Effects of Application of Organic and Inorganic Wastes for Restoration of Sulphur-Mine Soil.

In situ remediation with waste material is an inexpensive method to reduce contaminant availability in polluted soil. The experiments were done to investigate the effects of possible in situ application of two different amendments: inorganic material (marble sludge) and organic material (horticultural waste compost) on chemical and biological properties of abandoned metalliferous mine wastes. The results show that the application of inorganic material raises the pH above neutrality and the combination of inorganic and organic material would produce the highest ratio of biological activity. The reductions of available Zn, Pb and As in lime, organic and lime/organic amendments were favoured by incubation time. However, available Cd content increased after 275 days of incubation, except the treatment with inorganic amendment. This work denoted that the application of lime with organic amendments has a better effect than the lime alone because the addition of both amendments improves both soil chemical and biological properties. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]