, a compression setting related to the subduction of the Paleo-Pacific plate during the Jurassic and lithospheric thinning during the Early Cretaceous in eastern China.     

Dam break threshold value and risk probability assessment for an earth dam

In dam safety assessment, it is customary to focus on stability analysis, and the safety factor is regarded as an assessment index that cannot correctly reflect the effect of multi-factors and variable uncertainty. The factors that induce dam breaks are complex and uncertain; however, three primary ones can be identified: hydrological factors, seepage and bank slope instability. In this paper, the risk probability and the dam break threshold value for each factor individually, as well as coupled factors, are studied. The threshold value is acquired using the relationship formula between risk probability and dam type. The Dongwushi reservoir located in the Hebei province of China is taken as a case study. The results show that the dam break threshold values for hydrological factors, seepage and bank slope instability are 2.53, 2.02 and 2.69, respectively. The integrated dam break threshold value for the coupled factors is 1.25, which indicates that the dam is under serious stress according to the established risk assessment standard. The safety factor is calculated as 1.15 using the Bishop method, which indicates that the dam is under serious stress. The results obtained by the proposed method are consistent with those of the Bishop method. Finally, the proposed theory and method are introduced into a dam safety evaluation system (DSES) for convenient and efficient dam safety management.     

Mapping coastal erosion at the Nile Delta western promontory using Landsat imagery

A set of six Landsat satellite images with 5–9 years apart was used in a post-classification analysis to map changes occurred at Rosetta promontory between 1973 and 2008 due to coastal erosion. Spectral information were extracted from two multi-spectral scanner (MSS) images (1973 and 1978), three thematic mapper (TM) images (1984, 1990, and 1999), and one enhanced thematic mapper plus (ETM+) image (2008). To estimate the quantity of land loss in terms of coastal erosion, a supervised classification scheme was applied to each image to highlight only two classes: seawater and land. The area of each class was then estimated from the number of pixels pertaining to this class in every image. In addition, the shoreline position was digitized to address retreat/advance pattern throughout the study period. Results showed that Rosetta promontory had lost 12.29 km² of land between 1973 and 2008 and the shoreline withdrew southward about 3.5 km due to coastal erosion. Most land loss and shoreline retreat occurred between 1973 and 1978 (0.55 km²/year and 132 m/year, respectively). Coastal protection structures were constructed successively at the promontory. These structures have considerably contributed to reduce coastal erosion; however, they promoted downdrift erosion.     

鄂尔多斯盆地陕北斜坡延长区块储层流体识别

延长油田区块位于鄂尔多斯盆地陕北斜坡东部延安单斜的中间部位,为研究天然气储层及储层中高含气分布区,2008年在延长油田区块内完成三维地震勘探344km2。本文对三维地震资料应用吸收系数、频谱分解、振幅衰减等地震属性进行流体识别试验。试验结果表明振幅衰减对含气层段异常响应相对敏感,吸收系数对高含气层段有一定反映。利用天然气储层各层段振幅衰减极大值,参考吸收系数剖面的高值层段,分析预测了三维区块含气概率高的平面分布区,2009年在预测的含气概率高分布区进行了探井验证,取得了比较理想的效果。     

Chalcophile and platinum-group element (PGE) concentrations in the sulfide minerals from the McCreedy East deposit,Sudbury, Canada,and the origin of PGE in pyrite

Magmatic sulfide deposits consist of pyrrhotite, pentlandite, chalcopyrite (± pyrite), and platinum-group minerals (PGM). Understanding the distribution of the chalcophile and platinum-group element (PGE) concentrations among the base metal sulfide phases and PGM is important both for the petrogenetic models of the ores and for the efficient extraction of the PGE. Typically, pyrrhotite and pentlandite host much of the PGE, except Pt which forms Pt minerals. Chalcopyrite does not host PGE and the role of pyrite has not been closely investigated. The Ni–Cu–PGE ores from the South Range of Sudbury are unusual in that sulfarsenide PGM, rather than pyrrhotite and pentlandite, are the main carrier of PGE, probably as the result of arsenic contribution to the sulfide liquid by the As-bearing metasedimentary footwall rocks. In comparison, the North Range deposits of Sudbury, such as the McCreedy East deposit, have As-poor granites in the footwall, and the ores commonly contain pyrite. Our results show that in the pyrrhotite-rich ores of the McCreedy East deposit Os, Ir, Ru, Rh (IPGE), and Re are concentrated in pyrrhotite, pentlandite, and surprisingly in pyrite. This indicates that sulfarsenides, which are not present in the ores, were not important in concentrating PGE in the North Range of Sudbury. Palladium is present in pentlandite and, together with Pt, form PGM such as (PtPd)(TeBi)₂. Platinum is also found in pyrite. Two generations of pyrite are present. One pyrite is primary and locally exsolved from monosulfide solid solution (MSS) in small amounts (<2 wt.%) together with pyrrhotite and pentlandite. This pyrite is unexpectedly enriched in IPGE, As (± Pt) and the concentrations of these elements are oscillatory zoned. The other pyrite is secondary and formed by alteration of the MSS cumulates by late magmatic/hydrothermal fluids. This pyrite is unzoned and has inherited the low concentrations of IPGE and Re from the pyrrhotite and pentlandite that it has replaced.     

Differences in the Feeding Ecology of Two Seagrass-Associated Snails

Grazing by small epifauna on live seagrass leaves was formerly viewed as unimportant in controlling plant biomass and growth, instead researchers focused on the indirect benefits of small invertebrates that crop algal competitors. Recent evidence shows that the emerald nerite Smaragdia viridis preferentially ingests seagrass leaf tissue. In contrast, the button snail Modulus modulus feeds on epiphytes and periphyton coating the leaves. We conducted laboratory microcosm and field experiments to investigate how the different feeding preferences of these seagrass-associated snails affect turtlegrass Thalassia testudinum primary production. Data revealed that after 24 h S. viridis reduced foliar biomass (25%) and chlorophyll (30%) and injured the equivalent of 50% of daily seagrass growth per shoot. Conversely, M. modulus did not affect these variables. Our results emphasize that in subtropical seagrass communities not all small epifauna browse off leaf surfaces and some can have important direct negative impacts on their seagrass host.     

Marine Macrophyte Wrack Inputs and Dissolved Nutrients in Beach Sands

We investigated the role of sandy beaches in nearshore nutrient cycling by quantifying macrophyte wrack inputs and examining relationships between wrack accumulation and pore water nutrients during the summer dry season. Macrophyte inputs, primarily giant kelp Macrocystis pyrifera, exceeded 2.3 kg m⁻¹ day⁻¹. Mean wrack biomass varied 100-fold among beaches (range = 0.41 to 46.43 kg m⁻¹). Mean concentrations of dissolved inorganic nitrogen (DIN), primarily NO_x⁻-N, and dissolved organic nitrogen (DON) in intertidal pore water varied significantly among beaches (ranges = 1 to 6,553 μM and 7 to 2,006 μM, respectively). Intertidal DIN and DON concentrations were significantly correlated with wrack biomass. Surf zone concentrations of DIN were also strongly correlated with wrack biomass and with intertidal DIN, suggesting export of nutrients from re-mineralized wrack. Our results suggest beach ecosystems can process and re-mineralize substantial organic inputs and accumulate dissolved nutrients, which are subsequently available to nearshore waters and primary producers.     

An application of a new method in permafrost environment assessment of Muli mining area in Qinghai-Tibet Plateau,China

The permafrost environment in the Muli mining area, an opencast mining site in the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, China, is now undergoing significant degradation because of the ongoing mining activities. The permafrost environment in this mining site had already been evaluated by previous study, in which analytic hierarchy process was applied. Although this method can roughly characterize the permafrost environment of this mining site, it has limitations by being easily affected by man-made factors. In view of this limitation, this study attempts to employ a new method, the catastrophe progression method, to estimate the current stage of the permafrost environment in this mining area. The results show that, by catastrophe progression method, currently the calculated indexes of the permafrost freezing–thawing disintegration, permafrost thermal stability, permafrost ecological fragility, and the permafrost environment are 0.43 (general situation), 0.77 (general situation), 0.71 (bad situation) and 0.83 (general situation), respectively. These values imply that the permafrost environment has been damaged by anthropologic activities to a certain degree and potentially may be further degenerated. However, at this degree, a new equilibrium stage of permafrost environment could be achieved if the current state of environmental degradation is stabilized and treatments are constructed against further damages.     

Geochemical characterization of a Quaternary monogenetic volcano in Erciyes Volcanic Complex: Cora Maar (Central Anatolian Volcanic Province,Turkey)

Central Anatolian Volcanic Province (CAVP) is a fine example of Neogene-Quaternary post-collisional volcanism in the Alpine-Mediterranean region. Volcanism in the Alpine-Mediterranean region comprises tholeiitic, transitional, calc-alkaline, and shoshonitic types with an “orogenic” fingerprint. Following the orogenic volcanism, subordinate, within-plate alkali basalts (sl) showing little or no orogenic signature are generally reported in the region. CAVP is mainly characterized by widespread calc-alkaline andesitic-dacitic volcanism with orogenic trace element signature, reflecting enrichment of their source regions by subduction-related fluids. Cora Maar (CM) located within the Erciyes pull-apart basin, is an example to numerous Quaternary monogenetic volcanoes of the CAVP, generally considered to be alkaline. Major and trace element geochemical and geochronological data for the CM are presented in comparison with other CAVP monogenetic volcanoes. CM scoria is basaltic andesitic, transitional-calc-alkaline in nature, and characterized by negative Nb–Ta, Ba, P and Ti anomalies in mantle-normalized patterns. Unlike the “alkaline” basalts of the Mediterranean region, other late-stage basalts from the CAVP monogenetic volcanoes are classified as tholeiitic, transitional and mildly alkaline. They display the same negative anomalies and incompatible element ratios as CM samples. In this respect, CM is comparable to other CAVP monogenetic basalts (sl), but different from the Meditterranean intraplate alkali basalts. Several lines of evidence suggest derivation of CM and other CAVP monogenetic basalts from shallow depths within the lithospheric mantle, that is from a garnet-free source. In a wider regional context, CAVP basalts (sl) are comparable to Apuseni (Romania) and Big Pine (Western Great Basin, USA) volcanics, except the former have depleted Ba contents. This is a common feature for the CAVP volcanics and might be related to crustal contamination or source characteristics. Indeed, HFS and other incompatible element ratios suggest the role of crustal contamination in the genesis of the CAVP monogenetic basalts.