Details
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 21-31 |
| Number of pages | 11 |
| Journal | Journal of Environmental Radioactivity |
| Volume | 144 |
| Publication status | Published - 17 Mar 2015 |
Abstract
The Mulde River drains the former uranium mining areas in Saxony (Germany), which has led to a large-scale contamination of the river and the adjacent floodplain soils with radionuclides of the uranium decay series. The objective of the investigation is to quantify the long-term effect of former uranium mining activities on a river system. All of the investigated environmental compartments (water, sediment, soil) still reveal an impact from the former uranium mining and milling activities. The contamination of water has decreased considerably during the last 20 years due to the operation of water treatment facilities. The uranium content of the sediments decreased as well (on average by a factor of 5.6), most likely caused by displacement of contaminated material during flood events. Currently, the impact of the mining activities is most obvious in soils. For some of the plots activity concentrations of >200 Bq/kg of soil were detected for uranium-238. Alluvial soils used as grassland were found to be contaminated to a higher degree than those used as cropland.
Keywords
- Alluvial soil, Mulde River, Radionuclide transport, Sediment, Uranium mining, Water
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Environmental Science(all)
- Environmental Chemistry
- Environmental Science(all)
- Waste Management and Disposal
- Environmental Science(all)
- Pollution
- Environmental Science(all)
- Health, Toxicology and Mutagenesis
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In: Journal of Environmental Radioactivity, Vol. 144, 17.03.2015, p. 21-31.
Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › Research › peer review
}
TY - JOUR
T1 - Impact of former uranium mining activities on the floodplains of the Mulde River, Saxony, Germany
AU - Bister, Stefan
AU - Birkhan, Jonny
AU - Lüllau, Torben
AU - Bunka, Maruta
AU - Solle, Alexander
AU - Stieghorst, Christian
AU - Riebe, Beate
AU - Michel, Rolf
AU - Walther, Clemens
N1 - Funding information: This research project was supported by the German Federal Ministry for Education and Research (BMBF) under contract number 02NUK002D .
PY - 2015/3/17
Y1 - 2015/3/17
N2 - The Mulde River drains the former uranium mining areas in Saxony (Germany), which has led to a large-scale contamination of the river and the adjacent floodplain soils with radionuclides of the uranium decay series. The objective of the investigation is to quantify the long-term effect of former uranium mining activities on a river system. All of the investigated environmental compartments (water, sediment, soil) still reveal an impact from the former uranium mining and milling activities. The contamination of water has decreased considerably during the last 20 years due to the operation of water treatment facilities. The uranium content of the sediments decreased as well (on average by a factor of 5.6), most likely caused by displacement of contaminated material during flood events. Currently, the impact of the mining activities is most obvious in soils. For some of the plots activity concentrations of >200 Bq/kg of soil were detected for uranium-238. Alluvial soils used as grassland were found to be contaminated to a higher degree than those used as cropland.
AB - The Mulde River drains the former uranium mining areas in Saxony (Germany), which has led to a large-scale contamination of the river and the adjacent floodplain soils with radionuclides of the uranium decay series. The objective of the investigation is to quantify the long-term effect of former uranium mining activities on a river system. All of the investigated environmental compartments (water, sediment, soil) still reveal an impact from the former uranium mining and milling activities. The contamination of water has decreased considerably during the last 20 years due to the operation of water treatment facilities. The uranium content of the sediments decreased as well (on average by a factor of 5.6), most likely caused by displacement of contaminated material during flood events. Currently, the impact of the mining activities is most obvious in soils. For some of the plots activity concentrations of >200 Bq/kg of soil were detected for uranium-238. Alluvial soils used as grassland were found to be contaminated to a higher degree than those used as cropland.
KW - Alluvial soil
KW - Mulde River
KW - Radionuclide transport
KW - Sediment
KW - Uranium mining
KW - Water
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=84924860883&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1016/j.jenvrad.2015.02.024
DO - 10.1016/j.jenvrad.2015.02.024
M3 - Article
C2 - 25791900
AN - SCOPUS:84924860883
VL - 144
SP - 21
EP - 31
JO - Journal of Environmental Radioactivity
JF - Journal of Environmental Radioactivity
SN - 0265-931X
ER -