Redistribution of monosulfidic black oozes by floodwaters in a coastal acid sulfate soil floodplain
Richard T. Bush A , Leigh A. Sullivan A , Diane Fyfe A and Scott Johnston BA Centre for Acid Sulfate Soil Research, Southern Cross University, Lismore, NSW 2480, Australia.
B NSW Agriculture, Grafton, NSW 2460, Australia.
Australian Journal of Soil Research 42(6) 603-607 https://doi.org/10.1071/SR03073
Submitted: 16 May 2003 Accepted: 3 May 2004 Published: 17 September 2004
Abstract
The observations presented in this paper illustrate that significant amounts of monosulfidic black oozes (MBO) were eroded from flood mitigation drainage canals and redistributed across a coastal floodplain during a flood event associated with extreme deoxygenation and a massive fish kill. MBO are organic materials enriched in iron monosulfides and thick layers can accumulate in drains affected by acid sulfate soils. Laboratory studies have demonstrated that MBO can react rapidly when brought into suspension to completely consume dissolved oxygen. The abundance of MBO in flood mitigation drains and their extreme reactivity implicated MBO in the acute deoxygenation of the Richmond River, north-eastern New South Wales, Australia, following a major flood in February 2001. The field observations of MBO redistribution provide valuable evidence to help explain how these materials may interact and contribute to the deoxygenation of floodwaters.
Additional keywords: iron sulfides, pyrite, monosulfides, acid volatile sulfur, deoxygenation, MBO.
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