A multidisciplinary assessment of the impact of spilled acids on geoecosystems: an overview.

We developed and applied a multidisciplinary approach to the impact of an accidentally spilled acid on the underlying geomedia and subsurface environment, based on the concept of geoecosystem. We used mineralogical, geochemical, microbiological, and ecotoxicological techniques to identify and assess the multiple aspects involved. First, we constructed a conceptual model for the acid interactions with the underlying subsurface environment by introducing the concept of a geoecosystem-a multicomponent system composed of inorganic, organic, and biological components to describe the subsurface environment.