Release of geogenic uranium and arsenic results in water-quality impacts in a subarctic permafrost region of granitic and metamorphic geology ...
This study investigates geogenic U and As mobilization in relation to bedrock geology, groundwater geochemistry, and the presence of mineral deposits in the Dawson Range, Yukon, Canada, a remote subarctic region that has drawn recent interest from mining industry. Elevated concentrations of U and As...
| Main Authors: | , , , |
|---|---|
| Format: | Text |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Elsevier
2022
|
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://dx.doi.org/10.14288/1.0391904 https://doi.library.ubc.ca/10.14288/1.0391904 |
| Summary: | This study investigates geogenic U and As mobilization in relation to bedrock geology, groundwater geochemistry, and the presence of mineral deposits in the Dawson Range, Yukon, Canada, a remote subarctic region that has drawn recent interest from mining industry. Elevated concentrations of U and As occur through natural weathering processes. For this study we compiled and interpreted a geochemical dataset from the region that includes 1,075 rock samples, 365 sediment samples, 3,189 surface water samples, and 384 groundwater samples. Median U concentrations exceed the Canadian guideline for the protection of aquatic life of 15 µg/L (long-term exposure) at 8 % of 547 surface-water monitoring locations and the maximum observed concentration is 337 µg/L. 39 % of monitoring wells have median groundwater U concentrations above this guideline and the maximum observed concentration is 589 µg/L. Uranium mobilization is driven by weathering of granitic and metamorphic bedrock that has contents near or slightly above ... |
|---|