Journal
ENVIRONMENTAL GEOLOGY
Volume 51, Issue 6, Pages 1065-1075Publisher
SPRINGER
DOI: 10.1007/s00254-006-0398-7
Keywords
copper mining; heavy metals; aqueous geochemistry; Lake George; Uganda
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The abandoned Kilembe copper mine in western Uganda is a source of contaminants, mobilised from mine tailings into R. Rukoki flowing through a belt of wetlands into Lake George. Water and sediments were investigated on the lakeshore and the lakebed. Metal associations in the sediments reflect the Kilembe sulphide mineralisation. Enrichment of metals was compared between lakebed sediments, both for wet and dry seasons. Total C in a lakebed core shows a general increment, while Cu and Co decrease with depth. The contaminants are predominant (> 65%) in the <= 63 mu m sediment size range with elevated Cu and Zn (> 28%), while Ni, Pb and Co are low (< 18%) in all the fractions. Sequential extraction of Fe for lakeshore sediment samples reveals low Fe mobility. Relatively higher mobility and biological availability is seen for Co, Cu and S. Heavy metal contents in lake waters are not an immediate risk to the aquatic environment.
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