Combining geophysical methods (DC, IP, TDEM and GPR) to characterise mining waste in the Linares-La Carolina district (southern Spain)

Abstract

The accumulation of waste materials in old, abandoned mining districts without prior sealing of the substrate currently poses a significant risk of contamination to soils and surrounding waters. Some of these mining dams have undergone a reclamation and sealing process in recent years to alleviate this problem. The current study is an analysis of the effectiveness of using different geophysical techniques for characterising these structures and monitoring the isolation performed. This study was carried out in the old mining district of Linares-La Carolina (southern Spain). The following techniques were investigated in this study: direct current (DC) resistivity, induced polarization (IP), ground-penetrating radar (GPR) and the time domain electromagnetic method (TDEM).Combining DC and IP made it possible to characterise the internal structure of the abandoned mining dams, whereby the geometry of these deposits was determined and the corresponding potential risks were assessed. In addition, percolation zones of mining leachates were detected that indicate defects in the sealing stage.TDEM was a good complementary technique for calculating the depth of the bedrock on which the mining dam is located. GPR could only be used to investigate shallow depths at all of the antenna frequencies used (100, 250 and 500 MHz) but was useful for obtained detailed information about the last stages of filling and characterising the encapsulation performed during sealing.