Antunes S C, de Figueiredo D R, Marques S M, Castro B B, Pereira R, Gonçalves F
Departmento de Biologia/Centro de Estudos do Ambiente e do Mar (CESAM), Campus de Santiago, Universidade de Aveiro, 3810-193 Aveiro, Portugal.
Sci Total Environ. 2007 Mar 15;374(2-3):252-9. doi: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2006.11.025. Epub 2007 Feb 21.
Uranium mining activities in Cunha Baixa, Mangualde (Portugal), were extensive between 1967 and 1993, with high production of poor ore. Ore exploitation left millions of tons of tailings in the surrounding area, close to human houses. Contamination of the area (water and soil compartment) presently represents a serious hazard to humans and wildlife. The aim of this work was to evaluate the acute toxicity of water and sediments from a pond that floods a uranium mine pit, in two periods (spring and autumn). High contents of metals were found in water samples (chiefly Mn, Fe, Al, U, Sr). A battery of assays was applied to screen the acute toxicity of the different compartments using algae, crustaceans and dipterans. Results showed that the sediments were non-toxic, unlike the superficial water. Water toxicity was higher in the autumn, when the effluent was more acidic, compared to spring. In the water toxicity assays, the relative sensitivity of the test species used was Daphnia longispina>Pseudokirchneriella subcapitata>Daphnia magna. The present study is part of the chemical and ecotoxicological characterisation of the aquatic compartment performed in the Tier 1 of the Ecological Risk Assessment of the Cunha Baixa mining area.
1967年至1993年间，葡萄牙曼瓜尔德的库尼亚·baix a地区铀矿开采活动广泛，贫矿产量高。矿石开采在周边地区，靠近民宅处留下了数百万吨尾矿。该地区（水和土壤部分）的污染目前对人类和野生动物构成严重危害。这项工作的目的是评估在两个时期（春季和秋季），一个淹没铀矿坑的池塘中的水和沉积物的急性毒性。在水样中发现了高含量的金属（主要是锰、铁、铝、铀、锶）。应用一系列试验，使用藻类、甲壳类动物和双翅目昆虫来筛选不同部分的急性毒性。结果表明，沉积物无毒，与表层水不同。与春季相比，秋季废水酸性更强时，水的毒性更高。在水毒性试验中，所用受试物种的相对敏感性为长刺溞>小新月菱形藻>大型溞。本研究是库尼亚·baix a矿区生态风险评估一级中对水生态部分进行化学和生态毒理学特征描述的一部分。
