The dam breakage of Baia Mare––a pilot study of magnetic screening

Abstract

Magnetic screening in the area of Baia Mare (Romania) was carried out in June 2000 in order to detect the degree of environmental pollution and to test the applicability of this method in this area. With a long tradition of mining activities, a gradual pollution of soil, air and rivers took place continuously in addition to smaller accidents in this area until the dam breakage on the 30.1.2000. During this accident, about 100,000 m 3 of mud containing cyanide and heavy metals leaked out and moved over fields and through a village into the river system of Lapûs, Someş, Tisza and Danube. Initial magnetic monitoring carried out during the translocation of the polluted waters along the Bulgarian part of the Danube revealed the effectiveness of the method for a proper and fast identification of pollution both in time and space even at remote distances from the source. For the later pilot project magnetic ( χ) screening was performed using a portable Bartington MS2 kappameter with a D-loop sensor. In addition fine-grained material (<0.5 mm) was sampled from the fields and river sediments and measured in the laboratory using a MS2 B-sensor. The results of the collected samples show a clear decrease in χ with increasing distance from the dams and mining areas in a regional and local scale, while the results gained by the MS2-D strongly depend on the nature of the ground. The dynamic geological setting around Baia Mare (fluvial sediments and valley fills), produces a heterogeneous background signal. A continuous monitoring system controlling the basic conditions could overcome these limitations.