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Design, Construction and Performance of a Full‐Scale Compost Wetland for Mine‐Spoil Drainage Treatment at Quaking Houses
Author(s) -
Jarvis A. P.,
Younger P. L.
Publication year - 1999
Publication title -
water and environment journal
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.437
H-Index - 37
eISSN - 1747-6593
pISSN - 1747-6585
DOI - 10.1111/j.1747-6593.1999.tb01054.x
Subject(s) - environmental science , drainage , constructed wetland , wetland , environmental engineering , acid mine drainage , compost , waste management , manganese , environmental chemistry , sewage treatment , engineering , chemistry , metallurgy , materials science , ecology , biology
Acidic spoil‐heap drainage, containing elevated concentrations of iron, aluminium and manganese, has been polluting the Stanley Burn in County Durham for nearly two decades. Following the success of a pilot‐scale wetland (the first application of its kind in Europe), a full‐scale wetland was installed. Waste manures and composts have been used as the main substrate which is contained within embankments constructed from compacted pulverized fuel ash. The constructed wetland, which cost less than £20000 to build, has consistently reduced iron and aluminium concentrations and has markedly lowered the acidity of the drainage. A third phase of activities at the site aims to identify and eliminate pollutant‐release ‘hot spots’ within the spoil.