• Journal of Soil and Groundwater Environment
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• v.11 no.3
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• pp.1-11
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• 2006

Attempts were made to analyze the national policy of soil contamination prevention and management of inactive or abandoned metal (IAM) mines in Korea. This approach focused on legal systems and legislation, remediation technology development, and the arrangement or distribution of budgets pertaining to national policy since the mid 1990's. Prevention of Mining Damage and Recovery Act enacted. Defines the roles, responsibility and budget of the government when recovering mine damages. However, in 2005 there still remains to improve the national policy of soil contamination prevention and management of IAM mines. Analysis of national and industrialized foreign countries including the United States, the United Kingdom, and the Netherlands suggest the following improvements: i) arranging distinct regulations between strict and non-strict liability criteria for potentially responsible parties; limiting innocent and non-strict liability depending on the period of incurred mining activity, ii) enhancing participation of local communities by enforcing law and legislation, iii) establishing a national database system of (potentially) IAM contaminated sites based on the Website-Geographic Information System, iv) carrying out site-specific risk assessments and remediation of IAM contaminated sites, v) preparation and distribution of clean-up fund at mine sites adequately, and vi) technology development for the cleaning of IAM contaminated sites; awarding positive incentives of a legal nature for participants applying newly developed technology in IAM mines.

• 한국지구물리탐사학회:학술대회논문집
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• 2003.11a
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• pp.544-547
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• 2003

The objective of this study is to investigate the contamination levels and dispersion patterns of arsenic and heavy metals and to estimate the bioaccessible fraction of the metals in soil and plant samples in the vicinity of the abandoned Songcheon Au-Ag mine. Tailings, soils, plants (Chinese cabbage, red pepper, soybean, radish, sesame leaves, green onion, lettuce, potato leaves, angelica and groundsel) and waters were collected around the mine site. After appropriate preparation, all samples were analyzed for As, Cd, Cu, Pb and Zn by ICP-AES and ICP-MS. Elevated levels of As and heavy metals were found in tailings. Mean concentrations of As in agricultural soils were higher than the permissible level. Especially, maximum level of As in farmland soil was 513 mg/kg. The highest concentrations of As and Zn were found in Chinese cabbage (6.7 mg/kg and 359 mg/kg, respectively). Concentrations of As, Cd, and Zn in most stream waters which are used for drinking water around this mine area were higher than the permissible levels regulated in Korea. Maximum levels of As, Cd and Zn in stream waters were 0.78 mg/L, 0.19 mg/L and 5.4 mg/L, respectively. These results indicate that mine tailings can be the main contamination sources of As and heavy metals in the soil-water system in the mine area. The average of estimated bioaccessible fraction of As in farmland soils were $3.7\%$ (in simulated stomach) and $10.8\%$ (in simulated small intestine). The highest value of bioaccessible fraction of metal in farmland soils was $46.5\%$ for Cd.

• Journal of Soil and Groundwater Environment
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• v.20 no.7
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• pp.1-12
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• 2015

The purpose of this study is to highlight the National Classification System related to cleanup the soil contaminated sites and to provide some guidance to address the priority management rank system before the remediation for Busan metropolitan city. Based on the previous soil investigation data, the quantitative classification of vulnerable areas for soil pollution was performed to successfully manage the contaminated sites in Busan. Ten evaluation factors indicating the high soil pollution possibility were used for the priority management ranking system and 10 point was assigned for each factor which was evenly divided by 10 class intervals. For 16 Gu/Guns in Busan, the score of each evaluation factor was assigned according to the ratio of the area (or the number) between in each Gu (or Gun) and in Busan. Ten scores for each Gu (or Gun) was summed up to prioritize the vulnerable Gu or Guns for soil pollution in Busan. Results will be available to determine the most urgent area to cleanup in each Gu (or Gun) and also to assist the municipal government to design a successful and cost-effective site management strategy in Busan.

• Journal of Korean Society on Water Environment
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• v.24 no.5
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• pp.523-532
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• 2008

A phase II site investigation and feasibility study was conducted at a military mortar shooting range near the demilitarized zone (Kyunggi, South Korea) to assess the extent of contaminants migration to the nearby Imjin river in which a flood control dam is under construction. The results showed that silty-clay soils around target areas were co-contaminated with heavy metals (Cd, Cu, and Pb) and explosives (HMX, RDX, and TNT). The total amount of contaminant was estimated to be 497.1 kg-RDX, 20.6 kg-HMX, 1.4 kg-TNT, 35.2 kg-Cd, 4,331 kg-Cu, and 5,115 kg-Pb, respectively. Both heavy metals and explosives were almost equally distributed on each soil particle size fraction. Neither subsurface soil samples nor ground water samples showed signs of contamination above the environmental criteria. The major migration route of contaminants was soil particles in surface run-off during rain at which a mass discharge rate of 30.0 mg-RDX/hour was observed.

• Journal of The Korean Society of Agricultural Engineers
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• v.55 no.3
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• pp.91-104
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• 2013

The objectives of this study were to monitor and assess the environmental impacts of indirect wastewater reuse on water quality and soil in paddy fields. Yongin monitoring site (YI) irrigated from agricultural reservoir and Osan monitoring site (OS) irrigated with treated wastewater diluted with stream water were selected as control and treatment, respectively. Monitoring results for irrigation water quality showed a significant statistical difference in salinity, exchangeable cation and nutrients. Pond water quality showed a similar tendency with irrigation water except for the decreased difference in nutrients due to the fertilization impact. Soil chemical properties mainly influenced by fertilization activity such as T-N, T-P, and $P_2O_5$ were changed similarly in soil profiles of both monitoring sites, while the properties, EC, Ca, Mg, and Na, mainly effected by irrigation water quality showed a considerable change with time and soil depth in treatment plots. Heavy metal contents in paddy soil of both control and treatment did not exceed the soil contamination warning standards. This study could contribute to suggest the irrigation water quality standards and proper agricultural practices including fertilization for indirect wastewater reuse, although long-term monitoring is needed to get more scientific results.

• Journal of Soil and Groundwater Environment
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• v.8 no.4
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• pp.27-35
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• 2003

The study site located in an industrial complex has a Precambrian age gneiss as a bedrock. The poorly-developed, disturbed soils in the study site have loamy-textured surface soil (1 to 2 m) and gravelly sand alluvium subsurface (2 to 6 m) on the top of weathered gneiss bedrock. The depth of the groundwater table was about 3.5 m below ground surface and increased toward down-gradient of the site. The hydraulic conductivity of transmitted zone (gravelly coarse sand) was in the range of 5.0${\times}$10$\^$-2/∼1.85${\times}$10$\^$-1/ cm/sec. The fine sand layer was in the range of 1.5${\times}$10$\^$-3/ to 7.6${\times}$10$\^$-3/ cm/sec. and the reclaimed upper soil layer was less than 10$\^$-4/ cm/sec. Toluene, ethylbenzene, and xylene (TEX) was the major contaminant in the soil and groundwater. The average depth of the soil contamination was about 1.5 m in the gravelly sand alluvium layer. At the depth interval 2.4∼4.8 m, the highest contamination in the soil is located approximately 50 to 70 m from the suspected source areas. The concentration of TEX in the groundwater was highest in the suspected source area and a lesser concentration in the center and southwest parts of the site. The TEX distribution in the groundwater is associated with their distribution in the soil. Microbial isolation showed that Pseudomonas flurescence, Burkholderia cepacia, and Acinetobactor lwoffi were the dominant aerobic bacteria in the contaminated soils. The analytical results of the groundwater indicated that the concentrations of dissolved oxygen (DO), nitrate, and sulfate in the contaminated area were significantly lower than their concentrations in the none-contaminated control area. The results also indicated that groundwater at the contaminated area is under anaerobic condition and sulfate reduction is the predominant terminal electron accepting process. The total attenuation rate was 0.0017 day$\^$-1/ and the estimated first-order degradation rate constant (λ) was 0.0008 day$\^$-1/.

• Journal of the Korean Society for Railway
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• v.12 no.5
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• pp.788-792
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• 2009

Railroad is well known for eco-friendly transportation system. But, for past few decades, there might be happened many contamination acts in railway facility sites. Industrial and municipal solid wastes produced to maintain and fix trains were dumped to underground of railroad depot area. To develop and reconstruct this area, we should remediate the contaminated soil and ground water. This study was conducted to evaluate the soil pollution status of railroad depot and propose the optimum remediation processes. Our investigation showed that main pollutants sources were TPH and some heavy metals from the dump site. The surveying results for the soil under rail track and crossing nose areas showed TPH contamination from crossing nose area causing lubricant agent. It could be use and rehabilitate the railroad facility areas to an intended purpose with an application of well designed in-situ and ex-situ remediation processes.

• Proceedings of the Korean Society of Soil and Groundwater Environment Conference
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• 2004.09a
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• pp.72-75
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• 2004

The potential of electrokinetic (EK) technology has been successfully demonstrated for the remediation of heavy metal contaminated fine-grained soils through laboratory scale and field application studies. Arsenic contamination in soil is a serious problem affecting both site use and groundwater quality. The EK technology was evaluated for the removal of arsenic from two soil samples: kaolinite clay artificially contaminated with arsenic and arsenic-bearing tailing soil taken from the Myungbong (MB) mining area. The effect of cathodic electrolyte on the process was investigated using three different types of electrolyte: deionized water (DIW), potassium phosphate (KH$_2$PO$_4$) and sodium hydroxide (NaOH). The result of experiments on the kaolinite clay shows that the potassium phosphate was most effective in extracting arsenic, probably resulting from anion exchange of arsenic species by phosphate. On the contrary, the sodium hydroxide seemed to be most efficient in removing arsenic from the tailing soil, and it is explained by the fact that sodium hydroxide increased the soil pH and accelerated ionic migration of arsenic species through increase in desorption and dissolution of arsenic species into pore water.

• Journal of Soil and Groundwater Environment
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• v.10 no.4
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• pp.1-12
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• 2005

Policies regarding to soil quality of the United States, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, Germany, and Demark were analyzed to suggest Korean policy for improving soil quality concept and it's implementation. All countries met four criteria: I) Soil quality levels of contaminants are indebt to concept of contaminant risk to recipients (human and ecosystem); ii) Any soil quality value can't be a magic number to determine whether a site is contaminated or not. To determine risk of sites, risk assessment of the sites should be followed; iii) Concentrations of contaminants of sites are not always significantly certain to risk of human and ecosystem of the sites; and iv) Soil quality levels are adopted based on land uses and plans. Considering our rooms to improve policies and analysis of the other country reports on their legislations about soil quality levels, our policy implementation could be approached from these directions: i) Our concept for soil quality levels needs to develop in scientific and rational. ii) Soil quality levels and risk assessment should be implemented as determining tools of site contamination in parallel, and iii) Soil quality levels depending on land uses and plans should be developed in debt with rational and scientific concept of risk. Increasing efficacy of Korea policy regarding the soil quality levels would be in dept to applying concepts of SCL (Soil Contamination Level) and SRL (Soil Regulatory Level) developed, implementing soil quality levels and risk assessment of contaminated sites in conjunction, and classifying three distinctions of land uses based on sensitiveness of recipients (human and ecosystem) to contaminants in soil in this research.

• Journal of Korean Society of Environmental Engineers
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• v.27 no.6
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• pp.626-634
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• 2005

The objectives of this study was to assess pollution level and contamination status on tailings and soil in the vicinity of four disused metal mines in Kangwon province. As the result of total metal concentrations analysis, the pollution degree of tailings and soil decreased in the order of Wondong > Second Yeonhwa > Sinyemi ${\fallingdotseq}$ Sangdong mines. Total metal concentrations of mine tailings in this study were $1.2{\sim}78.2$ and $1.1{\sim}80.6$ times higher than those in the background soil and the tolerable levels suggested by Kloke, respectively. From these results, we found that tailings served as contamination source of nearby soil. According to sequential extraction of metals, large proportion of heavy metals in all mine tailings existed in the form of a residual fraction, and heavy metals in non-residual form was mainly associated with Fe-Mn oxide fraction and sulfidic-organic fraction. Fe-Mn oxide fraction and sulfidic-organic fraction of heavy metals may be released into and contaminated the nearby environment under the oxidation or reduction condition in long-term. In particular, the proportions of the exchangeable and carbonate fraction of Cd in mine tailings from Second Yeonhwa mine were relatively high. This suggests that Cd may be easily released into and contaminated the nearby environment in the near time. Concentrations of heavy metals in mine tailings and the nearby soil exceeded the standard (agricultural area) of Soil Environment Conservation Law. So it was thought that remediation for mine tailings and the nearby soil is needed. The pollution indices of the samples in this study were for higher than 1.0 and the pollution degree was very serious. Priority remediation site for these mines was Wondong. As Results of danger indices, it was showed that exchangeable form in Wondong and Fe-Mn oxide form in the rest mines should be removed preferentially.