Aeolian sediment mass and horizontal aeolian sediment flux data from monitored uranium mines and a reference area near the Grand Canyon, USA

These data represent wind-driven sediment mass and horizontal sediment flux collected by Big Spring Number Eight (BSNE) samplers at three breccia pipe uranium mines (Arizona 1, Pinyon Plain [formerly Canyon Mine], and Pinenut) and a reference site with similar geology but no mining activity (Little Robinson Tank). All sites are located within the greater Grand Canyon region/Baaj Nwaavjo I'tah Kukveni - Ancestral Footprints of the Grand Canyon National Monument and located within 25 miles of Grand Canyon National Park in northern Arizona, USA. Initiation of monitoring ranges from as early as 2013 to as late as 2015. The purpose of the data is to quantify masses of sediment, sediment flux rates, and distances travelled of wind-driven sediment off the mine sites throughout the mining life cycle. Data from mined sites captures information on wind-driven sediment from mines on standby, active mines, and during and after reclamation. At each site, horizontal mass flux is monitored with three transects of BSNE sediment samplers oriented across the mined area and parallel to the dominant wind direction (~195 degrees). Samples are collected from individual BSNEs arranged at 15, 50, 100, and 150 centimeters (cm) above ground level on a single conduit rod (i.e., tower). Most samplers are constrained to 30 degrees of rotation centered on the transect azimuth. One tower was installed windward and three towers leeward of the mined area (~0 meters [m], 30 m, and 60 m downwind) along each transect. At the unmined reference site, we used three unconstrained BSNE samplers distributed randomly. We present sediment mass and horizontal sediment mass flux data collected by these samplers during the spring, summer, and fall for each year from 2013 thru 2025.