APPLICATION OF REMOTE SENSING TECHNIQUES: A CASE STUDY OF GROUNDWATER MONITORING FOR CONTAMINANTS IN A GOLD MINING AREA IN SOUTH AFRICA

Generally, mining activities lead to the generation of rock waste materials. These waste materials when dumped on land have the potential to contaminate aquatic ecosystems as well as groundwater. A wide variety of techniques are used today to study aquatic and groundwater pollution. However, remote sensing techniques have gained high reputation since they create data at higher spatial, spectral and temporal resolution than have been collected at any other time. The present study assessed the impact of a gold mining operation on groundwater with respect to pollution. The identification of the pollution plumes was determined using airborne multi-spectral scanner and airborne thermal remote sensing. The multi-spectral scanner results indicated precipitation mainly of a Fe oxide type, suggesting that some seepage may have occurred. The thermal imagery indicated the presence of warmer or contaminated water in the area from the direction of the tailings dam. Tritium analysis suggested that all the boreholes were susceptible to contamination. The levels of cations and anions determined in the water samples from the boreholes ranged from