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Weathering of sulfidic shale and copper mine waste: secondary minerals and metal cycling in Great Smoky Mountains National Park, Tennessee, and North Carolina, USA

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Environmental Geology

Abstract

Metal cycling via physical and chemical weathering of discrete sources (copper mines) and regional (non-point) sources (sulfide-rich shale) is evaluated by examining the mineralogy and chemistry of weathering products in Great Smoky Mountains National Park, Tennessee, and North Carolina, USA. The elements in copper mine waste, secondary minerals, stream sediments, and waters that are most likely to have negative impacts on aquatic ecosystems are aluminum, copper, zinc, and arsenic because these elements locally exceed toxicity guidelines for surface waters or for stream sediments. Acid-mine drainage has not developed in streams draining inactive copper mines. Acid-rock drainage and chemical weathering processes that accompany debris flows or human disturbances of sulfidic rocks are comparable to processes that develop acid-mine drainage elsewhere. Despite the high rainfall in the mountain range, sheltered areas and intermittent dry spells provide local venues for development of secondary weathering products that can impact aquatic ecosystems.

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Notes

  1. All trade and firm names are for descriptive purposes only and do not imply endorsement by the USGS.

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Acknowledgements

The authors thank the National Park Service for permission to sample within Great Smoky Mountains National Park and for support of this study, especially Carroll Schell. Rick Verner and Dale Raxter of the National Park Service greatly facilitated field work. USGS colleagues Art Schultz, Scott Southworth, and Geoff Plumlee, and Professor Don Byerly of the University if Tennessee pointed out key locations and provided background information. Dave Haffner, John Wormington, Peggie Wormington, and Ryan Barden assisted in the field and laboratory. This paper benefited from peer reviews by USGS colleagues Scott Southworth and Bill Cannon.

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  1. US Geological Survey, 954 National Center, Reston, VA, 20192, USA

    Jane M. Hammarstrom, Robert R. Seal II & John C. Jackson

  2. US Geological Survey, Denver, CO, 80225, USA

    Allen L. Meier

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  1. Jane M. Hammarstrom
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  2. Robert R. Seal II
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Correspondence to Jane M. Hammarstrom.

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Hammarstrom, J.M., Seal, R.R., Meier, A.L. et al. Weathering of sulfidic shale and copper mine waste: secondary minerals and metal cycling in Great Smoky Mountains National Park, Tennessee, and North Carolina, USA. Env Geol 45, 35–57 (2003). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00254-003-0856-4

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