Abstract
This is a welcome addition to the MAC series of Short Course Volumes, choosing as its theme the challenge presented to earth scientists by the weathering and draining of mine workings and waste piles. Chemical interaction of oxygen and water (ground and meteoric) with metalliferous wastes results in ‘acid mine drainage; or AMD, the movement of metal-contaminated acidic to neutral water into river systems and aquifers, often with serious to disastrous results. The book thus reflects the wider concern with the environmental and economic post-closure consequences of the exploitation of mineral resources, and the earth scientist’s central role in dealing with them. It reviews the current state of progress in understanding and controlling AMD from a variety of geo-scientific standpoints, spanning the range from pragmatic tests devised for regulatory and planning purposes to the evaluation of atom-scale reaction mechanisms through the evolving area of mineral surface chemistry. The result is a book of range and contrasts. The problems presented by AMD run from the atomic-scale to that of entire mine sites, and from the esoteric to the practical, placing mineralogy and chemistry alongside engineering and microbiology. Socio-environmental relevance is combined with scientific insight. The Short Course is made up of twenty chapters each of which provides a summary and overview of one aspect of AMD and of mitigating its effects. It is understandably centred on sulphidic mines and waste piles, while also considering mineral processing, coal mines and power plants, drawing most of its examples from Canada, the USA and Australia. In each chapter there is emphasis on acquiring a broad understanding of the processes that are involved through their basis in chemical and mathematical terms and then by examining case studies where theory is applied to real circumstances. The text is dense and meticulous throughout, presented by an expert …
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