Investigations

Upper Arkansas River Basin Toxics Site

Metals enter the Arkansas River in acidic mine drainage and runoff from mine wastes and tailings in the Leadville, Colorado, area. The metals and acidic conditions are toxic to aquatic life. Scientists have studied the mechanisms of metal transport and transformation in streams affected by mine drainage. Now, efforts are focused on using this knowledge to determine effective remedial methods.

Related Headlines (back to top)

• Tracer Tests Steer Cleanup of Mined Watersheds
• Cleaning up Contamination in Hard Rock Mine Lands

More Information

• Upper Arkansas River Basin Home Page -- The Upper Arkansas research team maintains its own home page that contains additional information about the research site.
• Fact Sheet on the Use of Tracer Injections to Measure Metal Loading from Acid Mine Drainage in Streams
• Project Bibliography
• Abstracts from Selected Meetings/Conferences
• One Dimensional Transport with Inflow and Storage (OTIS): A Solute Transport Model for Rivers and Streams
• Metal Release, Transport, and Attenuation in Mined Areas: Mechanisms and Implications for Remediation and Land-Use Strategies
• For additional information about the Upper Arkansas River Basin Toxics Site please send e-mail to Briant Kimball at

Project Remediation Related Activities

• Evaluating How Downstream Tailings Deposits Impact the Effectiveness of Remediation Plans

Other Acid Mine Drainage Remediation Related Activates

• Acidic Plume Remediation Monitoring
• Abandoned Mine Lands Initiative
• Lake Coeur d'Alene Remediation Assessment
• Remediating Some of the World's Most Acidic Waters at the Iron Mountain Superfund Site--A Tough Challenge for Scientists
• Summitville Mine and its Downstream Effects

Other USGS Information on Acid Mine Drainage and Abandoned Mine Lands

• Pinal Creek Toxics Site
• Whitewood Creek Toxics Site
• USGS Abandoned Mine Lands Initiative
• USGS Mine Drainage Interest Group (MDIG)
• USGS Activities at the Summitville Mine, Colorado
• USGS Mineral Resource Surveys Program

Recent Meeting(s)

• USGS Scientist to Give Keynote Talk at the 21st International Geochemical Exploration Symposium, Dublin Castle, Ireland, August 29 - September 3, 2003
  
• USGS scientists chosen as instructors for the Mineralogical Association of Canada's short course "Environmental Aspects of Mine Wastes," Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, May 24-25, 2003

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