MINEO, Monitoring and assessing the MINEO, Monitoring and assessing the environmental impact of mining in Europe environmental impact of mining in Europe

using advanced Earth Observation techniques: using advanced Earth Observation techniques: Introduction to the UK Test SiteIntroduction to the UK Test Site

Claire CottonStuart Marsh and Gisela Ager

Remote SensingBritish Geological Survey

ccot@bgs.ac.uk

Talk Outline• Context

• UK MINEO Site Overview

- Geological Background

- Hyperspectral Data Processing

- Spectral Library

- DEM Creation

- GIS Modelling

• Next Steps

• Acknowledgements

Context

• A long history of mining in Europe has left

a waste in various forms.

• Certain minerals present within this waste

are harmful to people and the environment.

• Governments, and Industry need a cost

effective way of mapping mine waste and

prior to its remediation

Why remote sensing can help

• Minerals can be mapped remotely using hyperspectral airborne remote sensing

• Mine waste will contain characteristic minerals which can be mapped– Faster

– Cheaper

– Safer

– Non-invasively

The MINEO Project

• MINEO is an EC 5th Framework R & D project

• The aim is to develop and test Hyperspectral data analysis tools in a European context– Focus on mine pollution rather than mineral

exploration– Work in a populous, temperate environment,

rather than an arid desert

Collaboration

• The project involves collaboration between seven European geological surveys, two mining companies, an environmental organisation and an EC research institute

• Six countries are responsible for test sites and France has overall management responsibility

Schedule

• Main phases of the MINEO project

Test sites

• Arctic Environment - Greenland

• Boreal Environment - Finland

• Alpine Environment - Austria

• Central Europe - Germany

• Western Europe - UK

• Southern Europe - Portugal

UK MINEO Site

• UK study site is an area of abandoned tin mining in Cornwall

• Mineralisation occurred in several phases, due to emplacement of granite.

Area of Interest

• Green Hashed area indicates the extent of the mineralised granite and country rocks in the region.

UK MINEO Site• Mining began in the Bronze

age– peaked in the late 19th

century, with the extraction of copper, tin, lead, silver, zinc and tungsten

– then declined post War, before ceasing in the 1990's

TruroCamborne

Falmouth

A Variety of Surface Conditions

Hyperspectral Mineral Mapping

Diagnostic mineral spectra measured in the laboratory …

… can now be measured from an aircraft sensor

HyMap

• Sensor used is HyMap– Hyperspectral Airborne Scanner

– 126 Bands

– Wavelength region 0.45 - 2.5 m

– Bandwidths between 15 and 20 nm

– Pixel size between 3 and 10 m

– Owned and operated by HyVista

Airborne Hyperspectral Survey

• Hyperspectral data will soon be available from satellite sensors

• 200 km2 surveyed in 4 hours• Will be analysed over the next

year to map minerals remotely

Image processing

Conversion from Ground Radiance to Ground Reflectance

Use Ground Measurements

Use LOG Residuals (also completes remaining atmospheric correction)

Other methods ?

Atmospheric Correction - Conversion from at Sensor Radiance to Ground Radiance

1. Use Model (e.g. ATREM, ACORN)

2. Use Dark Object Subtraction (partial solution that omits some atmospheric effects)

3. Ignore

•Image Pre-processing options researched and assessed

• Image processing and mineral mapping

Spectral Library

Representative PIMA Spectrum from the Wheal Pendarves Mine

representative brown soil (Ref: Kaolinite)

Wavelength in nm

No

rm. H

ull

Q

1300 1600 1900 2200 2500

0

0.25

0.5

0.75

1

• GER and PIMA spectra recorded for calibration

•Spring 2001 field work cancelled due to foot and mouth disease outbreak

•More spectra will be measured in Autumn 2001 H & S permitting

Kaolinite closest match

DEM Creation

• UK area of responsibility

• DEM creation for 3 sites

•Austrian DEM already created

•UK and Portugal underway

•Will be used for visualisation and modelling purposes

Austrian DEM as a shaded relief model in Erdas, at 2.5m resolution

Inputs to GIS Model

• Use HyMap data to produce mineral

and pollution maps

• Use DEM to model surface

• Add data such as geochemistry and

Geology

• Model pollution path ways

• Model pollutant transport

mechanisms

• Estimate potential hazards in

proximity to areas of population

and recreation

GIS Modelling

Remaining work

• Apply final atmospheric and geometric correction

• Add to custom spectral libraries

• Complete site specific image processing and GIS analysis

• Develop generic methodologies in 2002

• Pass project findings to user community via publications and workshops in 2002

Summary

• The problem of mine waste is an important environmental issue

• Remote sensing can help to map the waste using new technology

• MINEO project is still in quite early stages

• Final results will be ready in 2002

Acknowledgements

• BGS Team

• MINEO Consortium

• HyVista

• EC

• More information at : www.brgm.fr/MINEO