Preliminary results of ecotoxicological assessment of an Acid Mine Drainage (AMD) passive treatment system testing water quality of depurated lixiviates

Abstract

The current work reports on the preliminary results of a toxicity test using screening experiments to check the efficiency of an innovative passive treatment plant designed for acid mine drainage purification. Bioassays took place with water samples before and after the treatment system and in the river, once treated water is discharged. Due to the high toxicity of the water collected at the mouth of the mine (before the treatment plant), the bioassay was designed and developed with respect to the exposed organism and the characteristics of the water. The results obtained in the screening experiment show the high efficiency of the treatment plant in terms of ecotoxicity, using Artemia sp. toxicity test.