Phytostabilisation of tailing ponds with use of water absorbing geocomposites and organic and mineral additives

Kuc, Piotr; Kordas, L.; Lejcuś, Krzysztof

doi:10.37190/epe190106

Cited by 4 publications

(5 citation statements)

References 16 publications

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“…The tailings stored in several impoundments, due to their low water capacity, low fertility, high alkalinity and high concentration of residual trace metals, are extremely unfavourable for living organisms (Chodak et al, 2005;Gawron et al, 2007;Krawczyńska et al, 2015;Kasowska et al, 2018). Thus, several attempts were undertaken to improve the tailings physical and chemical properties, aimed to accelerate their biological reclamation, using various kinds of organic substrates, including sewage sludge and geocomposites (Karczewska and Milko, 2010;Karczewska et al, 2011Karczewska et al, , 2013Gersztyn and Karczewska, 2012;Kordas and Tasz, 2012;Spiak et al, 2012;Gersztyn et al, 2013;Marczyk et al, 2013;Kuc et al, 2019).…”

Section: Technogenic Soils In Industrial and Mining Areasmentioning

confidence: 99%

Studies of technogenic soils in Poland: past, present, and future perspectives

Uzarowicz¹,

Charzyński²,

Greinert³

et al. 2021

Soil Sci. Ann.

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For a long time, the soils covering areas strongly transformed by human were ignored in scientifi c discourse. Also, practice did not care much about these soils because of their unproductivity. Only the large post-mining areas reclaimed and transformed into a forest or agricultural land were more interesting both for science and practice. In the case of post-mining areas the term "soilless land" was used for a long time, especially in relation to areas which were not reclaimed. In this paper, the past studies (until the end of 20 th century) of technogenic soils in Poland were described. Technogenic soils of urban and industrial areas appeared in scientifi c considerations in Poland in the second half of the 20 th century. In those times, soil properties on disposal sites were mainly investigated as a basic information for further design of technical and biological reclamation on disposal sites. Two Polish scientists should be emphasised as the world pioneers in concepts and studies of technogenic soils: (1) Michał Strzemski, who proposed a classifi cation scheme for soils in urban and industrial areas, as well as listed the tasks for future studies of these soils, and (2) Tadeusz Skawina, who focused on the dynamic and directions of the soil-forming processes on the mine spoils in the context of their reclamation. Moreover, studies of technogenic soils in the last two decades were also shown in the paper. From the beginning of the 21 st century the scientifi c research gained momentum. Nowadays, Polish researchers have great achievements in studying technogenic soils, including investigation of their properties, genesis, evolution, classifi cation, biological features etc. Furthermore, we drew some outlines for future studies of Technosols.

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Section: Technogenic Soils In Industrial and Mining Areasmentioning

confidence: 99%

Studies of technogenic soils in Poland: past, present, and future perspectives

Uzarowicz¹,

Charzyński²,

Greinert³

et al. 2021

Soil Sci. Ann.

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“…The authorities kept secret the results of chemical analyses of the water made immediately after the incident [45,46], and only a few publications have focused on the subject. In the area of the Old Copper Basin, high contents of heavy metals, mainly Cu and Pb, were found in the mining waste, which may have posed a threat to the environment and to the health of the population [47][48][49]. Researchers have shown that although Cu and Pb remain in post-flotation sediments in very poorly soluble forms, there is a risk of increasing their bioavailability, e.g., as a result of some agrotechnical treatments [47].…”

Section: Pollution In Old Copper Basinmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…TSF1 was decommissioned in 1971 and TSF3 was commissioned at the same time and only closed for copper ore mining at the Konrad mine in 1989 [51]. As a result of the postflotation tailings' treatment using technology, the Old Copper Basin areas are very difficult to remediate [43,48,49]. In 1991, TSF1 and 2 were reclaimed by planting poplars, birches, black locust, pines and larches [51].…”

Section: Study Area and Tailings' Characteristicsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…However, a field inspection conducted during the 2020 fieldwork revealed that it was still not possible to introduce vegetation over the entire area occupied by the TSFs. The unfavourable conditions for plant growth are due to poor physical characteristics (a high share of very fine particles and low content of skeletal fraction and organic matter) and chemical characteristics (low biological activity, high Ca, Cu and Pb contents, and pH of the sediment at about 7.7) [47][48][49], which is characteristic of many forms of waste generated by copper mining [52]. Due to the physical properties of post-flotation tailings, the windblown dust from the beaches of the tailings' ponds is virtually non-existent.…”

Section: Study Area and Tailings' Characteristicsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Challenges in the Application of Dendrochemistry in Research on Historical Environmental Pollution in an Old Copper Mining Area

Dobrzańska

Lochyński

Kalbarczyk

et al. 2021

Forests

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This research investigates the long-term environmental impact and historical temporal pollution patterns caused by a former copper mine in Iwiny (south-western Poland) using a dendrochemical approach. An additional aspect of this research was considering the possibility of using the inductively coupled plasma-optical emission spectrometry (ICP-OES) measurement technique as a cheaper alternative to inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) in dendrochemical analyses conducted in copper mining areas. In the study area, a tailings storage facility (TSF) dam failure (1967) took place and the alkaline flotation waste containing high concentration of Cu and Pb are stored. Tree cores from pedunculate oak (Quercus robur L.) were analysed for the content of 11 trace elements (TEs) (Cd, Mn, Ni, Zn, Cr, Co, Pb, Cu, Fe, Al, Ag) using the ICP-OES technique, while tree rings’ widths (TRWs) were also measured. Samples that were most significant in the context of the research goals were verified with the ICP-MS method. The results revealed the strong long-term impact of the copper industry as reflected in a substantial increase in the mean contents of: (1) Mn, Ni, Zn, Cr, Pb, Cu and Fe in industrial vs. control trees, (2) TRWs for control vs. industrial trees. However, the observed patterns of TEs and TRWs did not correspond to the known timing of pollution inputs (mining activity, tailings spill). Peak levels were observed for Zn and Fe after the mine was closed. The lack of new sources of pollution and the temporal relationship strongly suggests that the tree rings recorded the chemical signal of the TSF reclamation (the use of fertilizers and agrotechnical interventions). Patterns of 7 elements were detected in most of the samples by ICP-OES (Co and Cd were not detected, Al and Ag were partly detected), while ICP-MS detected all of the elements. Significant differences were obtained for Ag, Cd, and Co. Despite challenges with the application of dendrochemistry in research on old mining areas (e.g., lack of old trees), it has proved to be a useful tool for investigating the aggregate environmental impact.

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“…In a study by Wróblewska et al [94], the application of WAG to soil resulted in an increase of Brunnera macrophylla biomass by up to 360% and the number of leaves by 60%. WAG has also been described as useful in typical engineering applications, in biotechnological structures or in the remediation of degraded areas [5,[95][96][97]. Moreover, a biodegradable version which differs in weaving type and skeleton material is under development [98].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Assessment of Water Retention Efficiency of Different Soil Amendments in Comparison to Water Absorbing Geocomposite

2021

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Soil amendments are substances added to the soil for moisture increment or physicochemical soil process enhancement. This study aimed to assess the water conservation efficiency of available organic soil amendments like bentonite, attapulgite, biochar and inorganics like superabsorbent polymer, and nonwoven geotextile in relation to the newly developed water absorbing geocomposite (WAG) and its biodegradable version (bioWAG). Soil amendments were mixed with loamy sand soil, placed in 7.5 dm3 pots, then watered and dried in controlled laboratory conditions during 22-day long drying cycles (pot experiment). Soil moisture was recorded in three locations, and matric potential was recorded in one location during the drying process. The conducted research has confirmed that the addition of any examined soil amendment in the amount of 0.7% increased soil moisture, compared to control, depending on measurement depth in the soil profile and evaporation stage. The application of WAG as a soil amendment resulted in higher soil moisture in the centre and bottom layers, by 5.4 percent point (p.p.) and 6.4 p.p. on day 4 and by 4.5 p.p. and 8.8 p.p. on day 7, respectively, relative to the control samples. Additionally, an experiment in a pressure plate extractor was conducted to ensure the reliability of the obtained results. Soil density and porosity were also recorded. Samples containing WAG had water holding capacity at a value of −10 kPa higher than samples with biochar, attapulgite, bentonite, bioWAG and control by 3.6, 2.1, 5.7, 1 and 4.5 percentage points, respectively. Only samples containing superabsorbent polymers and samples with nonwoven geotextiles had water holding capacity at a value of −10 kPa higher than WAG, by 14.3 and 0.1 percentage points, respectively. Significant changes were noted in samples amended with superabsorbent polymers resulting in a 90% soil sample porosity and bulk density decrease from 1.70 g∙cm−3 to 1.14 g∙cm−3. It was thus concluded that the water absorbing geocomposite is an advanced and most efficient solution for water retention in soil.

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Phytostabilisation of tailing ponds with use of water absorbing geocomposites and organic and mineral additives

Cited by 4 publications

References 16 publications

Studies of technogenic soils in Poland: past, present, and future perspectives

Studies of technogenic soils in Poland: past, present, and future perspectives

Challenges in the Application of Dendrochemistry in Research on Historical Environmental Pollution in an Old Copper Mining Area

The Assessment of Water Retention Efficiency of Different Soil Amendments in Comparison to Water Absorbing Geocomposite

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