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Ecological Risks of Post-artisanal Mining Sites and Their Sustainable Cleaning Techniques

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Global Challenges for a Sustainable Society (EURECA-PRO 2022)

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Abstract

This study assessed the residual contaminant load of three groups of artisanal gold mining (ASM) impacted lands, thereafter, phytoremediation techniques using Jatropha curcas, Manihot esculenta and organic amendments were used for mitigation. A total of 110 soil samples from 30 ASM sites were investigated for their total contents of Cd, As, Pb, Hg, Zn, Fe and Al. After sample digestion, ICP-MS was used for content determinations. Using activated neem seed extracts (NE) and poultry manure (PM) at different application rates, the phytoremediation potentials of Jatropha curcas and Manihot esculenta were assessed for 270 days after planting. The obtained data were analyzed with SPSS statistics 28 for the ANOVA. The results indicated mining spoils were suppliers of toxic elements in the soil however, their distributions per contaminant varied based on the properties of the ore materials mined. As a result, mine spoils created the processing of oxide and underground rock ores supplied contents of As, Fe, Al, Cd and Zn much more than alluvial mining sites and above tolerable threshold levels. Both J. curcas and M. esculenta exhibited phytostabilizing potentials as larger portions of absorbed elements were stored in their root organs. However, the application of a 25% mixture of neem seed extract and poultry manure or 25% poultry manure only (w/w) to soils reduced the uptake capacity of potentially toxic elements by J. curcas and M. esculenta by 19-38% and 10.4-45% respectively.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Institute of Surface Mining and Special Civil Engineering, Technical University of Mining Freiberg, Gustav-Zeuner Street 1a, 09599, Freiberg, Germany

    Martin Kofi Mensah, Carsten Drebenstedt & Ibukun Momoriola Ola

  2. Institute of Biosciences/Interdisciplinary Environmental Research Centre, Technical University of Mining Freiberg, Gustav-Zeuner Street 1a, 09599, Freiberg, Germany

    Precious Uchenna Okoroafor

  3. School of Natural and Environmental Sciences, University of Environment and Sustainable Development, Somanya, Ghana

    Edward Debrah Wiafe

Authors
  1. Martin Kofi Mensah
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  2. Carsten Drebenstedt
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  3. Ibukun Momoriola Ola
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  4. Precious Uchenna Okoroafor
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  5. Edward Debrah Wiafe
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Martin Kofi Mensah .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. SALBIS Research Group, Department of Electric, Systems and Automatics Engineering,, Universidad de León, León, Spain

    José Alberto Benítez-Andrades

  2. Department of General and Specific Didactics and Educational Theory, Faculty of Education,, University of Leon, León, Spain

    Paula García-Llamas

  3. Area of Ecology, Department of Biodiversity and Environmental Management, University of Leon, León, Spain

    Ángela Taboada

  4. Area of Appied Physics., University of Leon, León, Spain

    Laura Estévez-Mauriz

  5. Faculty of Education, Department of General and Specific Didactics and Educational Theory, University of León, León, Spain

    Roberto Baelo

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Mensah, M.K., Drebenstedt, C., Ola, I.M., Okoroafor, P.U., Wiafe, E.D. (2023). Ecological Risks of Post-artisanal Mining Sites and Their Sustainable Cleaning Techniques. In: Benítez-Andrades, J.A., García-Llamas, P., Taboada, Á., Estévez-Mauriz, L., Baelo, R. (eds) Global Challenges for a Sustainable Society . EURECA-PRO 2022. Springer Proceedings in Earth and Environmental Sciences. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-25840-4_18

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