Seasonal blooms of neutrophilic Betaproteobacterial Fe(II) oxidizers and Chlorobi in iron-rich coal mine drainage sediments.

Waters draining from flooded and abandoned coal mines in the South Wales Coalfield (SWC) are substantial sources of pollution to the environment characterized by circumneutral pH and elevated dissolved iron concentrations (>1 mg L-1). The discharged Fe precipitates to form Fe(III) (oxyhydr)oxides which sustain microbial communities. However, while several studies have investigated the geochemistry of mine drainage in the SWC, less is known about the microbial ecology of the sites presenting a gap in our understanding of biogeochemical cycling and pollutant turnover.

Linking selective chemical extraction of iron oxyhydroxides to arsenic bioaccessibility in soil.

The relationship between As bioaccessibility using the physiologically based extraction test (PBET) and As extracted by hydroxylamine hydrochloride (HH), targeting the dissolution of amorphous Fe oxyhydroxides, is established in soils from the British Geological Survey Geochemical Baseline Survey of SW England, UK, to represent low As background and high As mineralised/mined soils. The HH-extracted As was of the same order of magnitude as the As extracted in the bioaccessibility test and proved to be a better estimate of bioaccessible As than total As (bioaccessible As - total As: r = 0.955; bioaccessible As - HH-extracted As: r = 0.

Lead bioaccessibility in topsoils from lead mineralisation and urban domains, UK.

Predictive linear regression (LR) modelling indicates that total Pb is the only highly significant independent variable for estimating Pb bioaccessibility in "mineralisation domains" located in limestone (high pH) and partly peat covered (low pH) shale-sandstone terrains in England. Manganese is a significant minor predictor in the limestone terrain, whilst organic matter and sulphur explain 0.5% and 2% of the variance of bioaccessible Pb in the peat-shale-sandstone terrain, compared with 93% explained by total Pb.

Methodology for the determination of normal background concentrations of contaminants in English soil.

The revised Environmental Protection Act Part 2A contaminated land Statutory Guidance (England and Wales) makes reference to 'normal' levels of contaminants in soil. The British Geological Survey has been commissioned by the United Kingdom Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) to estimate contaminant levels in soil and to define what is meant by 'normal' for English soil. The Guidance states that 'normal' levels of contaminants are typical and widespread and arise from a combination of both natural and diffuse pollution contributions.

Effect of weathering product assemblages on Pb bioaccessibility in mine waste: implications for risk management.

General assessments of orebody types and associated mine wastes with regard to their environmental signature and human health hazards are needed to help in managing present and historical mine waste facilities. Bioaccessibility tests and mineralogical analysis were carried out on mine waste from a systematic sampling of mine sites from the Central Wales orefield, UK. The bioaccessible Pb widely ranged from 270 to 20,300 mg/kg (mean 7,250 mg/kg, median 4,890 mg/kg), and the bioaccessible fraction from 4.