Analytical results for total-digestions, EPA-1312 leach, and net acid production for twenty-three abandoned metal-mining related wastes in the Boulder River watershed, northern Jefferson County, Montana
Links
- More information: USGS Index Page
- Document: Report (250 kB pdf)
- Tables:
- Table 1 (18 KB xlsx) - Sample numbers, localities, size estimates, and site descriptions of dump samples from the Boulder Watershed study area
- Table 2 (20.5 KB xlsx) - Total-digestion ICP-AES analyses of mine wastes collected from the Boulder River watershed study area
- Table 3 (24 KB xlsx) - pH, conductivities, ICP-AES analyses of EPA 1312 leach solutions, and Net Acid Production (NAP) of mine waste samples collected from Boulder River Watershed study area
- Table 4 (19.5 KB xlsx) - NAP, summed dissolved metals As+Cd+Cu+Pb+Zn and dissolved iron, in EPA -1312 leach solutions, and chemical ranks of mine wastes
- Download citation as: RIS | Dublin Core
Introduction
Metal-mining related wastes in the Boulder River basin study area in northern Jefferson County, Montana, have been implicated in their detrimental effects on water quality with regard to acid generation and toxic-metal solubilization during snow melt and storm water runoff events. This degradation of water quality is defined chiefly by the “Class 1 Aquatic Life Standards” that give limits for certain dissolved metal concentrations according to water alkalinity.
Veins enriched in base- and precious metals were explored and mined in the Basin, Cataract Creek, and High Ore Creek drainages over a period of more than 70 years. Extracted minerals included galena, sphalerite, pyrite, chalcopyrite, tetrahedrite and arsenopyrite. Most of the metal-mining wastes in the study area were identified and described by the Montana Bureau of Mines and Geology. In 1997, the U.S. Geological Survey collected 20 composite samples of mine-dump or tailings waste from ten sites in the Basin and Cataract Creek drainages, and two samples from one site in the High Ore Creek drainage. Desborough and Fey presented data concerning acid generation potential, mineralogy, concentrations of certain metals by energy-dispersive X-ray fluorescence (EDXRF), and trace-element leachability of mine and exploration wastes from the ten sites of the Basin and Cataract Creek drainages. The present report presents total-digestion major- and trace-element analyses, net acid production (NAP), and results from the EPA-1312 synthetic precipitation leach procedure (SPLP) performed on the same composite samples from the ten sites from the Basin and Cataract Creek drainages, and two composite samples from the site in the High Ore Creek drainage.
Suggested Citation
Fey, D.L., Desborough, G.A., and Finney, C.J., 2000, Analytical results for total-digestions, EPA-1312 leach, and net acid production for twenty-three abandoned metal-mining related wastes in the Boulder River watershed, northern Jefferson County, Montana: U.S. Geological Survey Open-File Report 2000–0114, 17 p., https://pubs.er.usgs.gov/publication/ofr00114.
ISSN: 2331-1258 (online)
Study Area
Table of Contents
- Introduction
- Methods of Study
- Discussion of Results
- References Cited
| Publication type | Report |
|---|---|
| Publication Subtype | USGS Numbered Series |
| Title | Analytical results for total-digestions, EPA-1312 leach, and net acid production for twenty-three abandoned metal-mining related wastes in the Boulder River watershed, northern Jefferson County, Montana |
| Series title | Open-File Report |
| Series number | 2000-114 |
| DOI | 10.3133/ofr00114 |
| Year Published | 2000 |
| Language | English |
| Publisher | U.S. Geological Survey |
| Publisher location | Reston, VA |
| Contributing office(s) | Abandoned Mine Lands Initiative, Toxic Substances Hydrology Program |
| Description | Report: i, 17 p.; 4 Tables |
| Country | United States |
| State | Montana |
| County | Jefferson County |
| Other Geospatial | Boulder River watershed |
| Online Only (Y/N) | Y |
| Additional Online Files (Y/N) | Y |
| Google Analytic Metrics | Metrics page |