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Document Type
Book Chapter
Department/Program
Virginia Institute of Marine Science
Editors
C. Y. Kuo, T. M. Younos, editors
Publication Date
1986
Book Title
Proceedings of the Chesapeake Bay Research Conference: Effects of Upland and Shoreline Land Use on the Chesapeake Bay
Publisher
Not Identified
Abstract
The safe disposal of fly ash from power plants remains a concern because of dwindling available disposal sites and potential or actual environmental consequences. During the period from 1957 to 1974, the Virginia Electric and Power Co. station at Yorktown used a mixture of coal and refinery coke for power generation. The fly ash and bottom ash byproducts were disposed of in borrow pits which drain into Chisman Creek, a small estuary near the York River. In 1980 a domestic well near the pits turned green and tests revealed high concentrations of V and Se in some wells. Subsequently, contaminated wells were capped and homes were connected to the municipal water supply.
In late 1981 with a small.grant from the Virginia Environmental Endowment, we began a more detailed investigation of possible contamination from the pits. The sampling program included groundwater, surface water, estuarine water, flyash, soils near the pits, oysters and a variety of plants in the immediate vicinity. Most importantly, these samples were analyzed by PIXE (Proton-Induced X-Ray Emission), a sensitive and accurate multielemental technique which can simultaneously detect all elements from silicon to uranium without prior knowledge of the elements present.
Recommended Citation
Grant, George C.; Neilson, Bruce J.; and Silberhorn, Gene M., "Trace Element Contamination from Fly Ash Sites Near Chisholm Creek, VA" (1986). VIMS Books and Book Chapters. 158.
https://scholarworks.wm.edu/vimsbooks/158
