Case study:Gunnerside Gill: Abandoned metal mines

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Location: 54° 22' 46.14" N, 2° 4' 22.64" W

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Project overview

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Status	In progress
Project web site
Themes	Environmental flows and water resources, Habitat and biodiversity, Monitoring, Water quality
Country	England
Main contact forename	Hugh
Main contact surname	Potter
Main contact user ID	User:undefined
Contact organisation	Environment Agency
Contact organisation web site
Partner organisations	The Coal Authority (UK)
Parent multi-site project	undefined
This is a parent project encompassing the following projects	No

Gunnerside Gill with steep spoil tips at Dolly Mine

Project summary

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Gunnerside Gill, in the Humber River Basin District, is located to the west of Richmond, North Yorkshire in upper Swaledale. The area was mined for lead, zinc and barium between 1700 and 1900. Cadmium occurs as a significant impurity in the lead-zinc minerals. The mineralisation occurs along vertical faults in the Carboniferous Limestone and Millstone Grit rocks at Gunnerside Gill and adjoining areas of Swaledale in Yorkshire, and forms part of the North Pennine Orefield.

There is an extensive legacy of metal mining at Gunnerside Gill including many shafts, adits and drainage levels with several smelters and associated ore dressing floors. There are large areas of unvegetated spoil and bare rock exposed in deep hushes. Some spoil tips, such as at Dolly Mine, have steep unstable slopes that are being constantly eroded at the base by Gunnerside Gill, which also cuts through spoil in dressing floors situated in the valley bottom. Gunnerside Gill catchment (13sq.lm) is entirely within the Yorkshire Dales National Park and almost all of the catchment is co-designated as SSSI, SAC and SPA with some scheduled Ancient Woodland in the valley bottom above Gunnerside village. All of the mine site buildings are derelict, but there are 9 Scheduled Ancient Monuments including parts of the Blakethwaite, Lownathwaite, Bunton, Dolly, Barbara and Sir Francis mines. Bunton Lead Mine is listed on the MINING WASTE DIRECTIVE INVENTORY.

There are 19 adits/levels identified in the catchment, and 2 of these, Bunton Level and Sir Francis Level, were purposely constructed as drainage levels and still have permanent discharge flows, with water containing high concentrations of lead, zinc and cadmium entering Gunnerside Gill. Chemical sampling of the tributary that flows from Kining Level indicates that there may be consistent flows here also. A number of single sampling events to investigate metal pollution of Gunnerside Gill and to establish the Mining Waste Directive inventory were carried out by the Environment Agency and Hull University in 2010 and 2011. These studies all showed concentrations of Pb, Zn and Cd above their respective EQS values of 7.2, 50, and 0.09ug/L (Zn and Cd are hardness based), while Cu, Fe and Mn concentrations were acceptable.

Based on the above findings, a catchment characterisation programme was implemented in 2012-2013 using Defra funding, provided to investigate water pollution from abandoned metal mines. This project comprised monthly water quality sampling and simultaneous spot flow gauging at 6 locations, including the Bunton and Sir Francis Level discharges. An extra location was later added to investigate potential contribution of metal loading from Kining Level. The water quality results showed that the discharges from Bunton Level and Sir Francis Level contained the highest metal concentrations as follows:

Bunton Level average concentrations (ug/L): Pb = 50 Zn = 800 Cd = 8
Sir Francis Level average concentrations (ug/L): Pb = 25 Zn = 1650 Cd = 14

Metal loading was calculated from the concentration and flow data. When metal loadings were examined under different flow conditions, the contribution from the point source adit discharges were more significant during low flows, but less so in high flow conditions, when diffuse sources from spoil tips and re-suspension of contaminated sediments become more significant in the overall metal loading to Gunnerside Gill and entering the River Swale.

The Environment Agency has collaborated with the Yorkshire Dales National Park Authority and funded a heritage survey report, to look at options for remediation and reduction of metal pollution of Gunnerside Gill that do not adversely affect the integrity of the Scheduled Ancient Monuments.

Impacts of metal mining at Gunnerside Gill

Length of watercourse affected 6km to confluence with River Swale
Average flow at the Swale confluence 150L/s
Average metal concentrations (ug/L): Pb = 30 Zn = 170 Cd = 1.6
Average metal loading (kg/year): Pb = 140 Zn = 800 Cd = 8
Water body WFD status in 2009: Ecology = Good Chemistry = DNRA

Benefits of remediation:

The River Swale will be protected from major metal pollution sources
Scheduled Ancient Monuments will not be damaged by any remedial actions
Developing partnerships with important stakeholders (YDNPA and Coal Authority) and using our

position as an influential advisor to deliver shared environmental outcomes

Contribute towards achieving Good Ecological and Chemical Status under WFD

Monitoring surveys and results

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An ecological monitoring programme was also undertaken to complement the water quality study and investigate the effects of metal pollution on macrophytes, invertebrates and diatoms. The ecological surveys were carried out in 3 seasonal sampling events over 2 years. Preliminary results show little adverse effects on invertebrates and macrophytes, but distortion of diatom valves in some species.

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Image gallery

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Catchment and subcatchment Select a catchment/subcatchment Edit the catchment and subcatchment details (affects all case studies in this subcatchment) Catchment River basin district Humber River basin Swale, Ure, Nidd and Upper Ouse Subcatchment River name Gunnerside Gill from Source to River Swale Area category 10 - 100 km² Area (km2) Maximum altitude category 500 - 1000 m Maximum altitude (m) 669669 m <br />0.669 km <br />66,900 cm <br /> Dominant geology Siliceous Ecoregion Great Britain Dominant land cover Bog Waterbody ID GB104027069090 Site Edit site Name WFD water body codes GB104027069090 WFD (national) typology WFD water body name Gunnerside Gill from Source to River Swale Pre-project morphology Reference morphology Desired post project morphology Heavily modified water body No National/international site designation Local/regional site designations Protected species present No Invasive species present No Species of interest Dominant hydrology Dominant substrate River corridor land use Average bankfull channel width category Average bankfull channel width (m) Average bankfull channel depth category Average bankfull channel depth (m) Mean discharge category Mean annual discharge (m3/s) Average channel gradient category Average channel gradient Average unit stream power (W/m2) Project background Edit project background Reach length directly affected (m) 6km6,000 m <br />600,000 cm <br /> Project started 2012 Works started Works completed Project completed Total cost category Total cost (k€) Benefit to cost ratio Funding sources Cost for project phases Phase cost category cost exact (k€) Lead organisation Contact forename Contact surname Investigation and design Stakeholder engagement and communication Works and works supervision Post-project management and maintenance Monitoring Reasons for river restoration Edit reasons for restoration Mitigation of a pressure Pollution incident, Mine drainage metal concentrations, Steep unstable slope erosion Hydromorphology Biology Physico-chemical Nutrient concentrations Other reasons for the project Measures Edit Measures Structural measures Bank/bed modifications Floodplain / River corridor Planform / Channel pattern Other Non-structural measures Management interventions Catchment Characterisation Programme, Spot flow gauging, Options for remediation Social measures (incl. engagement) Other Sampling to investigate metal pollution, Improving water quality Monitoring Hydromorphological quality elements Edit Hydromorphological quality elements Element When monitored Type of monitoring Control site used Result Before measures After measures Qualitative Quantitative Biological quality elements Edit biological quality elements Element When monitored Type of monitoring Control site used Result Before measures After measures Qualitative Quantitative Physico-chemical quality elements Edit Physico-chemical quality elements Element When monitored Type of monitoring Control site used Result Before measures After measures Qualitative Quantitative Any other monitoring, e.g. social, economic Edit Other responses Element When monitored Type of monitoring Control site used Result Before measures After measures Qualitative Quantitative Monitoring documents Upload monitoring documents Additional documents and videos Upload additional documents Additional links and references Edit links and references Link Description Supplementary Information Edit Supplementary Information