Molecular characterization of Acidithiobacillus ferrooxidans and A-thiooxidans strains isolated from mine wastes in Brazil

Nineteen strains of Acidithiobacillus ferrooxidans and Acidithiobacillus thiooxidans, including 12 strains isolated from coal, copper, gold and uranium mines in Brazil, strains isolated from similar sources in other countries and the type strains of the two species were characterized together with the type strain of A. caldus by using a combination of molecular systematic methods, namely ribotyping, BOX- and ERIC-PCR and DNA-DNA hybridization assays. Data derived from the molecular fingerprinting analyses showed that the tested strains encompassed a high degree of genetic variability. Two of the Brazilian A. ferrooxidans organisms (strains SSP and PCE) isolated from acid coal mine waste and uranium mine effluent, respectively, and A. thiooxidans strain DAMS, isolated from uranium mine effluent, were the most genetically divergent organisms. The DNA-DNA hybridization data did not support the allocation of Acidithiobacillus strain SSP to the A. ferrooxidans genomic species, as it shared only just over 40% DNA relatedness with the type strain of the species. Acidithiobacillus strain SSP was not clearly related to A. ferrooxidans in the 16S rDNA tree.

Transforming open mining pits into fish farms: Moving towards sustainability

The legacy of mining activities has typically been land 'returned to wildlife', or, at some sites, degraded to such an extent that it is unsuitable for any alternate use. Progress towards sustainability is made when value is added in terms of the ecological, social and economic well-being of the community. In keeping with the principles of sustainable development, the innovative use of flooded open pits and tailings impoundments as commercial, recreational or ornamental fish farms should be considered in some locations, as it could make a significant contribution to the social equity, economic vitality and environmental integrity of mining communities. This article highlights the growing significance of aquaculture and explores the benefits and barriers to transforming flooded pits and impoundments into aquaculture operations. Among other benefits, aquaculture may provide a much-needed source of revenue, employment and, in some cases, food to communities impacted by mine closure. Further, aquaculture in a controlled closed environment may be more acceptable to critics of fish farming who are concerned about fish escapes and viral transmissions to wild populations. Despite the potential benefits, aquaculture in flooded pits and impoundments is not without its complications - it requires a site-specific design approach that must consider issues ranging from metals uptake by fish, to the long-term viability of the aquatic system as fish habitat, to the overall contribution of aquaculture to sustainability. © 2004 United Nations. Published by Blackwell Publishing.

Evaluating the relationship between moisture induced expansion and horizontal stress orientation in samples from the nonesuch formation

High horizontal stresses can cause numerous ground control problems in mines and other underground structures ultimately impacting worker safety, productivity and the economics of an underground operation. Mine layout and design can be optimized when the presence and orientation of these stresses are recognized and their impact minimized. A simple technique for correlating the principal horizontal stress direction in a sedimentary rock mass with the preferential orientation of moisture induced expansion in a sample of the same rock was introduced in the 1970s and has since gone un-reported and unused. This procedure was reexamined at a locality near the original test site at White Pine, Michigan in order to validate the original research and to consider its usefulness in mining and civil engineering applications in high horizontal stress conditions. This procedure may also be useful as an economical means for characterizing regional stress fields.

"Brethren upon the same level" : membership and class in Calumet's Masonic Lodge

The Keweenaw Peninsula of Upper Michigan was a ethnic conglomerate of cultures and ideas, with people attracted to the area by the mineral wealth found along the Copper Range. The center of copper mining from the mid 1860s to 1968 was in the vicinity of Calumet Township, home to the world-famous Calumet and Hecla Mining Company. The township depended on the mines and the company’s president Agassiz’s strove to make the area a “model community,” that included groups such as the Free and Accepted Masons. Men from myriad backgrounds arrived in Calumet from the British Isles, Germany, Finland, Eastern and Southern Europe and the Eastern United States. As in other communities from the time period these men formed common interest groups like Masonic Lodge 271, which received its charter in 1870. Gentlemen joined with merchants and craftsmen. They became “brethren upon the same level,” and were elevated to the status of Master Mason. This symbolic transformation within the Lodge removed the men from the “profane world” outside the sanctity of Masonry, and in the ritualistic transformation of the meeting they were reborn into Masonry’s sacred mysteries. Masonry acted as a means of moral guidance to men and gave them access to a larger social and economic community through a common connection of brotherhood. As the candidates moved through the three Blue Lodge degrees of Entered Apprentice, Fellowcraft, and Master Mason they saw each other as “brethren upon the same level” – all economic classes equal within the Masonic Lodge. To examine equality within Lodge 271, this study sorted workers into classes to allow a comparison of Lodge 271’s membership. Possibly a comparison between other lodges can be drawn from the membership. The Union Building in Calumet, MI will be examined for its role in the ritualistic transformation of Masonry as it housed Masonic activities and transformations. This transformation brought men into the lodge of brothers. While Masonry professed equality between members however, to what extent did the membership of the lodge reflect this between the brethren? To what extent did economic class determine who was made “brethren upon the same level? 1 Arthur Thurner, Calumet Copper and People: History of a Michigan Mining Community, 1864-1970 (Hancock, MI: Book Concern, 1974), 122.

Geochemistry and Stable Isotopes of Surface Water and Groundwater in the Continental Pit in Butte, Montana, USA

The Continental porphyry Cu‐Mo mine, located 2 km east of the famous Berkeley Pit lake of Butte, Montana, contains two small lakes that vary in size depending on mining activity. In contrast to the acidic Berkeley Pit lake, the Continental Pit waters have near-neutral pH and relatively low metal concentrations. The main reason is geological: whereas the Berkeley Pit mined highly‐altered granite rich in pyrite with no neutralizing potential, the Continental Pit is mining weakly‐altered granite with lower pyrite concentrations and up to 1‐2% hydrothermal calcite. The purpose of this study was to gather and interpret information that bears on the chemistry of surface water and groundwater in the active Continental Pit. Pre‐existing chemistry data from sampling of the Continental Pit were compiled from the Montana Bureau of Mines and Geology and Montana Department of Environmental Quality records. In addition, in March of 2013, new water samples were collected from the mine’s main dewatering well, the Sarsfield well, and a nearby acidic seep (Pavilion Seep) and analyzed for trace metals and several stable isotopes, including dD and d18O of water, d13C of dissolved inorganic carbon, and d34S of dissolved sulfate. In December 2013, several soil samples were collected from the shore of the frozen pit lake and surrounding area. The soil samples were analyzed using X‐ray diffraction to determine mineral content. Based on Visual Minteq modeling, water in the Continental Pit lake is near equilibrium with a number of carbonate, sulfate, and molybdate minerals, including calcite, dolomite, rhodochrosite (MnCO3), brochantite (CuSO4·3Cu(OH)2), malachite (Cu2CO3(OH)2), hydrozincite (Zn5(CO3)2(OH)6), gypsum, and powellite (CaMoO4). The fact that these minerals are close to equilibrium suggests that they are present on the weathered mine walls and/or in the sediment of the surface water ponds. X‐Ray Diffraction (XRD) analysis of the pond “beach” sample failed to show any discrete metal‐bearing phases. One of the soil samples collected higher in the mine, near an area of active weathering of chalcocite‐rich ore, contained over 50% chalcanthite (CuSO4·5H2O). This water‐soluble copper salt is easily dissolved in water, and is probably a major source of copper to the pond and underlying groundwater system. However, concentrations of copper in the latter are probably controlled by other, less‐soluble minerals, such as brochantite or malachite. Although the acidity of the Pavilion Seep is high (~ 11 meq/L), the flow is much less than the Sarsfield Well at the current time. Thus, the pH, major and minor element chemistry in the Continental Pit lakes are buffered by calcite and other carbonate minerals. For the Continental Pit waters to become acidic, the influx of acidic seepage (e.g., Pavilion Seep) would need to increase substantially over its present volume.

Uranium and thorium isotopes and sedimentation rates in metalliferous sediments from the western flank of the East Pacific Rise at 21°-22°S

Isotopic compositions of uranium (234U and 238U) and thorium (230Th and 232Th) were measured in metalliferous sediments from the western flank of the East Pacific Rise at 21°-22°S, in the area of hydrothermal activity and massive sulfide accumulation at the axis of the EPR. Concentration of 232Th (on the carbonate-free base) is consistent with composition of mafic extrusive rocks; isotope ratios 232Th/238U and 234U/238U indicate that about 70% of uranium passes into sediments from sea water with hydrothermal iron hydroxide. Mean sedimentation rates are calculated for seven cores by the nonequilibrium 230Th method with use of the constant concentration model. Flux of 230Th to bottom sediments is calculated and its mean value is used to determine sedimentation rate in four other cores. The constant flux model is used to calculate change of sedimentation rate with depth for seven cores over time interval of 100-300 ky. Sedimentation rates varied not much (0.3-0.6 cm/ky). The greatest changes occurred in two cores: one located near massive sulfide structures, and another near the spreading axis. Determinations of mean rates by the radiocarbon method and the nonequilibrium thorium method are in good agreement.

Thorium and uranium isotopes in upper Pleistocene sediments of the Baffin Bay

Concentrations and activity ratios of uranium and thorium isotopes (234U/238U, 230Th/232Th) were determined at about 5-m intervals through the composite top 22-m sequence of Ocean Drilling Program (ODP) Hole 645 in Baffin Bay and, in the Labrador Sea, at 1-m intervals through the top 11 m of Core 84-030-003 (TWC and P) collected by the Hudson during a preliminary survey of Site 647, and also at about 2-m intervals through the composite top 22-m sequence of Hole 646. In the Labrador Sea, surficial sediments show unsupported 230Th having a 230Th/234U activity ratio of about 3. At Site 647, a regular decrease in the 230Th/232Th activity ratio was observed downcore from about 1.2 (at 1 mbsf) to about 0.4 (at ~8 mbsf), through a sequence spanning over 18O stages 2 through 8. The correlative thorium/uranium chronology and 18O stratigraphy indicate relatively constant sedimentation rates throughout the sequence. At Site 646, down Greenland slope, and at Site 645, in Baffin Bay, highly variable uranium and thorium concentrations and isotopic ratios were observed in relation to highly variable sedimentation rates. As a whole, the lower-excess observed in Baffin Bay records is indicative of very high absolute sedimentation rates in comparison with those of the Labrador Sea. These rates are confirmed by the 18O-stratigraphy and a few AMS 14C controls on handpicked foraminifers. At both Labrador Sea sites, a clear indication of an initial 230Th-excess (over the 230Th-rain from the water column) was found.

PM2.5, PM10, and PM10-associated elements in the air in Bamako, Mali (2012-2013)

Saharan dust incursions and particulates emitted from human activities degrade air quality throughout West Africa, especially in the rapidly expanding urban centers in the region. Particulate matter (PM) that can be inhaled is strongly associated with increased incidence of and mortality from cardiovascular and respiratory diseases and cancer. Air samples collected in the capital of a Saharan-Sahelian country (Bamako, Mali) between September 2012 - July 2013 were found to contain inhalable PM concentrations that exceeded World Health Organization (WHO) and US Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) PM2.5 and PM10 24-h limits 58 - 98% of days and European Union (EU) PM10 24-h limit 98% of days. Mean concentrations were 1.2-to-4.5 fold greater than existing limits. Inhalable PM was enriched in transition metals, known to produce reactive oxygen species and initiate the inflammatory reaction, and other potentially bioactive and biotoxic metals/metalloids. Eroded mineral dust composed the bulk of inhalable PM, whereas most enriched metals/metalloids were likely emitted from oil combustion, biomass burning, refuse incineration, vehicle traffic, and mining activities. Human exposure to inhalable PM and associated metals/metalloids over 24-h was estimated. The findings indicate that inhalable PM in the Sahara-Sahel region may present a threat to human health, especially in urban areas with greater inhalable PM and transition metal exposure.

Application of protection means against explosions in underground mines

Underground coal mines explosions generally arise from the inflammation of a methane/air mixture. This explosion can also generate a subsequent coal dust explosion. Traditionally such explosions have being fought eliminating one or several of the factors needed by the explosion to take place. Although several preventive measures are taken to prevent explosions, other measures should be considered to reduce the effects or even to extinguish the flame front. Unlike other protection methods that remove one or two of the explosion triangle elements, namely; the ignition source, the oxidizing agent and the fuel, explosion barriers removes all of them: reduces the quantity of coal in suspension, cools the flame front and the steam generated by vaporization removes the oxygen present in the flame. The present paper is essentially based on the comprehensive state-of–the-art of Protective Systems in underground coal mines, and particularly on the application of Explosion Barriers to improve safety level in Spanish coal mining industry. After an exhaustive study of series EN 14591 standards covering explosion prevention and protection in underground mines, authors have proven explosion barriers effectiveness in underground galleries by Full Scale Tests performed in Polish Barbara experimental mine, showing that the barriers can reduce the effects of methane and/or flammable coal dust explosions to a satisfactory safety level.

La Planificación de Áreas Mineras en Declive : Una respuesta multidimensional = Planning Declining Mining Areas. A multidimensional response

La actividad minera tiene un gran impacto sobre el territorio, probablemente más que ninguna otra de las actividades humanas, ya que transforma el espacio en todas sus dimensiones: ecológica, ambiental, social y económica. Cuando la reducción de la rentabilidad de la explotación conduce al cierre de ésta, la repercusión sobre su entorno puede llegar a ser brutal. Pero las explotaciones mineras son muy distintas entre ellas y los efectos que su abandono producen sobre el espacio en la que se enclavan pueden ser diversos, por lo que la decisión sobre el futuro de estas áreas no es simple y evidente. Aquí se propone desarrollar una propuesta de clasificación tipológica de las minas y sus regiones con el objetivo de determinar las estrategias de intervención más adecuadas para el futuro de estos espacios y sus habitantes. En concreto se busca diferenciar los conceptos de Mina, Parque Minero, Espacio Minero y Región Minera, todos ellos fruto de la interacción de la huella de la actividad minera con el medio físico, los enclaves urbanizados, y la estructura socioeconómica de la región en la que se enclavan. Mining activity is having a great impact on the territory, probably more than any other human activity, which transforms the space in all of its dimensions, ecological, environmental, social and economic. When reducing the profitability of the operation leads to the conclusion thereof, the impact on the environment can be brutal. But mining are very different between them and the effects they produce on their abandonment in space that interlock can be diverse, so the decision on the future of these areas is not simple and obvious. This proposal aims to develop a typological classification of mines and their regions in order to determine the most appropriate intervention strategies for the future of these spaces and their inhabitants. Specifically, it seeks to differentiate the concepts of Mine, Mining Park, Space Miner and Mining Region, all the result of the interaction of the mining footprint with the physical environment, the urbanized enclaves, and the socio-economic structure of the region which interlock. El presente libro reúne las ponencias presentadas por los investigadores de la red REUSE dentro del 1er Simposio de Reutilización del Espacio Minero; evento organizado por la Universidad Federal de Minas Gerais (UFMG) en Belo Horizonte, entre el 1 y el 3 de octubre de 2012, en el marco del 1er Seminario Internacional de Reconversión de Territorios. La red REUSE es una red realizada gracias a la financiación del programa CYTED

Fuzzy MCDA for remediation of a uranium tailing

The Pridneprovsky Chemical Plant was a largest uranium processing enterprises, producing a huge amount of uranium residues. The Zapadnoe tailings site contains the majority of these residues. We propose a theoretical framework based on Multi-Criteria Decision Analysis and fuzzy logic to analyse different remediation alternatives for the Zapadnoe tailings, in which potentially conflicting economic, radiological, social and environmental objectives are simultaneously taken into account. An objective hierarchy is built that includes all the relevant aspects. Fuzzy rather than precise values are proposed for use to evaluate remediation alternatives against the different criteria and to quantify preferences, such as the weights representing the relative importance of criteria identified in the objective hierarchy. Finally, it is proposed that remediation alternatives should be evaluated by means of a fuzzy additive multi-attribute utility function and ranked on the basis of the respective trapezoidal fuzzy number representing their overall utility.

Mining waste management.

Mode of access: Internet.

Uranium occurrence at the Cherokee mine, Queen Mineral Ranch, Gilpin County, Colorado /

"January, 1953."

An investigation of the mineralogy of uranium-bearing deposits in the Boulder Batholith, Montana : annual report, July 1, 1952 to March 31, 1953 /

"Contract No. AT(30-1)-1390."