Hydrogeologic, water-quality, and geochemical data for the Frohner Meadows area, upper Lump Gulch, Jefferson County, Montana

The present study aims to assess the spatial and temporal variations of the hydrochemical characteristics of Mateur aquifer groundwaters, a crucial water resource in the northeast of Tunisia. The aquifer was subject to water quality deterioration due to salinization and nitrate contamination, and a new assessment of water quality was needed. For this purpose, 40 groundwater samples were collected during wet and dry seasons and analyzed for salinity, pH, T, O2, major cations and anions, and nutrient elements using standard methods and Water Quality Index (WQI). The results showed that most of the groundwater parameters were not within the permissible limits set by the World Health Organization in both seasons. The geochemical data were interpreted using WQI for drinking water. The spatial distribution maps of Water Quality Index showed that the highest quality was found, during both seasons, in the northwest and the southeast part of the aquifer, corresponding to the recharge zone, whereas the poor and very poor water quality was found in the outflow part of the aquifer. According to sodium adsorption ratio (SAR) and Na% values, most of the groundwater samples were not suitable for irrigation purposes and characterizing the eastern part of the aquifer and the outflow part of the aquifer, around the Ichkeul marshes.

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Louisville and Jefferson County Metropolitan Sewer District's (MSD) Water Quality-based Wet Weather Program Exemplifies EPA's Watershed Approach

Proceedings of the Water Environment Federation ◽

10.2175/193864703784679314 ◽

2003 ◽

Vol 2003 (10) ◽

pp. 723-728

Author(s):

Angela Akridge ◽

Brian Bingham ◽

Reggie Rowe

Keyword(s):

Water Quality ◽

Jefferson County ◽

Watershed Approach ◽

Wet Weather

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The impact of artisanal gold mining, ore processing and mineralization on water quality in Marmato, Colombia

Environmental Geochemistry and Health ◽

10.1007/s10653-021-00898-y ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Keith W. Torrance ◽

Stewart D. Redwood ◽

Alessandro Cecchi

Keyword(s):

Water Quality ◽

Surface Water ◽

Gold Mining ◽

World Health ◽

Geochemical Data ◽

Small Scale ◽

Artisanal Mining ◽

Artisanal Gold Mining ◽

Ore Processing ◽

The Impact

AbstractMarmato, Colombia, has been an important centre of gold mining since before the first Spanish colonizers arrived in 1536. The Marmato deposit is hosted in a dacite and andesite porphyry stock as sheeted sulphide-rich veinlet systems. The district is currently experiencing a surge in both major mining projects and artisanal mining, driven by sustained high gold prices. Ore from small-scale and artisanal gold mining is processed in numerous small mills (entables) around Marmato, which impact surface water quality through the discharge of milled waste rock slurry, highly alkaline cyanide-treated effluent, and high dissolved metal loads. To investigate the impact of artisanal mining and ore processing, water samples were collected in January 2012 from streams around Marmato. The average dissolved metal concentrations in impacted streams were Zn, 78 mg L−1; Pb, 0.43 mg L−1; Cu, 403 µg L−1 Cd, 255 µg L−1; As, 235 µg L−1; Ni, 67 µg L−1; Co, 55 µg L−1; Sb, 7 µg L−1; and Hg, 42 ng L−1, exceeding World Health Organization drinking water guidelines. In addition, arsenic speciation was conducted in-situ and indicated that 91–95% of inorganic arsenic species is in the form of As(V). Spatial analysis of the data suggests that entables processing ore for artisanal miners are the main contributor to water pollution, with high sediment loads, alkalinity and elevated concentrations of dissolved arsenic, cadmium, mercury and lead, caused by the processing of gold-bearing sulphides in the entables. Geochemical data from surface water were compared to a comprehensive data set of whole rock analyses from drill core and channel samples from the deposit, indicating that the deposit is significantly enriched in gold, silver, lead, zinc, arsenic, antimony, and cadmium compared to crustal averages, which is reflected in the surface water geochemistry. However, elevated mercury levels in surface water cannot be explained by enrichment of mercury in the deposit and strongly suggest that mercury is being added to concentrates during ore processing to amalgamate fine gold.

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