ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT OF ACID MINE DRAINAGE ON THE RIVER AVOCA: Metal Fluxes in Water and Sediment. Part I. Introduction to Metal Accumulation in Riverine Sediments

Abstract

As part of an extensive study of the environmental impacts of the abandoned CU-S mines at Avoca in County Wicklow in Ireland, extensive studies were made of the river sediments and their toxicity. Originally written in 1995, this report examines the background to this study by reviewing the interactions of metals with the sediments including speciation, sorption processes (i.e. Interaction with particulate matter the role of hydrous oxides), as well as the sediment itself (i.e. sediment composition, grain size effects, transport and pollutant pathways). The toxicity of sediment-bound metals to aquatic organisms is also explored.