A shallow-depth ground water area was investigated to identify the dominant processes governing the distribution of hydrocarbon contaminants and hydrogeochemical parameters. The ground water in the study site has been highly contaminated with petroleum hydrocarbons. A preliminary pump-and-treatment remediation technology was applied for 4 yr at the site. Multivariate analyses were applied to hydrogeochemical data obtained before and after the rainy season. The pump-and-treatment application, indigenous biodegradation, and mixing by precipitation recharge are the major factors or events involved in the distribution of geochemical parameters of the ground water in the study area. Site-specific artificial pavement also played an important role in the evolution of the ground water chemistry. A conventional graphical analysis method (Piper plot) of major ions did not effectively reveal these effects. In this study, we demonstrate the usefulness of multivariate analysis (factor and cluster analyses) using biodegradation indicator parameters, as well as major cations and anions, for the study of the ground water system in the hydrocarbon-contaminated site.
This study evaluated potential groundwater contamination with toxic metals in and around an abandoned zinc mine in Korea. Water levels in the mine waste dump indicated occurrence of a losing stream during the period of peak stream flow as a result of snowmelt runoff, which posed the threat of groundwater pollution. The pH values for the groundwaters were near neutral to slightly basic, with a slight increase of the values along the stream flow direction. Higher values of electrical conductivity were observed in the mine area. High dissolved oxygen concentrations clearly indicated an oxygenated groundwater environment. High concentration of sulfate and most dominant Ca-SO 4 type groundwaters represent effects of mine drainage and sulfide minerals. In the mine area, groundwater contamination by Zn, Al, Fe, and Mn was observed. Most of the toxic metals decreased with distance from the mine, some have decreased gradually or others more suddenly although some metals were also found in high concentrations-in downgradient area. Levels of toxic metals were relatively low in groundwaters downgradient of the mine, which may be due to the high pH and highly oxygenated conditions, and mixing with metal-free waters.
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