Spatial nonuniformity of soil pollution in influence zone of reclaimed tailings dam

The aim of the study was assessment of spatial distribution and factor structure of soil pollution with mobile forms of Cu, Mn, Ni, Pb, Zn and Cd at a reclaimed tailings dam and in adjacent area with regard to direction from the pollution source. The study used the correlation analysis, comparison with the maximum allowable concentrations and the analysis of the main components. The results show that the maximum concentrations of Cu, Zn, Cd, Ni and Mn, higher than MAC by 2–7 times, are recorded not at the test tailings dam but in the upslope direction, which points at the domination of wind transportation of fine fractions over their aqueous run-off. Lead, vice versa, demonstrates maximum concentration in the zone of the tailings dam and in the areas downslope. The method of principal components identifies two components which explain 85% dispersion: the first component is interpreted as a contrast between the Cu–Zn–Cd–Ni–Mn association and Pb (factor of transfer from the tailings dam); the second component—as a difference of Mn+Ni and the other elements because of their mobility in the alkaline medium at pH 7–9. The scientific novelty of the study consists in the determination of the anomalous concentration of heavy metals above their source as opposed to the classical concept of the dominant downhill transportation of the pollutants. This fact requires revision of post-monitoring flow sheets at reclaimed tailings dams with obligatory recording of wind rose and production-induced dust load. 

Morgoeva A. D., Sokolova S. A., Mezhenkov A. A., Boldyreva V. E., Litvinov Y. A. Spatial nonuniformity of soil pollution in influence zone of reclaimed tailings dam. MIAB. Mining Inf. Anal. Bull. 2026;(8):79-91. [In Russ]. DOI: 10.25018/0236_1493_2026_8_0_79.

The study was supported by the Russian Science Foundation, Grant No. 25-76-31013, and was carried out at the Southern Federal University. 

A.D. Morgoeva, Assistant of Chair, North Caucasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy (State Technological University), Vladikavkaz, Russia, e-mail: m.angelika-m@yandex.ru, ORCID ID: 0000-0003-2949-1993,
S.A. Sokolova¹, Student, e-mail: sosoko@sfedu, ORCID ID: 0009-0002-4014-0887,
A.A. Mezhenkov¹, Senior Lecturer, e-mail: mezhenkov@sfedu.ru, ORCID ID: 0000-0002-5733-8796,
V.E. Boldyreva¹, Аssociate Professor, e-mail: veboldyreva@sfedu.ru, ORCID ID: 0000-0003-0233-5077,
Y.A. Litvinov¹, Аssociate Professor, e-mail: yualitvinov@sfedu.ru, ORCID ID: 0000-0001-7204-2734,
¹ Academy of Biology and Medicine, Southern Federal University, 344090, Rostov-on-Don, Russia.

A.D. Morgoeva, e-mail: m.angelika-m@yandex.ru.

1. Morgoeva A. D., Mandzhieva S. S., Kirichkov M. V., Sokolov A. A. Machine learning models study for assessing the effect of coal mining and energy enterprises on ecosystems. Sustainable Development of Mountain Territories. 2024, vol. 16, no. 3, pp. 1130—1143. [In Russ]. DOI: 10.21177/1998-4502-2024-16-3-1130-1143

2. Morgoeva A. D., Sokolov A. A., Shepelev I. I., Fomenko V. A. Research of the pollutants distribution contained in the waste from the enrichment of a decommissioned tailings pool. Sustainable Development of Mountain Territories. 2025, vol. 17, no. 3, pp. 1354—1364. [In Russ]. DOI: 10.21177/1998-4502-2025-17-3-1354-1364.

3. Morgoeva A.D., Sokolov A. A., Mandzhieva S. S. Prospects of using machine learning to monitor soil contamination with heavy metals. Problemy avtomatizatsii. Regional'noe upravlenie. Svyaz' i akustika: Sbornik trudov XIII Vserossiyskoy nauchnoy konferentsii i molodezhnogo nauchnogo foruma [Problems of automation. Regional management. Communications and Acoustics : Proceedings of the XIII All-Russian Scientific Conference and Youth Scientific Forum], Rostov-na-Donu—Taganrog, 2024, pp. 390—394. [In Russ].

4. Razmakhnin K. K., Torosyan E. S. Evaluation of environmental impact of marl mining and cement production in the Krasnodar Krai. MIAB. Mining Inf. Anal. Bull. 2025, no. 11, pp. 49—63. [In Russ]. DOI: 10.25018/0236_1493_2025_11_0_49.

5. Kulikova E. Yu., Balovtsev S. V., Skopintseva O. V. Comprehensive assessment of geoecological risks in conducting open and underground mining. Sustainable Development of Mountain Territories. 2024, vol. 16, no. 1, pp. 205—216. [In Russ]. DOI: 10.21177/1998-4502-2024-16-1-205-216.

6. Elizaryev A. N., Papyan E. E., Tarakanov D. A., Mansurov V. N. Environmental assessment of soil contaminated with heavy metals from copper-pyrite ore mining. Ecology and Industry of Russia. 2025, vol. 29, no. 12, pp. 66—71. [In Russ]. DOI: 10.18412/1816-0395-2025-12-66-71.

7. Krupskaya L., Kulikova E., Filatova M., Leonenko A. A mathematical model for assessing the impact of a man-made system on an air basin. Ecology and Industry of Russia. 2023, vol. 27, no. 8, pp. 50—57. [In Russ]. DOI: 10.18412/1816-0395-2023-8-50-57.

8. Klyuev R. V. Geoecological aspects and environmental technologies in gold cyanidation at gold recovery plants. MIAB. Mining Inf. Anal. Bull. 2026, no. 3, pp. 5—17. [In Russ]. DOI: 10.25018/0236_1493_2026_3_0_5.

9. Ramírez A. J., Claramunt A. T., Villacura M. L., Massimi L., Leiva-Guzmán M. A., Toro A. R. Source apportionment and diurnal dynamics from quasi real-time measurements of potentially toxic elements in PM10 in a coastal industrial zone. Urban Climate. 2026, no. 67, article 102866. DOI: 10.1016/j.uclim.2026.102866.

10. Acharya A., Tunga C., Banerjee S., Basu R., Ghosh S., Mondal G., Kumar S., Chakraborty S., Gorai G., Tripathi S. Deciphering stone mining-induced hazardous heavy metal contamination in agricultural soils using source attribution, health-dietary risk analysis, and machine learning-driven insights. Environmental Geochemistry and Health. 2026, vol. 48, no.6, article 280. DOI: 10.1007/s10653-026-03167-y.

11. Kozdrój J., Frączek K., Górny R. L., Ropek D. R. Soil sustainability around municipal waste landfill area is affected by microbial contamination. Sustainability (Switzerland). 2026, vol. 18, no. 6, article 2846. DOI: 10.3390/su18062846.

12. Shao Y., Yan B., Zhang K., Zhang B., Zhang Y., Li B., Chen Y., Xiang F., Zhuang X., Guo S. Distribution, environmental risks, and source apportionment of heavy metals in the lake sediments and riparian soils in Bangong Co Lake of the Qinghai—Tibet Plateau in China. Sustainability (Switzerland). 2025, vol. 17, no. 24, article 11274. DOI: 10.3390/su172411274.

13. Tan J., Chen Y., Shi W., Li J., Hou Z., Zhang J., Pan D., Zhang Y., Chen X. Early warning study on ecological risk of heavy metals in soil based on XGBoost-IER coupled model — A case study of black soil area in Jilin province. Ecological Indicators. 2026, vol. 182, article 114554. DOI: 10.1016/j.ecolind.2025.114554.

14. Dasari B. M., Aradhi K. K. Depth-resolved distribution and multivariate source apportionment of heavy metals in soils influenced by hydraulic fracturing activities in the Krishna—Godavari Onshore Basin, India. Archives of Environmental Contamination and Toxicology. 2026, vol. 90, no. 1, article 2. DOI: 10.1007/s00244-025-01178-x.

15. Shi M., Wang C., Wang J., Zhong C., Zhao Y. Quantifying heavy metal(loid)s sources in subtropical soils and assessing key determinants of their bioavailability: insights from the Yangtze River Delta, China. Plant and Soil. 2026, vol. 518, no. 2, pp. 2015—2035. DOI: 10.1007/s11104-025-08115-w.

16. Kala D., Bayari E. E., Pedavoah M.-M., Oluyinka O. A. Contamination status and potential ecological risk assessment of soil heavy metals at central magazine, Wa, North-Western Ghana. Environmental Geochemistry and Health. 2026, vol. 48, no. 1, article 35. DOI: 10.1007/s10653-025-02777-2.

17. Smagin S., Ozarya Y., Usikov V., Smagin A., Tsygulev K., Sekrieru R., Orlov S., Kozhevnikova T. Automation of remote environmental monitoring of mineral resource complex facilities in Khabarovsk krai. Informatics and Automation. 2025, vol. 24, no. 6, pp. 1587—1622. DOI: 10.15622/ia.24.6.3.

18. Seryanina A. V., Ovchinnikova T. I., Tertychnaya S. V. On the issue of environmental safety in the metallurgical industry. Occupational Safety in Industry. 2024, no. 8, pp. 23—28. [In Russ]. DOI: 10.24000/0409-2961-2024-8-23-28.

19. Shabanov M. V., Marichev M. S., Kirichkov M. V., Tsitsuashvili V. S., Mandzhieva S. S. Eco-risks, lability and bioavailability of copper and zinc in soils of the Soimonov Valley, Karabash. MIAB. Mining Inf. Anal. Bull. 2026, no. 2, pp. 112—127. [In Russ]. DOI: 10.25018/0236_1493_2026_2_0_112.

20. Halmos L., Delgado-Rodríguez J., Rodríguez-Rodríguez M., Jiménez-Bonilla A., Díaz-Azpiroz M. Correction to: Geochemical evolution and elemental behaviour of playa sediments: impacts of natural weathering and agricultural practices. Journal of Iberian Geology. 2025, vol. 51, no. 4, pp. 707—709. DOI: 10.1007/s41513-025-00322-9.