The USGS Abandoned Mine Lands Initiative (AMLI) is developing and demonstrating scientific knowledge and technologies that will help Federal land management agencies clean up contamination in areas near abandoned hardrock mines across the Nation. The Initiative is being conducted in two pilot watersheds, the Upper Animas River Basin in Colorado and the Boulder River watershed in Montana, where the USGS is partnering with the U.S. Forest Service, BLM, NPS, EPA, and State agencies in Colorado and Montana.
OBJECTIVES:
- To define background (premining) conditions.
- To define baseline (current) conditions.
- To identify target sites that contribute most to environmental deterioration.
- To characterize target sites and processes for contaminant dispersal.
- To characterize ecosystem health and controlling processes.
Below are other science projects associated with this project.
Gold King Mine release (2015): USGS water-quality data and activities
USGS Abandoned Mine Lands Initiative
Below are data or web applications associated with this project.
Calibration datasets and model archive summaries for regression models developed to estimate metal concentrations at nine sites on the Animas and San Juan Rivers, Colorado, New Mexico, and Utah
Below are multimedia items associated with this project.
Below are publications associated with this project.
Integrated investigations of environmental effects of historical mining in the Animas River Watershed, San Juan County, Colorado
Estimating metal concentrations with regression analysis and water-quality surrogates at nine sites on the Animas and San Juan Rivers, Colorado, New Mexico, and Utah
Metals fate and transport modelling in streams and watersheds: state of the science and USEPA workshop review
Evaluating remedial alternatives for an acid mine drainage stream: A model post audit
An approach to quantify sources, seasonal change, and biogeochemical processes affecting metal loading in streams: Facilitating decisions for remediation of mine drainage
Geochemical data for Upper Mineral Creek, Colorado, under existing ambient conditions and during an experimental pH modification, August 2005
Application of iron and zinc isotopes to track the sources and mechanisms of metal loading in a mountain watershed
Copper isotope fractionation in acid mine drainage
The use of fluoride as a natural tracer in water and the relationship to geological features: Examples from the Animas River Watershed, San Juan Mountains, Silverton, Colorado
A comparison of pre- and post-remediation water quality, Mineral Creek, Colorado
Naturally acidic surface and ground waters draining porphyry-related mineralized areas of the Southern Rocky Mountains, Colorado and New Mexico
Environmental effects of historical mining in the Animas River watershed, southwestern Colorado
Geochemistry of Surface and Ground Water in Cement Creek from Gladstone to Georgia Gulch and in Prospect Gulch, San Juan County, Colorado
Current Streamflow and Water-Quality Monitoring at Select Sites in the Animas and San Juan River Basins, Colorado, New Mexico, and Utah
The USGS monitors current streamflow and water-quality conditions at various sites in the Animas and San Juan River Basins in Colorado, New Mexico, and Utah, including areas below the Gold King Mine release area. These streamgages provide continuous data on streamflow and select water-quality constituents including specific conductance, water temperature, pH, and turbidity.
Current Streamflow and Water-Quality Monitoring at Select Sites in the Animas and San Juan River Basins, Colorado, New Mexico, and Utah
The USGS monitors current streamflow and water-quality conditions at various sites in the Animas and San Juan River Basins in Colorado, New Mexico, and Utah, including areas below the Gold King Mine release area. These streamgages provide continuous data on streamflow and select water-quality constituents including specific conductance, water temperature, pH, and turbidity.
- Overview
The USGS Abandoned Mine Lands Initiative (AMLI) is developing and demonstrating scientific knowledge and technologies that will help Federal land management agencies clean up contamination in areas near abandoned hardrock mines across the Nation. The Initiative is being conducted in two pilot watersheds, the Upper Animas River Basin in Colorado and the Boulder River watershed in Montana, where the USGS is partnering with the U.S. Forest Service, BLM, NPS, EPA, and State agencies in Colorado and Montana.
OBJECTIVES:
- To define background (premining) conditions.
- To define baseline (current) conditions.
- To identify target sites that contribute most to environmental deterioration.
- To characterize target sites and processes for contaminant dispersal.
- To characterize ecosystem health and controlling processes.
- Science
Below are other science projects associated with this project.
Gold King Mine release (2015): USGS water-quality data and activities
On August 5, 2015, U.S. EPA was conducting an investigation of the Gold King Mine near Silverton, Colorado. While excavating as part of the investigation, water began leaking from the mine tunnel, and about three million gallons of water and sediment were released into Cement Creek, a tributary of the Animas River. The USGS provided pre- and post-release water-quality and streamflow data from...USGS Abandoned Mine Lands Initiative
The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) conducted an Abandoned Mine Lands (AML) Initiative during the fiscal years 1997 through 2001 to provide technical assistance in support of Federal Land Management Agency (FLMA) actions to remediate contamination associated with abandoned hard rock mining activities. This initiative was part of a larger strategy by the U.S. Department of the Interior and the U.S... - Data
Below are data or web applications associated with this project.
Calibration datasets and model archive summaries for regression models developed to estimate metal concentrations at nine sites on the Animas and San Juan Rivers, Colorado, New Mexico, and Utah
This data release supports the following publication: Mast, M. A., 2018, Estimating metal concentrations with regression analysis and water-quality surrogates at nine sites on the Animas and San Juan Rivers, Colorado, New Mexico, and Utah: U.S. Geological Survey Scientific Investigations Report 2018-5116. The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), in cooperation with the U. S. Environmental Protection Age - Multimedia
Below are multimedia items associated with this project.
- Publications
Below are publications associated with this project.
Integrated investigations of environmental effects of historical mining in the Animas River Watershed, San Juan County, Colorado
This publication comprises a Volume Contents of chapters (listed below) and a CD-ROM of data (contents shown in column at right). The Animas River watershed in southwest Colorado is one of many watersheds in the western United States where historical mining has left a legacy of acid mine drainage and elevated concentrations of potentially toxic trace elements in surface streams. U.S. GeologicalFilter Total Items: 37Estimating metal concentrations with regression analysis and water-quality surrogates at nine sites on the Animas and San Juan Rivers, Colorado, New Mexico, and Utah
The purpose of this report is to evaluate the use of site-specific regression models to estimate metal concentrations at nine U.S. Geological Survey streamflow-gaging stations on the Animas and San Juan Rivers in Colorado, New Mexico, and Utah. Downstream users could use these regression models to determine if metal concentrations are elevated and pose a risk to water supplies, agriculture, and reAuthorsAlisa MastMetals fate and transport modelling in streams and watersheds: state of the science and USEPA workshop review
Metals pollution in surface waters from point and non-point sources (NPS) is a widespread problem in the United States and worldwide (Lofts et al., 2007; USEPA, 2007). In the western United States, metals associated with acid mine drainage (AMD) from hardrock mines in mountainous areas impact aquatic ecosystems and human health (USEPA, 1997a; Caruso and Ward, 1998; Church et al., 2007). Metals fatAuthorsB.S. Caruso, T.J. Cox, Robert L. Runkel, M.L. Velleux, Kenneth E. Bencala, D. Kirk Nordstrom, P.Y. Julien, B. A. Butler, Charles N. Alpers, A. Marion, Kathleen S. SmithEvaluating remedial alternatives for an acid mine drainage stream: A model post audit
A post audit for a reactive transport model used to evaluate acid mine drainage treatment systems is presented herein. The post audit is based on a paired synoptic approach in which hydrogeochemical data are collected at low (existing conditions) and elevated (following treatment) pH. Data obtained under existing, low-pH conditions are used for calibration, and the resultant model is used to prediAuthorsRobert L. Runkel, Briant A. Kimball, Katherine Walton-Day, Philip L. Verplanck, Robert E. BroshearsAn approach to quantify sources, seasonal change, and biogeochemical processes affecting metal loading in streams: Facilitating decisions for remediation of mine drainage
Historical mining has left complex problems in catchments throughout the world. Land managers are faced with making cost-effective plans to remediate mine influences. Remediation plans are facilitated by spatial mass-loading profiles that indicate the locations of metal mass-loading, seasonal changes, and the extent of biogeochemical processes. Field-scale experiments during both low- and high-floAuthorsB. A. Kimball, R.L. Runkel, K. Walton-DayGeochemical data for Upper Mineral Creek, Colorado, under existing ambient conditions and during an experimental pH modification, August 2005
Mineral Creek, an acid mine drainage stream in south-western Colorado, was the subject of a water-quality study that employed a paired synoptic approach. Under the paired synoptic approach, two synoptic sampling campaigns were conducted on the same study reach. The initial synoptic campaign, conducted August 22, 2005, documented stream-water quality under existing ambient conditions. A second synoAuthorsRobert L. Runkel, Briant A. Kimball, Judy I. Steiger, Katherine Walton-DayApplication of iron and zinc isotopes to track the sources and mechanisms of metal loading in a mountain watershed
Here the hydrogeochemical constraints of a tracer dilution study are combined with Fe and Zn isotopic measurements to pinpoint metal loading sources and attenuation mechanisms in an alpine watershed impacted by acid mine drainage. In the tested mountain catchment, δ56Fe and δ66Zn isotopic signatures of filtered stream water samples varied by ∼3.5‰ and 0.4‰, respectively. The inherent differences iAuthorsD.M. Borrok, R. B. Wanty, Ridley W. Ian, P. J. Lamothe, B. A. Kimball, P. L. Verplanck, R.L. RunkelCopper isotope fractionation in acid mine drainage
We measured the Cu isotopic composition of primary minerals and stream water affected by acid mine drainage in a mineralized watershed (Colorado, USA). The δ65Cu values (based on 65Cu/63Cu) of enargite (δ65Cu = −0.01 ± 0.10‰; 2σ) and chalcopyrite (δ65Cu = 0.16 ± 0.10‰) are within the range of reported values for terrestrial primary Cu sulfides (−1‰ ‰Δaq-mino=-0.57±0.14‰, where mino refers to the sAuthorsB.E. Kimball, R. Mathur, A.C. Dohnalkova, A.J. Wall, R.L. Runkel, S.L. BrantleyThe use of fluoride as a natural tracer in water and the relationship to geological features: Examples from the Animas River Watershed, San Juan Mountains, Silverton, Colorado
Investigations within the Silverton caldera, in southwestern Colorado, used a combination of traditional geological mapping, alteration-assemblage mapping, and aqueous geochemical sampling that showed a relationship between geological and hydrologic features that may be used to better understand the provenance and evolution of the water. Veins containing fluorite, huebnerite, and elevated molybdenAuthorsDana J. Bove, Katherine Walton-Day, Briant A. KimballA comparison of pre- and post-remediation water quality, Mineral Creek, Colorado
Pre- and post-remediation data sets are used herein to assess the effectiveness of remedial measures implemented in the headwaters of the Mineral Creek watershed, where contamination from hard rock mining has led to elevated metal concentrations and acidic pH. Collection of pre- and post-remediation data sets generally followed the synoptic mass balance approach, in which numerous stream and infloAuthorsR.L. Runkel, K.E. Bencala, B. A. Kimball, K. Walton-Day, P. L. VerplanckNaturally acidic surface and ground waters draining porphyry-related mineralized areas of the Southern Rocky Mountains, Colorado and New Mexico
Acidic, metal-rich waters produced by the oxidative weathering and resulting leaching of major and trace elements from pyritic rocks can adversely affect water quality in receiving streams and riparian ecosystems. Five study areas in the southern Rocky Mountains with naturally acidic waters associated with porphyry mineralization were studied to document variations in water chemistry and processesAuthorsP. L. Verplanck, D. Kirk Nordstrom, D. J. Bove, G.S. Plumlee, R.L. RunkelEnvironmental effects of historical mining in the Animas River watershed, southwestern Colorado
The U.S. Geological Survey has completed an extensive environmental study of the effects of historical mining on water and sediment quality and aquatic and riparian habitat in the Animas River watershed upstream from Silverton, Colorado. Results from this study are being used by Federal and State agencies and by the local watershed stakeholders group to implement remediation and cleanup activitiesAuthorsStan E. ChurchGeochemistry of Surface and Ground Water in Cement Creek from Gladstone to Georgia Gulch and in Prospect Gulch, San Juan County, Colorado
In San Juan County, Colo., the effects of historical mining continue to contribute metals to ground water and surface water. Previous research by the U.S. Geological Survey identified ground-water discharge as a significant pathway for the loading of metals to surface water in the upper Animas River watershed from both acid-mine drainage and acid-rock drainage. In support of this ground-water reseAuthorsRaymond H. Johnson, Laurie Wirt, Andrew H. Manning, Kenneth J. Leib, David L. Fey, Douglas B. Yager - Web Tools
Current Streamflow and Water-Quality Monitoring at Select Sites in the Animas and San Juan River Basins, Colorado, New Mexico, and Utah
The USGS monitors current streamflow and water-quality conditions at various sites in the Animas and San Juan River Basins in Colorado, New Mexico, and Utah, including areas below the Gold King Mine release area. These streamgages provide continuous data on streamflow and select water-quality constituents including specific conductance, water temperature, pH, and turbidity.
Current Streamflow and Water-Quality Monitoring at Select Sites in the Animas and San Juan River Basins, Colorado, New Mexico, and Utah
The USGS monitors current streamflow and water-quality conditions at various sites in the Animas and San Juan River Basins in Colorado, New Mexico, and Utah, including areas below the Gold King Mine release area. These streamgages provide continuous data on streamflow and select water-quality constituents including specific conductance, water temperature, pH, and turbidity.