Biogeochemical removal of Zn and Cd in the Coeur d'Alene River (Idaho, USA), downstream of a mining district

The conservative biogeochemical behavior of dissolved Zn and Cd in a 17-km, free-flowing reach of the Coeur d'Alene River downstream of a mining district is typical of watersheds in which suspended matter concentrations are low. For watersheds impacted by acid-rock drainage (ARD), low suspended matter concentrations are more likely to be found when acid rock drainage travels through soils because much of the Fe and Al that could form adsorbing surfaces is retained within the soils. In the absence of additional sources of solid substrates, metals can be transported great distances downstream once this Fe- and Al-poor ARD seeps into surface waters. In a 46-km backwater reach of the Coeur d'Alene River, it appears that biological activity increased pH and provided the organic matter solid substrate which removed approximately 50% of the Zn and Cd. Zn removal was partially reversible as pH decreased. These observations reinforce the concept that both inorganic and organic carbon chemistry must be measured if significant advances in our understanding of the attenuation of Zn and Cd from ARD sources are to be made.