Acid drainage at the inactive Santa Lucia mine, western Cuba: Natural attenuation of arsenic, barium and lead, and geochemical behavior of rare earth elements

A detailed geochemical study was conducted at the inactive Zn–Pb mine of Santa Lucia, in western Cuba. The studied mine-wastes are characterized by high total concentrations of potentially toxic elements (PTE), with average values of 17.4% Fe, 5.47% Ba, 2.27% Pb, 0.83% Zn, 1724 mg/kg As and 811 mg/kg Cu. Oxidation of sulfide minerals in mine-waste dumps and in the open pit produces acid mine effluents (pH = 2.5–2.6) enriched in dissolved SO 4 2 - (up to 6754 mg/L), Fe (up to 4620 mg/L) and Zn (up to 2090 mg/L). Low pH values (2.5–2.8) and high dissolved concentrations of the same PTE were found in surface waters, up to 1500 m downstream from the mine. Nevertheless, concentrations of As, Ba and Pb in acid mine effluents and impacted surface waters are relatively low: 0.01–0.3 mg/L As, 0.002–0.03 mg/L Ba and 0.3–4.3 mg/L Pb. Analysis by X-ray diffraction and electron microscopy revealed the occurrence of lead–bearing barite and beudantite and the more common solid phases, reported elsewhere in similar environments including Fe-oxyhydroxides, jarosite, anglesite and plumbojarosite. Because the reported solubilities for barite and beudantite are very low under acidic conditions, these minerals may serve as the most important control in the mobility of As, Ba and Pb. In contrast, Fe-oxyhydroxides are relatively soluble under acidic conditions and, therefore, they may have a less significant role in PTE on-site immobilization. Mine-wastes and stream sediments show a light REE (LREE) and middle REE (MREE) enrichment relative to heavy REE (HREE). In contrast, acid mine effluents and surface waters are enriched in HREE relative to LREE. These results suggest that the LREE released during the oxidation of sulfides are captured by secondary (weathering) minerals, while the MREE are removed from the altered rocks. The low concentrations of LREE in acid stream water suggest that these elements can be retained in the sediments more strongly than HREE and MREE. One possible explanation for the sharp decrease in dissolved LREE might be their retention by low-solubility secondary minerals such as anglesite, barite and jarosite.