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APPLICATION OF ENVIRONMENTAL GROUNDWATER TRACERS AT THE SULPHUR BANK MERCURY MINE, CALIFORNIA, USA
Citation:
ENGLE, M. A., F. GOFF, D. G. JEWETT, G. J. RELLER, AND J. B. BAUMAN. APPLICATION OF ENVIRONMENTAL GROUNDWATER TRACERS AT THE SULPHUR BANK MERCURY MINE, CALIFORNIA, USA. ISSN 1435-0157, C.I. Voss (ed.), JOURNAL OF HYDROLOGY. Springer, New York, NY, 16(3):559-573, (2008).
Impact/Purpose:
To investigate the use of ground water tracers.
Description:
This paper reports on boron, chloride, sulfate, δD, δ18O, and 3H concentrations in surface water and groundwater samples from the Sulphur Bank Mercury Mine, California (SBMM) to examine and provide constraints on the site’s groundwater system. SBMM is an abandoned sulfur and mercury mine with an underlying hydrothermal system, adjacent to Clear Lake, California. Results for the non-3H tracers identify relative contributions from six different water types at SBMM. Processes including evaporation, mixing, hydrothermal water input and possible isotopic exchange with hydrothermal gases were also discerned. A boron concentration-based steady-state reservoir mixing model of the Herman Impoundment pit lake indicates that 71%-79% of its input is from meteoric water with the remainder due to hydrothermal water. Results for groundwater samples from six shallow wells over a six-month period for δD and δ18O suggest that water from Herman Impoundment is diluted another 3%->40% by infiltrating meteoric water, as it leaves the site. Tritium data indicate that hydrothermal waters and other deep groundwaters are likely pre-bomb in age while most other waters are less than a few years old. Results for this investigation show that environmental isotopes are an effective tool for determining the age, sources, and processes affecting SBMM waters.
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APPLICATION OF ENVIRONMENTAL GROUNDWATER TRACERS AT THE SULPHUR BANK MERCURY MINE, CALIFORNIA, USA