Hydrogeochemistry of the unsaturated zone at Big Brown lignite mine, East Texas
Mass transfer of water and dissolved ions through the unsaturated zone differs among geologic facies at an East Texas lignite mine. Comparisons between undisturbed deposits of fluvial sand and interfluvial mud (Calvert Bluff Formation, Eocene) and reclaimed deposits at Big Brown Mine, Freestone County, indicate that: 1) strip-mining of lignite in the unsaturated part of the Calvert Bluff will not change the chemical composition of ground water in the Wilcox-Carrizo Aquifer down-gradient from the lignite mine; 2) annual recharge to unmined fluvial-sand facies and to reclaimed-mud facies is at least four times the recharge to unmined interfluvial-mud facies; 3) downward transport through unsaturated, stratified, interfluvial-mud facies is negligible over geologic time; 4) water content of reclaimed-mud facies is not different from that of unmined facies; and 5) deposits of reclaimed mud are still rewetting four to seven years after reclamation and a saturated zone will eventually form at the base of reclaimed deposits.
- OSTI ID:
- 5927043
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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010900* -- Coal
Lignite
& Peat-- Environmental Aspects
012000 -- Coal
Lignite
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BROWN COAL
CARBONACEOUS MATERIALS
CHEMISTRY
COAL
COAL MINES
ENERGY SOURCES
ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACTS
ENVIRONMENTAL TRANSPORT
FEDERAL REGION VI
FOSSIL FUELS
FUELS
GEOCHEMISTRY
GROUND WATER
HYDROGEN COMPOUNDS
HYDROLOGY
LAND RECLAMATION
LIGNITE
MASS TRANSFER
MATERIALS
MINES
MINING
NORTH AMERICA
OXYGEN COMPOUNDS
POLLUTANTS
SURFACE MINING
TEXAS
UNDERGROUND FACILITIES
USA
WATER