Mine Water: Hydrology, Pollution, Remediation [Hardcover]

Nowhere is the conflict between economic progress and environmental quality more apparent than in the mineral extraction industries. The latter half of the 20th century saw major advances in the reclamation technologies. However, mine water pollution problems have not been addressed. In many cases, polluted mine water long outlives the life of the mining operation. As the true cost of long-term water treatment responsibilities has become apparent, interest has grown in the technologies that would decrease the production of contaminated water and make its treatment less costly. This is the first book to address the mine water issue head-on. The authors explain the complexities of mine water pollution by reviewing the hydrogeological context of its formation, and provide an up-to-date presentation of prevention and treatment technologies. The book will be a valuable reference for all professionals who encounter polluted mine water on a regular or occasional basis.One Mining and the Water Environment.- 1.1 Mining, society and the environment.- 1.2 Scope of this book.- 1.3 Overview of mining and mine wastes.- 1.4 Impacts of mining and mine waters on the water environment and infrastructure.- 1.5 Summary.- Two Mine Water Chemistry.- 2.1 Sources of mine water contaminants and their natural attenuation.- 2.2 Acidity, alkalinity and pH.- 2.3 Assessing contamination loads.- 2.4 The geochemistry of metal ions in aquatic environments.- Three Mine Water Hydrology.- 3.1 Hydrology and mining.- 3.2 Issues and processes in mine water hydrology.- 3.3 Mass continuity and hydrological fluxes.- 3.4 Hydrometry in mining environments.- 3.5 Physical impacts of mineral extraction on natural hydrological systems.- 3.6 Water inflows to active workings.- 3.7 Dewatering techniques and their design.- 3.8 Environmental impacts of dewatering and their mitigation.- 3.9 Hydrological behaviour of waste rock piles, backfill and tailings dams.- 3.10 Mine abandonment and reboundprocesses.- 3.11 AbandonlÓ*