Historical and contemporary mining activities generate significant volumes of contaminated waste that can have wide-ranging implications, including potential lethal and sub-lethal effects on aquatic biota, adverse effects on surface waters used for drinking water and irrigation, and overall degradation of water bodies used for recreation and other purposes. Contaminants are dispersed in river catchments by a variety of physical, chemical and biological pathways and processes. This session is devoted to research that aims to characterize and quantify: (1) source areas which contribute contaminant mass, (2) transport processes which move contaminants from source areas to and through affected water bodies such as streams, rivers, lakes, wetlands, and groundwater, (3) biogeochemical processes which attenuate and/or transform contaminants, and (4) the interaction of contaminants with biota and ecosystems. Submissions from a variety of subfields are welcome, including research into mine water treatment and mine waste remediation practices. We also welcome submissions that focus on a variety of contaminant types including, but not limited to, metals, metalloids, rare earth elements and sulfate.

The following invited speakers have been confirmed: Professor Karen Hudson-Edwards (Camborne School of Mines, University of Exeter, UK) and Dr Rory Cowie (Mountain Studies Institute, Colorado, USA).