Abstract

The impacts of the SAMARCO iron tailing spill along more than 650 km, between the dam and the plume of the Doce River in the Atlantic, were assessed by the determination of toxic metals. The tailing spill caused a substantial increase in suspended sediment loads (up to 33,000 mg L−1), in addition to large depositions of waste along the Doce basin. The highest estimated transport of dissolved metals was observed for Fe (58.8 μg s−1), Ba (37.9 μg s−1) and Al (25.0 μg s−1). Sediments reached the highest enrichment factors (EFs) for Hg (4,234), Co (133), Fe (43), and Ni (16), whereas As (55), Ba (64), Cr (16), Cu (17), Mn (41), Pb (38) and Zn (82) highest EFs were observed for suspended particulate matter (SPM). Iron, As, Hg, Mn exceeded sediment quality guidelines. Therefore, the risk of occurrence of adverse effects is highly possible, not only due to the dam failure, but also due to the Fe mining and the artisan Au mining. Heavy rain episodes will likely cause enhanced erosion, remobilization, and transport of contaminated particles, sustaining high inputs of SPM and metals for the years to come and threatening the ecosystem services.

Details

Title
The environmental impacts of one of the largest tailing dam failures worldwide
Author
Hatje, Vanessa 1 ; Pedreira, Rodrigo M A 1 ; de Rezende, Carlos Eduardo 2 ; França Schettini, Carlos Augusto 3 ; Gabriel Cotrim de Souza 4 ; Marin, Danieli Canaver 5 ; Hackspacher, Peter Christian 5 

 Centro Interdisciplinar de Energia e Ambiente (CIENAM), Instituto de Química, Universidade Federal da Bahia. Rua Barão de Jeremoabo, s/n, Ondina, Salvador, BA, Brazil 
 Laboratório de Ciências Ambientais, Centro de Biociências e Biotecnologia, Universidade Estadual do Norte Fluminense. Av. Alberto Lamego 2000, Campos dos Goytacazes, RJ, Brazil 
 Laboratório de Hidrodinâmica Costeira, Departamento de Oceanografia, Centro de Tecnologia e Geociências, Universidade Federal de Pernambuco. Av. Prof. Moraes Rego, 1235, Recife, PE, Brazil 
 Observatório FG do Semiárido Nordestino, Faculdade Guanambi. Avenida Pedro Felipe Duarte, 4911, Guanambi, BA, Brazil 
 Laboratório de Geoquímica Isotópica, Departamento de Petrologia e Metalogenia, Instituto de Geociências e Ciências Exatas, Universidade Estadual Paulista, Rio Claro, SP, Brazil 
Pages
1-13
Publication year
2017
Publication date
Sep 2017
Publisher
Nature Publishing Group
e-ISSN
20452322
Source type
Scholarly Journal
Language of publication
English
ProQuest document ID
1957745315
Copyright
© 2017. This work is published under http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ (the “License”). Notwithstanding the ProQuest Terms and Conditions, you may use this content in accordance with the terms of the License.