Abstract
This study was conducted to assess the abundance of iron-oxidizing bacteria and biological sulfur oxidation potential from soil impacted by coal and coal refuse from two coal-burning electric power facilities located at the U.S. Department of Energy's Savannah River Site (Aiken, S.C.) and the South Carolina Electric and Gas Site at Beech Island, S. C.
Significantly higher MPN counts of iron-oxidizing bacteria were obtained from samples collected at the confluence of a coal storage runoff containment basin, a coal reject (refuse) pile, and an adjacent wetland at the Savannah River Site. Significant differences in pH, sulfate-S, ferrous- and ferric-iron were also obtained between sampling locations. No significant differences in ferric/ferrous ratios were determined. These ratios however, exceeded a value of 2.0 when sample pH values were less than 4.5.
Under optimal conditions, biological thiosulfate-S oxidation potentials (in vitro) showed a 4- to 7-day lag in the appearance of sulfate-S, and a final pH (after twenty-four days of perfusion) of 1.97 to 3.90. These results indicate that contamination of subsurface water by acidic leachate derived from thionic bacterial activity will occur if coal and coal refuse piles are not confined by an impermeable surface or containment facility.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Alberts, J. J., Newman, M. C. and Evans, D. W.: 1985, Water, Air, and Soil Pollut. 26, 111.
Alexander, M.: 1982, 'Most Probable Number Method for Microbial Populations', in A.L. Page, R. H. Miller, and D. R. Keeney (eds.), Methods of Soil Analysis, Part 2, Amer. Soc. Agron., Madison, WI, p. 815.
Anderson, W. C. and Youngstron, M. P.: 1976, J. Environ. Eng. Div. Am. Soc. Civ. Enq. 102, 1239.
Bardsley, C. E. and Lancaster, J. D.: 1965, 'Sulfur', in C. A. Black (ed.) Methods of Soil Analysis, Part 2, Amer. Soc. Argon., Madison, WI, p. 1102.
Carlson, C. A.: 1990, Water, Air, and Soil Pollut. 53, 345.
Carlson, C. L. and Carlson, C. A.: 1994, Water, Air, and Soil Pollut. 72, 89.
Collins, F. M. and Sims, C. M.: 1956, Nature 178, 1073.
Council on Soil Testing and Plant Analysis: 1980, Handbook on Reference Methods for Soil Testing, Univ. of Georgia, Athens, GA.
Davis, E. C. and Boegly, Jr., W. J.: 1981, J. Environ Qual. 10, 127.
Duncan, D. B.: 1955, Biometrics 11, 1.
Hanna-Somers, N., Sawyer, C., Marciniak, W. and Klubek, B.: 1987, Geomicrobial. J. 5, 159.
Loi, G., Mura, A., Passarini, N., Trois, P. and Rossi, G.: 1993, Fuel 72, 1607.
Nor, Y. M. and Tabatabai, M. A.: 1976, Soil Sci. 122, 171.
Olson, G. J., McFerters, A. and Temple, K. L.: 1981, Microb. Ecology 7, 39-50.
Olson, R. V.: 1965, 'Tron', in C. A. Black, (ed.), Methods of Soil Analysis, Part 2, Amer. Soc. Agron., Madison, WI, p. 963.
Silverman, M. P. and Lundgren, D. G.: 1959, J. Bacteriol. 77, 642.
Singer, P. C. and Stumm, W.: 1970, Science 167, 1121.
Swift, M. C.: 1985, Water Resources Bull. 21, 449.
Wakao, N., Hanada, K., Sakurai, Y. and Shiota, H.: 1981, Soil Sci. Plant Nutr. 27, 505.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Klubek, B., Schmidt, C. & Adriano, D.C. Abundance of Iron-Oxidizing Thiobacilli and Biological Sulfur Oxidation Potential from Soil Impacted by Coal and Coal Refuse Piles. Water, Air, & Soil Pollution 106, 1–16 (1998). https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1004996815896
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1004996815896