Dating of mine waste in lacustrine sediments using cesium-137
- Univ. of Idaho, Moscow, ID (United States); and others
For over a century Medicine Lake in northern Idaho has received heavy-metal-laden tailings from the Coeur d`Alene mining district. Establishing the depositional chronology of the lake bottom sediments provides information on the source and rate of deposition of the tailings. Cesium-137, an isotope produced in the atmosphere by nuclear bomb tests, was virtually absent in the environment prior to 1951, but reached its apex in 1964. Our analysis of cesium-137 in the sediments of Medicine Lake revealed that 14 cm of fine-grained tailings were deposited in the lake from 1951 to 1964 and tailing deposition downstream was greatly reduced by the installation of tailings dams in the district in 1968. Cesium-137 analysis is accomplished by a fairly simple gamma-ray counting technique and should be a valuable tool for analyzing sedimentation in any lacustrine environment that was active during the 1950s and 1960s. 8 refs., 3 figs.
- Sponsoring Organization:
- USDOE
- OSTI ID:
- 90797
- Journal Information:
- Environmental Geology and Water Sciences, Vol. 22, Issue 3; Other Information: PBD: Nov 1993
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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