Acid Mine Drainage

Fact Sheets & Reports | Guidance Documents & Manuals | Information Resources & Centers

Acid mine drainage (AMD) is the formation and movement of highly acidic water rich in heavy metals. This acidic water forms through the chemical reaction of surface water (rainwater, snowmelt, pond water) and shallow subsurface water with rocks that contain sulfur-bearing minerals, resulting in sulfuric acid. Heavy metals can be leached from rocks that come in contact with the acid, a process that may be substantially enhanced by bacterial action. The resulting fluids may be highly toxic and, when mixed with groundwater, surface water and soil, may have harmful effects on humans, animals and plants.

Top of Page

Fact Sheets and Reports

• Technical Report: Acid Mine Drainage Prediction (PDF) (52 pp, 181K, About PDF)
  This technical document provides a brief review of acid forming processes at mine sites, a summary of the current methods used to predict acid formation, selected state regulatory requirements, and case histories (December 1994, EPA 530-R-94-036).
  
  
• Prevention of Acid Mine Drainage Generation from Open-Pit Highwalls: Final Report Mine Waste Technology Program Activity III, Project 26
  This document summarizes the results of performance data on the ability of four technologies to prevent the generation of acid mine drainage (AMD) from an open-pit highwall (July 2005, EPA 600-R-05-060).

Top of Page

Guidance Documents and Manuals

• Abandoned Mine Site Characterization and Cleanup Handbook (PDF) (129 pp, 1.2MB, About PDF)
  This handbook is a resource for project managers working to address the environmental concerns posed by inactive mines and mineral processing sites. The focus of the handbook is the environmental hazards at abandoned mining sites (August 2000, EPA 910-B-00-001).

Top of Page

Information Resources and Centers

• Mid-Atlantic Acid Mine Drainage (from EPA Region 3)
  This site provides background information for acid mine drainage in the Mid-Atlantic Region.
  
  
• U.S. Department of Interior's Office of Surface Mining
  Resources, references and funding information for state and tribal professionals addressing surface mining issues.
  
  
• Acid Mine Drainage (from the Environmental Literacy Council)
  Background information, resources and classroom activities related to acid mine drainage.
  
  
• The Science of Acid Mine Drainage and Passive Treatment (from the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection)
  This site provides information on the chemistry of acid mine drainage and background and chemical information for passive treatment options available for acid mine drainage.
  
  
• AMD and Art Project
  This innovative outreach and education project addresses acid mine drainage through the arts and sciences. The project won EPA's Phoenix Award in 2005.