Background Conditions and Mining Pollution throughout History in the Río Tinto (SW Spain)

Álvarez, Manuel Olías; Nieto, José Miguel

doi:10.3390/environments2030295

Cited by 50 publications

(35 citation statements)

References 38 publications

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“…One of the most extensively studied ARD environments is the Río Tinto system that originates in the Iberian Pyritic Belt (IPB) of Spain (González-Toril et al 2003;López-Archilla et al 2004;García-Moyano et al 2012;Sánchez-Andrea et al 2012). Because the IPB has been extensively mined for more than 4500 years, there is controversy about the causes of the extreme acidity and heavy metal pollution of the river, with some authorities claiming that they are due to human activity (Olías and Nieto 2015) and others arguing that they basically result from natural activities within the IPB (Fernández-Remolar 2003; Amils et al 2014). Due to the extensive anthropogenic impacts in most ARD systems that have been studied, with the consequent changes in geology and hydrology, it is difficult to separate natural from engineered causes of pollution.…”

Section: Electronic Supplementary Materialsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Pristine but metal-rich Río Sucio (Dirty River) is dominated by Gallionella and other iron-sulfur oxidizing microbes

Arce-Rodríguez

Puente-Sánchez

Avendaño³

et al. 2016

Extremophiles

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Whether the extreme conditions of acidity and heavy metal pollution of streams and rivers originating in pyritic formations are caused primarily by mining activities or by natural activities of metal-oxidizing microbes living within the geological formations is a subject of considerable controversy. Most microbiological studies of such waters have so far focused on acid mine drainage sites, which are heavily human-impacted environments, so it has been problematic to eliminate the human factor in the question of the origin of the key metal compounds. We have studied the physico-chemistry and microbiology of the Río Sucio in the Braulio Carrillo National Park of Costa Rica, 22 km from its volcanic rock origin. Neither the remote origin, nor the length of the river to the sampling site, have experienced human activity and are thus pristine. The river water had a characteristic brownish-yellow color due to high iron-dominated minerals, was slightly acidic, and rich in chemolithoautotrophic iron- and sulfur-oxidizing bacteria, dominated by Gallionella spp. Río Sucio is thus a natural acid-rock drainage system whose metal-containing components are derived primarily from microbial activities.

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Section: Electronic Supplementary Materialsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Pristine but metal-rich Río Sucio (Dirty River) is dominated by Gallionella and other iron-sulfur oxidizing microbes

Arce-Rodríguez

Puente-Sánchez

Avendaño³

et al. 2016

Extremophiles

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“…Iron-oxyhydroxide and sulfate-bearing minerals comprised the majority of gossans, terrace iron formations and mine soils. While this mineralogical composition reflects the redox conditions contributing to the formation of these regolith materials [24,45,[47][48][49][50], variations in Ag concentrations highlight the dissolution, mobility and re-precipitation of Ag within this environment. Relative to terrace iron formations and mine soils, gossans contained both a chemical and a structural 'record' of past biogeochemical processes promoting precious metal mobility.…”

Section: Interpretations Of Ag Biogeochemical Cycling Within Regolithmentioning

confidence: 99%

Biogeochemical Cycling of Silver in Acidic, Weathering Environments

et al. 2017

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Under acidic, weathering conditions, silver (Ag) is considered to be highly mobile and can be dispersed within near-surface environments. In this study, a range of regolith materials were sampled from three abandoned open pit mines located in the Iberian Pyrite Belt, Spain. Samples were analyzed for Ag mineralogy, content, and distribution using micro-analytical techniques and high-resolution electron microscopy. While Ag concentrations were variable within these materials, elevated Ag concentrations occurred in gossans. The detection of Ag within younger regolith materials, i.e., terrace iron formations and mine soils, indicated that Ag cycling was a continuous process. Microbial microfossils were observed within crevices of gossan and their presence highlights the preservation of mineralized cells and the potential for biogeochemical processes contributing to metal mobility in the rock record. An acidophilic, iron-oxidizing microbial consortium was enriched from terrace iron formations. When the microbial consortium was exposed to dissolved Ag, more than 90% of Ag precipitated out of solution as argentojarosite. In terms of biogeochemical Ag cycling, this demonstrates that Ag re-precipitation processes may occur rapidly in comparison to Ag dissolution processes. The kinetics of Ag mobility was estimated for each type of regolith material. Gossans represented 0.6-146.7 years of biogeochemical Ag cycling while terrace iron formation and mine soils represented 1.9-42.7 years and 0.7-1.6 years of Ag biogeochemical cycling, respectively. Biogeochemical processes were interpreted from the chemical and structural characterization of regolith material and demonstrated that Ag can be highly dispersed throughout an acidic, weathering environment.

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“…Some of them are located near the Guadiamar River, a tributary of the Guadalquivir River, with mining activities for more than 4000 years (Hunt, 2003). Consequently, some rivers of this area are very polluted, with very shocking acid mine drainage processes (Olías and Nieto, 2015).…”

Section: Historical Pollutionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Imprints of historical pollution and the 218-60 BCE tsunamigenic period in southwestern Spain

Montero¹,

Monge²,

Carretero³

et al. 2020

revmexcg

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The Doñana National Park is a Biosphere Reserve located within the estuary of the Guadalquivir River (SW Spain). It is mainly composed of extensive fluvio-tidal marshes partially protected by an elongated sandy spit. Three phases have been distinguished in the late Holocene evolution of this spit based on textural, geochemical, palaeontological and, chronological data recorded in a long core (31 m). Phase 1 (890 BCE-218 BCE) is characterized by the alternation of lagoonal silty sediments and slightly polluted marsh deposits, the latter with contamination from thousand-year-old mining. Phase 2 (218 BCE-90 CE) is characterized by several historical tsunamis, which caused the erosion of previous dune systems and the deposit of these sandy sediments on the adjacent bottom of the lagoon. Phase 3 (90 CE-Present) includes a regressive sequence (lagoonal bottom-marsh-dune system), with the pollution of lagoonal sediments due to Roman mining activities.

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Background Conditions and Mining Pollution throughout History in the Río Tinto (SW Spain)

Cited by 50 publications

References 38 publications

Pristine but metal-rich Río Sucio (Dirty River) is dominated by Gallionella and other iron-sulfur oxidizing microbes

Pristine but metal-rich Río Sucio (Dirty River) is dominated by Gallionella and other iron-sulfur oxidizing microbes

Biogeochemical Cycling of Silver in Acidic, Weathering Environments

Imprints of historical pollution and the 218-60 BCE tsunamigenic period in southwestern Spain

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