The environmental impact of sulphide mines measured with organogenic sampling media

The environmental impact of an active and an abandoned mine was studied using several different sampling media. The emphasis was on organic and organic-rich materials such as humus, moss and organic stream sediment. The chemical processes in the waste were studied in samples obtained by drilling through the waste into the ground beneath. Both total and bioavailable element concentrations were measured. The abundances of more than 30 elements were determined, but since the distribution patterns were similar, discussion in this paper is focused on As, Cd, Cu, Fe, S and Zn. The high capacity of humus, moss and organic sediments for binding heavy metals and S made them excellent media for studying the distribution of elements in the vicinity of the mining area. The airborne contamination from the active mine was detectable at distances of 2 to 3 km, but from the abandoned mines only about 100 m. The airborne distribution patterns recorded for the various elements were approximately the same for all sampling media and analytical methods.