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Spring and conduit sediments as storage reservoirs for heavy metals in karst aquifers

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Environmental Geology

Abstract

Sediment samples were collected from six springs draining the karst aquifer at Fort Campbell, Kentucky/Tennessee. These were analyzed by ICP-MS following an extraction procedure that separates the metals into exchangeable, carbonate, oxide, organic and residual fractions. Aluminum and iron are primarily present in the residual fraction while manganese may be dominantly in either the oxide or carbonate fraction. The redox-sensitive metals (Fe and Mn) have the greatest fractional distribution in the spring with the thickest sediments. Trace metals detected include Cr, Cd, Ni, Pb, and Zn in the range of a few to 200 mg/kg. In Beaver Spring, nickel is distributed between the exchangeable, carbonate and organic fractions, while in Gordon Spring, nickel is largely residual. Chromium is almost entirely associated with the organic fraction in Beaver Spring while it is largely residual in Gordon Spring.

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Acknowledgements

The work was supported by the Army Research Office under Grant Number DAAD19–01–1-0707; Sigma Xi, the Scientific Research Society; the Geological Society of America; and the Krynine Fund of the Pennsylvania State University Department of Geosciences. The authors would like to thank the Fort Campbell Environmental Restoration Office and the Clark and Hunt families for spring access.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Geology and Geography, West Virginia University, Morgantown, WV 26506, USA

    D. J. Vesper

  2. Department of Geosciences and Materials Research Institute, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA 16802, USA

    W. B. White

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  1. D. J. Vesper
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  2. W. B. White
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Correspondence to D. J. Vesper.

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Vesper, D.J., White, W.B. Spring and conduit sediments as storage reservoirs for heavy metals in karst aquifers. Env Geol 45, 481–493 (2004). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00254-003-0899-6

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00254-003-0899-6

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