• Journal of the Korean Society of Groundwater Environment
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• v.5 no.1
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• pp.44-55
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• 1998

Imgok creek is the most severly polluted one out of the streams which have been being polluted by acid drainages from the abandoned coal mines in the Gangdong-Myeon area, the central part of the so called Gangreung coal field. Imgok creek is being mainly polluted by the drainage from Youngdong coal mine, which supplies such pollutants as Mg, Fe, Al, Si, Ca, Mn, and SO$_4$as major dissolved components and Cr, Co, Ni, Cu, Zn, Rb, Sr, Cd, Pb, and U as minor dissolved components. After the influx, the pollutants migrate mainly as dissolved solid, rather than as suspended solids along Imgok creek. The suspended solids in Imgok creek are very rich in Fe and Al, indicating that they mainly consist of the precipitates of present and past from the polluted water. Most of the dissolved components in the stream waters of Imgok creek removed from the aqueous phase by precipitation and dilution before reaching the East Sea, so that water quality of the downstreams of Imgok creek is very similar to that of unpolluted tributaries. It suggests that Imgok creek itself is now being severly polluted by the acid drainages from the abandoned coal mines, but the East Sea is relatively safe from the same pollution. The estuary and sea waters around the Goonseon estuary, which accepts Imgok creek water, certainly show no significant difference in chemical compositions from the mean oceanic water. The bottom sediments at the sampling sites of the sea waters also show no significant trend of their component variation, especially the variations of Fe, SO$_4$ and Al concentrations. These facts again supper that the acid mine drainage is not considerablly polluting the East Sea. However, the tributaries supplying the fresh water to the Imgok creek will be certainly polluted by the acid mine drainage as time passes and pollutants will have more chance to migrate in significant amount to the downstream area, which all can be a real threats to the East Sea on the pollution possibility. Therefore, it is suggested that urgently required are not only water quality and environmental improvement of the severely polluted Imgok creek but also preparation of the measures on the possible future pollution of the East Sea by the acid drainage from the abandoned coal mines in the area, while the East Sea is still not much affected by the pollution of the same kind.

• The Journal of Engineering Geology
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• v.18 no.3
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• pp.297-302
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• 2008

The main reason of the pollution caused by soils and tailings located at discussed mines is heavy metals and AMD(acid mine drainage). Human health is affected by these pollutants which are spreaded from the abandoned mines. In this study, we try a mathematical approach to predict the pollution level of heavy metals caused by the surrounding soils of abandoned mines. The new approach is established with the correlation between the distance and pH, ORP. The change of pH and ORP can be described by the rate of initial values to experimental values. We demonstrate a realistic possibility of the mathematical approach to assess an environmental impact from disused mines cause the rate range is 0.95 to 1.03 for 60 days. Therefore our proposed approach will be useful as a few promising method for the management of heavy metals in many mines.

• Economic and Environmental Geology
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• v.33 no.2
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• pp.91-100
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• 2000

It has been more than ten years since Dukun mine was abandoned. Tailings of waste deposits and slime dumps in the abandoned Dukum mine have been left to be deserted for fifty years. The results of fifty years of neglecting are nothing short of major environmental problems. Slime dumps have been exposed to air and water in the mine over ten years and then soil profile has been formed well. Soil in the upper layer (A horizon) is the light gray color due to the leaching of cations. Soil in the lower layer (A2 horizon, 0.2∼0.3m)is tinted with reddish brown and yellowish brown color due to the development of iron oxides and iron hydroxides. Soil in the lower part of B horizon of (1.0∼3.0m) with the growth of copper and zinc oxides exposes to the bluish green, light blue, and dark gray. Ranging from 3m to 8m in depth, 85 samples were taken from 22 sampling sites with 50m intervals located on the slime dump area with hand auger and trench (open cut). As tailings was distributed, heavy metal elements extracted by the process of surface water and ground water move and disperse in to the hydrosphere. Waste dumps were distributed in and around the mine and water draining from those dumps be a potential source of contamination. Soils, thus, can be dispersed into downslope and downstream through wind and water by clastic movement. These materials may be deposited in another horizon if the water is withdrawn, or if the materials are precipitated as a result of differences in pH, or other conditions in deeper horizons. These were primarily associated with acid mine drainage. The characteristics and rate of release of acid mine drainage are influenced by various chemical and biological reactions at the source of acid generations. Prolonged extration of heavy metal elements has a detrimental effect on the agricultural land and residental area. Twenty soil samples were collected from the agricultural land in the area (0∼30 cm). Seventeen samples were also taken from the sediment in the stream running alongside the dumps. The dispersion patterns of heavy metal elements are as follows: The content of As ranged 2∼6 ppm in a horizon, 20∼125 ppm in B horizon with large amount of clay mineral is concentrated and the content of Cd ranged 1∼2 ppm in A horizon, 4∼22 ppm in B horizon. Like Cd, the content of As, Cu, Zn, Pb in B horizon is higher than that in A horizon (approximately 5∼100 times). When soil formation proceeds in stages, it is necessary to investicate the B horizon with the concentration of heavy metal and preventive measures will have to established.

• The Journal of Engineering Geology
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• v.6 no.2
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• pp.65-81
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• 1996

Friar Tuck, an Abandoned Mine Lands (AML) site, is located on the Greene-Sullivan county line in southwest Indiana. Prior to the on-going reclamation, Friar Tuck was one of the Indiana's largest and most environmentally adverse abandoned mine lands. The direct vegetation method was used to reclaim tailing ponds. Grading, capping, and revegetalon using agricultural limestone, fertilizer, mulch and seed were applied to the gob piles to abate acid mine drainage (AMD) and off-side sedimentaion. Erosion control structures such as terrace, diversion ditch, and gabion structures were also constructed to minimize erosion at slopes. A new method for treatment of AMD using apatite was tested in the laboratory and field. Apatite effectively removed iron, aluminum and sulfate while maintaining an almost constant pH. Apparently, this method can be applied to control AMD from mining refuse materials, even those containing high concentrations of iron and aluminum ions.

• Economic and Environmental Geology
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• v.52 no.6
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• pp.529-539
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• 2019

In this study, heavy metal removal and precipitation characteristics with pH change were studied for artificial acid mine drainage. Artificial acid mine drainage was prepared using sulfates of iron, aluminum, copper, zinc, manganese which contained in acid mine drainage from abandoned mines. The single and mixed five heavy metal samples of Fe, Al, Cu, Zn, and Mn were prepared at initial concentrations of 30 and 70 mg/L. Fe and Al were mostly removed at pH 4.0 and 5.0, respectively, and other heavy metals gradually decreased with increasing pH. Concentration changes with increasing pH show generally similar trend for single and mixed heavy metal samples. The effect of removing heavy metals from aqueous solutions is not related to the initial concentration and depends on the pH change. XRD were used for mineral identification of precipitates and crystallinity of the mineral tended to increase with increasing pH. The precipitates that produced by decreasing the concentration of heavy metals in the aqueous solution composed of Fe-goethite(FeOOH), Al-basaluminite(Al₄(SO₄)(OH)₁₀·4H₂O), Cu-connellite(Cu₁₉(OH)₃₂(SO₄)Cl₄·3H₂O) and tenorite(CuO), Zn-zincite(ZnO), and Mn-hausmannite(Mn₃O₄).

• Korean Journal of Environmental Agriculture
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• v.33 no.2
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• pp.78-85
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• 2014

BACKGROUND: Recent studies using various industrial wastes for heavy metal stabilization in soil were conducted in order to find out new alternative amendments. The acid mine drainage sludge(AMDS) contains lots of metal oxides(hydroxides) that may be useful for heavy metal stabilization not only waste water treatment but also soil remediation. The aim of this study was to investigate the applicability of acid mine drainage sludge for heavy metals stabilization in soils METHODS AND RESULTS: Alkali soil contaminated with heavy metals was collected from the agricultural soils affected by the abandoned mine sites nearby. Three different amounts(1%, 3%, 5%) of AMDS were applied into control soil and contaminated soil. For determining the changes in the extractable heavy metals, $CaCl_2$ and Mehlich-3 were applied as chemical assessments for metal stabilization. For biological assessments, lettuce(Lactuca sativa L.) and chinese cabbage(Brassica rapa var. glabra) were cultivated and accumulation of heavy metals on each plant were determined. It was revealed that AMDS reduced heavy metal mobility and bioavailability in soil, which resulted in the decreases in the accumulation of As, Cd, Cu, Pb, and Zn in each plant. CONCLUSION: Though the high level of heavy metal concentrations in AMDS, any considerable increase in the heavy metal availability was not observed with control and contaminated soil. In conclusion, these results indicated that AMDS could be applied to heavy metal contaminated soil as an alternative amendments for reducing heavy metal mobility and bioavailability.

• Economic and Environmental Geology
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• v.41 no.1
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• pp.57-62
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• 2008

The application of constructed subsurface-flow wetlands for treatment of wastewater from abandoned mines is being increased. Crushed limestone, oak chips, and mushroom composites are often employed in a bulk form, as the substrates in the bed media. Efficiency of the subsurface-flow treatment system drops with time as the hydraulic conductivity of the wetland soil decreases significantly, presumably due to chemical reactions with the wastewater. The purpose of this study is to investigate the applicability of immobilized beads carrying sulfate reducing bacteria for acid mine drainage treatment system. The ingredients of immobilized beads are organic materials such as mushroom composite and oak chips, limestone powder for a pH buffer, mixed with a modified Coleville Synthetic Brine. It was found that immobilized beads are more efficient than the bulk form for pH recovery, sulfate and heavy metal removal.

• Journal of Soil and Groundwater Environment
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• v.8 no.2
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• pp.9-18
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• 2003

Sampling of waters from each stage of treatment system (Successive Alkalinity Producing System; SAPS), tailings seepage, and spring near the Hanchang coal mine of Kangwon Province were carried out seasonally and analyzed to evaluate the source and possible path of groundwater contamination by acid mine drainage (AM). Sulfur isotope compositions were measured to identify the origin of groundwater contaminations and the sulfate reduction processes in the SAPS. Low pH and high metal concentration of spring water indicates possibility of the groundwater contamination by AMD. Removal efficiency of acidity of the SAPS was 18.17 g/$\textrm{m}^2$/day on an average and the metal removal efficiency was almost 100%, which was higher than those of other treatment systems. However, no appreciable decrease of sulfur content and almost similar sulfur isotope compositions of water from each stage of the treatment system may suggest incomplete or very poor sulfate reduction by sulfate reducing bacteria. Chemical and sulfur isotope compositions showed that spring water was contaminated by seepage from mine tailings. And seepage of stonewall, a part of treatment system was affected by both tailings seepage and mine adit drainage. In this study site, the treatment system was constructed for the only AMD from mine adit not for tailings seepages, which resulted in the groundwater contamination from tailing seepages. Similar situation is expected in other abandoned coal mine areas.

• Ecology and Resilient Infrastructure
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• v.2 no.1
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• pp.93-98
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• 2015

Acid mine drainage (AMD) producing mine tailings can be beneficially recycled to generate electricity by applying fuel cell technology. Pyrite-containing mine tailings and indigenous bacteria from abandoned mine areas were used to construct fuel cells to investigate the effect of pyrite contents and the presence of iron-oxidizing bacteria. The results showed an enhanced electrical performance with a higher content of pyrite in mine tailings. The inoculation of the indigenous bacteria also enhanced the current density by about three times, and the power density by about 10 times. Overall, this study shows that the combined use of the ecological function of indigenous bacteria from mine areas and mine-tailings in fuel cells does not only contribute to reducing harmful effects of mine tailings but also generate electricity.

• Journal of the Korea Organic Resources Recycling Association
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• v.5 no.1
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• pp.71-85
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• 1997

There are approximately 500 abandoned mining sites in Korea. Abandoned mines cause various environmental and safety problems such as landscape damage, soil, groundwater and stream pollution by heavy metal, acid mine drainage and soil erosion. According to the survey, there are significant numbers of mines causing environmental problems in Korea. For a environmentally sound management of abandoned mines, the Soil Pollution Control Act should include the regulation concerning soil pollution and recovery standards of the abandoned mines. Also, comprehensive survey about abandoned mines, setting-up of tile recovery priority, finance for clean-up are necessary.