An Evaluation of Metal Contamination in Surface and Groundwater around a Proposed Uranium Mining Site, Jharkhand, India

The East Singhbhum region is a highly mineralised zone, with extensive mining of copper, uranium, and other minerals. The concentrations of certain metals (Fe, Mn, Zn, Pb, Cu, and Ni) were measured in 10 groundwater locations and eight surface water locations for four seasons during 1 year around a proposed uranium mining area. The ranges of Fe, Mn, Zn, Pb, Cu, and Ni in surface water were 0.08–1.21, 0.02–0.32, 0.02–3.48 mg/L, 0.84–14, 1.25–36, and 1.24–15 μg/L, respectively, while in groundwater, the ranges were 0.06–5.3, 0.01–1.3, 0.02–8.2 mg/L, 1.4–28, 0.78–20, and 1.05–20 μg/L, respectively. Only Fe and Mn were found to exceed India’s drinking water standards. The data have been used to calculate a metal pollution index (MPI). The MPI of both groundwater (28) and surface water (10) is well below the index limit of 100, which suggest that neither is generally contaminated with respect to these metals.