Impact of Old Pb Mining and Metallurgical Production in Soils from the Linares Mining District (Spain)

Mineral processing and metallurgy production centers may leave a far-reaching fingerprint of soil contamination. This scenario is particularly relevant in the mining district Linares (Southern Spain), where former industrial sites are now dedicated to other land uses. Within this context, we selected five sectors concern region, which currently used as agricultural residential areas. The study began with an edaphic characterization, including grain-size fractioning chemical analyses, were complemented by mineralogical sequential extraction information. Anomalous concentrations As, Cd, Cu, Pb, Zn found, higher values than admissible regional guideline limits. Moreover, speciation indicated that general, Zn, Cd highly available bound mainly carbonate fraction. In addition, health risk assessment evidenced potential threats Pb As. Regarding remediation approaches, observed that, soils affected ore dressing activities, clay silt size fractions contained highest pollution load, making them suitable for classification treatment. By contrast, areas metallurgical activity, pollutants prone be evenly distributed among all grain sizes, thereby complicating implementation such strategies.