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Assessing metal pollution in ponds constructed for controlling runoff from reclaimed coal mines

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Abstract

Constructing ponds to protect downstream ecosystems is a common practice in opencast coal mine reclamation. As these ponds remain integrated in the landscape, it is important to evaluate the extent of the effect of mine pollution on these ecosystems. However, this point has not been sufficiently addressed in the literature. The main objective of this work was to explore the metal pollution in man-made ponds constructed for runoff control in reclaimed opencast coal mines over time. To do so, we evaluated the concentration of ten heavy metals in the water, sediment, and Typha sp. in 16 runoff ponds ranging from 1 to 19 years old that were constructed in reclaimed opencast coal mines of northeastern Spain. To evaluate degree of mining pollution, we compared these data to those from a pit lake created in a local unreclaimed mine and to local streams as an unpolluted reference, as well as comparing toxicity levels in aquatic organisms. The runoff ponds showed toxic concentrations of Al, Cu, and Ni in the water and As and Ni in the sediment, which were maintained over time. Metal concentrations in runoff ponds were higher than in local streams, and macrophytes showed high metal concentrations. Nevertheless, metal concentrations in water and sediment in runoff ponds were lower than those in the pit lake. This study highlights the importance of mining reclamation to preserve the health of aquatic ecosystems and suggests the existence of chronic metal toxicity in the ponds, potentially jeopardizing pond ecological functions and services.

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Acknowledgments

This work was supported by a research and assistance agreement between Endesa Foundation and the Pyrenean Institute of Ecology-CSIC. The regional government of Aragón, Spain supported the PhD studies of the first author. We are grateful to our fieldwork assistants as well as the Endesa S.A. and their employees in the Teruel mines. Finally, we would like to thank the anonymous reviewers for their helpful comments on a previous version of this manuscript.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Pyrenean Institute of Ecology, Spanish National Research Council, 50059, Zaragoza, Spain

    Leticia Miguel-Chinchilla & Francisco A. Comín

  2. Université de Toulouse, INP, UPS, EcoLab, 31062, Toulouse, France

    Eduardo González

  3. CNRS, EcoLab, 31062, Toulouse, France

    Eduardo González

  4. Department of Biological Sciences, University of Denver, Denver, CO, 80209, USA

    Eduardo González

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  1. Leticia Miguel-Chinchilla
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Miguel-Chinchilla, L., González, E. & Comín, F.A. Assessing metal pollution in ponds constructed for controlling runoff from reclaimed coal mines. Environ Monit Assess 186, 5247–5259 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10661-014-3774-x

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