An Integrated Multi-Approach to Environmental Monitoring of a Self-Burning Coal Waste Pile: The Sao Pedro da Cova Mine (Porto, Portugal) Study Case

• Type: Article in International Scientific Journal
• Date: 2021

Authors

Ana Teodoro (Author) FCUP; Santos, P (Author) Other; Marques, JM (Author) FCUP; Ribeiro, J (Author) FCUP; Mansilha, C (Author) Other; Melo, A (Author) Other; Lia Duarte (Author) FCUP; de Almeida, CR (Author) Other; Flores, D (Author) FCUP

Journal

The Journal is awaiting validation by the Administrative Services.

Title: ENVIRONMENTS

Vol. 8

Final page: 48

ISSN: 2076-3298

Indexing

ISI Web of Knowledge - 13 Citations

Scopus - 15 Citations

Other information

Authenticus ID: P-00T-Z1M

DOI: 10.3390/environments8060048

Abstract (EN): The São Pedro da Cova waste pile (Porto, Portugal) is composed of coal mining residues that have been self-burning since 2005 and is located close to an inhabited area and social infrastructures, further adding to effects on the environment and human health. Therefore, there is a great interest in the environmental monitoring of this waste pile. This work describes an integrative multi-approach that allows the environmental monitoring of several parameters of the waste pile, applying several technologies. The temperature measurements were obtained by a thermal infrared (TIR) sensor on board an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) and supplemented with field measurements. In order to evaluate the altimetric variations, for each flight, a digital elevation model (DEM) was generated considering a multispectral sensor also on board the UAV. The hydrogeochemical characterization was performed through the analysis of groundwater and surface water samples, with and without the influence of mine drainage. The soil monitoring included the analysis of waste material as well as the surface soil in the surrounding area of the waste pile. All the data were analyzed and integrated in a geographical information system (GIS) open-source application. The adopted multi-approach methodology, given its intrinsic interdisciplinary character, has proven to be an effective way of encompassing the complexity of this type of environmental problem. © 2021 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland.

Language: English

Type (Professor's evaluation): Scientific

No. of pages: 26