Worldwide, black shales and shale waste are known to be a potential source of metals to the environment. This project demonstrates ongoing weathering and evaluates leaching processes at a 100-m-high shale waste deposit closed in the 1960s. Some deep parts of the deposit are still burning with temperatures exceeding 500 °C. To demonstrate ongoing weathering and leaching, analyses of groundwater and solid samples of shale and shale waste have been undertaken. Largest impact on groundwater quality was observed downstream the deposit, where elevated temperatures also indicate a direct impact from the burning waste deposit. Groundwater quality is largely controlled by pH and redox conditions (e.g., for arsenic, nickel, molybdenum, uranium and vanadium), and the mixture of different waste materials, including pyrite (acidic leachates) and carbonates (neutralizing and buffering pH). Analyses of shale waste from the deposit confirm the expected pyrite weathering with high concentrations of iron, nickel and uranium in the leachates. No general time trends could be distinguished for the groundwater quality from the monitoring in 2004–2019. This study has shown that black shale waste deposits can have a complex long-term impact on the surrounding environment.

在世界范围内，众所周知，黑色页岩和页岩废料是环境金属的潜在来源。该项目展示了在 1960 年代关闭的 100 米高的页岩废料矿床的持续风化并评估浸出过程。矿床的一些深部仍在燃烧，温度超过 500 °C。为了证明持续的风化和浸出，已经对地下水和页岩和页岩废料的固体样本进行了分析。在沉积物下游观察到对地下水质量的最大影响，温度升高也表明燃烧废物沉积物的直接影响。地下水质量主要受 pH 值和氧化还原条件（例如，砷、镍、钼、铀和钒）以及不同废料的混合物的控制，包括黄铁矿（酸性渗滤液）和碳酸盐（中和和缓冲 pH 值）。对来自矿床的页岩废料的分析证实了预期的黄铁矿风化，渗滤液中铁、镍和铀的浓度很高。根据 2004-2019 年的监测，无法区分地下水质量的一般时间趋势。这项研究表明，黑色页岩废料沉积物会对周围环境产生复杂的长期影响。