Rare Earth Element Accumulation and Fractionation in a Lake Ecosystem Impacted by Past Uranium Mining

Abstract

Rare earth elements (REEs) are a natural resource of vital economic interest. While REE mining and processing are known for severe environmental issues, REEs are also by-products of other mining processes (e.g. uranium). Here, we provide an in-depth assessment of REE distribution across a lake system impacted by adjacent uranium mining over a long period (Bow Lake, Ontario, Canada). We observed a robust REE-U correlation with a consistent La/U ratio of 2.0\u2009±\u20090.2 and La concentrations up to 2200 µg g−1. Selective extraction results demonstrated that 80–94% of REEs were acid extractible, while 3–8% of REEs were extracted by an alkaline solution (i.e. bound to natural organic matter). Analysis of specific REE patterns, together with a strong REE-P correlation, suggest that (co)precipitation with P mineral would be an important mechanism sequestrating REEs into Bow Lake sediments. Moreover, we identified three sources of particles delivering REEs into the lake with unique REE patterns: mine tailings, U ores and Precambrian bedrock. Negative Sm anomalies were detected in three soil samples and associated with the Precambrian bedrock. We also detected positive Gd and La anomalies in the sediments. Lanthanum anomalies were strongly correlated with U authigenic accumulation and thus associated with microbial processes requiring La, such as methanotrophy. This research demonstrates that lake sediments adjacent to U mining could represent ecological risks given that La and other REE concentrations largely exceed the maximum permissible concentrations. Water and sediment quality criteria are therefore required as both primary REE mining and extraction of REEs as by-products from legacy metallurgical tailings are increasing.