Acid Sulphate Soil

Acid sulphate soils are typically viewed as soil types that contain metal sulfides which can
oxidize to generate acidity upon exposure to atmosphere and moisture. Acid sulphate soils are
widely distributed around the world and can cause severe agricultural, engineering and
environmental problems if they are not properly managed.

Acid sulphate soils are naturally occurring soils, sediments or organic substrates (e.g. peat) that
are formed under waterlogged conditions. These soils contain iron sulfide minerals
(predominantly as the mineral pyrite) or their oxidation products. In an undisturbed state
below the water table, acid sulphate soils are benign. However if the soils are drained,
excavated or exposed to air by a lowering of the water table, the sulfides will react with oxygen
to form sulfuric acid.

Release of this sulfuric acid from the soil can in turn release iron, aluminum, and other heavy
metals (particularly arsenic) within the soil. Once mobilized in this way, the acid and metals can
create a variety of adverse impacts: killing vegetation, seeping into and acidifying groundwater
and water bodies, killing fish and other aquatic organisms, and degrading concrete and steel
structures to the point of failure.

The soils and sediments which are most prone to becoming acid sulphate soils are those which
formed within the last 10,000 years, after the last major sea level rise. When the sea level rose
and inundated the land, sulphate in the seawater mixed with land sediments containing iron
oxides and organic matter. Under these anaerobic conditions, lithotrophic bacteria such as
Thiobacillus ferrooxidans form iron sulfides (pyrite). Up to a point, warmer temperatures are
more favorable conditions for these bacteria, creating a greater potential for formation of iron
sulfides. Tropical waterlogged environments, such as mangrove swamps or estuaries, may
contain higher levels of pyrite than those formed in more temperate climates.

The pyrite is stable until it is exposed to air, at which point the pyrite oxidizes and produces
sulfuric acid. The impacts of acid sulphate soil leachate may persist over a long time, and/or
peak seasonally (after dry periods with the first rains). In some areas of Australia, acid sulphate
soils that drained 100 years ago are still releasing acid.

Geographical distribution

Acid sulphate soils represent a considerable land area in Asia (18-20 million hectares), mainly in
Cambodia, China, Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand and Vietnam. Acid sulphate soils are widespread
around coastal regions, and are also locally associated with freshwater wetlands and saline
sulphate-rich groundwater in some agricultural areas. In Australia, coastal acid sulphate soils
occupy an estimated 40,000 km2, underlying coastal estuaries and floodplains near where the
majority of the Australian population lives. Acid sulphate soil disturbance is often associated
with dredging, excavation dewatering activities during canal, housing and marina
developments.
Acid sulphate soils in the Mekong delta cover 1.6 million hectares, of which 400,000 ha are
located in the Plain of Reeds. Due to the presence of pyrite that yields acid when oxidized, all
acid sulphate soils are (potentially) strongly acidic. Reclamation of the 150,000 ha of severely
acid sulphates soils still uncultivated in 1990 became a national priority and now attracts local
farmers and migrants. However, these soils present important agronomic problems and
farmers urgently need advice to reclaim them. However, the development of recommendation
and the cultivation of acid sulphate soils on a large scale are made difficult by their very high
variability.

Broadening the Definition

Traditionally, the use of the term “acid sulphate soil” was confined to coastal soils evolved from
sulfidic estuarine and marine sediments. In recent years, inland soils that contain metal sulfides
are increasingly referred to as acid sulphate soils. Inland ASS’ are especially widespread in mine
sites that are associated with sulfide-containing geological formations. There are also many
areas of inland acid sulphate soils that have been made by highway and other construction
activities, including the deposition of dredged materials from shipping channels at upland sites
etc.

Acid rock drainage (ARD) or acid mine drainage (AMD) has attracted substantial management
and research efforts from mining industry and scientific communities. Both, AMD and ARD
share similar mineralogical and geochemical properties and they can be treated using similar
control measures and remediation technologies. It is expected that a gathering of researchers
and industry practitioners in both of these areas will be to the benefit of each other by allowing
information exchanges between the two parties.

Housing, marina, infrastructure and farming developments frequently disturb soils and
sediments, sometimes with dramatic consequences. Acid Sulphate Soils occur naturally in both
coastal (tidal) and inland or upland (freshwater) settings. Left undisturbed, these soils are
harmless, but when excavated or drained, the sulfides within the soil react with the oxygen in
the air, forming sulfuric acid. This acid, together with associated toxic elements (heavy metals
and other contaminants), can kill plants and animals, contaminate drinking water and food such
as oysters, and corrode concrete and steel. Land managers need to be able to identify those
areas where development is either best avoided, or is going to need some special treatment.

Impacts of Acid Sulphate Soil

Disturbing potential acid sulphate soils can have a destructive effect on plant and fish life, and
on coastal ecosystems. Flushing of acidic leachate to groundwater and surface waters can cause
a number of impacts, including:

Ecological damage to aquatic and riparian ecosystems through fish kills, increased fish
disease outbreaks, dominance of acid-tolerant species, precipitation of iron, etc.
 Effects on estuarine fisheries and aquaculture projects (increased disease, loss of
spawning area, etc).
Contamination of groundwater with arsenic, aluminum and other heavy metals.
Reduction in agricultural productivity through metal contamination of soils
(predominantly by aluminum).
Damage to infrastructure through the corrosion of concrete and steel pipes, bridges and
other sub-surface assets.

Agricultural impacts

Potentially acid sulphate soils (also called cat-clays) are often not cultivated or, if they are,
planted under rice, so that the soil can be kept wet preventing oxidation. Subsurface drainage
of these soils is normally not advisable.

When cultivated, acid sulphate soils cannot be kept wet continuously because of climatic dry
spells and shortages of irrigation water, surface drainage may help to remove the acidic and
toxic chemicals (formed in the dry spells) during rainy periods. In the long run surface drainage
can help to reclaim acid sulphate soils. The indigenous population of Guinea Bissau has thus
managed to develop the soils, but it has taken them many years of careful management and
toil.

In an article on cautious land drainage the author describes the successful application of
subsurface drainage in acid sulphate soils in coastal polders of Kerala state, India. Also in the
Sunderbans, West Bengal, India, acid sulphate soils have been taken in agricultural use.

A study in South Kalimantan, Indonesia, in a per-humid climate, has shown that the acid
sulphate soils with a widely spaced subsurface drainage system have yielded promising results
for the cultivation of upland (sic!) rice, pea nut and soy bean. The local population, of old, had
already settled in this area and were able to produce a variety of crops (including tree fruits),
using hand-dug drains running from the river into the land until reaching the back swamps. The
crop yields were modest, but provided enough income to make a decent living.

Reclaimed cat-clays have a well developed soil structure, they are well permeable, but infertile
due to the leaching that has occurred.

In the second half of the 20th century, in many parts of the world, waterlogged and potentially
acid sulphate soils have been drained aggressively to make them productive for agriculture. The
results were disastrous. The soils are unproductive, the lands look barren and the water is very
clear, devoid of silt and life. The soils can be colorful, though.

Discussion

There is quite a bit of material published about acid sulphate soils in Vietnam and, there has
even been a conference on the problem held in Vietnam. There is no doubt that the problem is
huge in Vietnam and that there are huge potential opportunities in agriculture in Vietnam and
there will be even more opportunities when canals and other water bodies are dredged and the
sediment is placed where it is exposed to oxygen. Sediment dredged from canals and the like is
usually some of the worst possible material because it contains iron monosulphides, which are
the most reactive acid generating forms; these sediments already create huge problems
elsewhere.

Although the chemistry of acid sulphate soils was recognized only a couple of decades ago, they
are a huge problem worldwide and there have already been many international conferences on
the topic (the next one is later this year in China). There are thousands of square kms of coastal
land affected by acid sulphate soils around the world and each square km can generate tens of
tons of sulphuric acid per year. Quite apart from damaging agriculture and aquatic ecosystems,
the acid sulphate soils can cause serious damage to buildings and infrastructure such as bridges,
concrete pipes and drains. The cost of the problems caused by acid sulphate soils is estimated
in the hundreds of millions of dollars per year in Australia alone. Re-flooding does not
necessarily solve the problem although regular flushing with seawater will fix it because
seawater has some available alkalinity.

When it comes to dredging canals and harbors, the problem can be even worse because here
you have monosulphide black oozes and not just pyrite. The monosulphide black oozes are a
more reactive form of iron sulphide and they can react to produce vast quantities of acid in as
little as a few hours. These monosulphide black oozes are the main problem for shrimp farms
and they get worse as dead algae and shrimp excrement accumulate in the ponds and cause
geochemical conditions to become more reducing. Such reducing conditions favour the
biogenic formation of monosulphide black oozes and then any oxidisation can rapidly produce
vast quantities of acid. The acid is bad enough for the shrimp but it can also release a lot of
metals (particularly aluminum) from the sediment and this can compound the problems for
marine organisms.

Normal fertilizers (both compost and inorganic compounds such as superphosphate) tend to
increase boom-crash cycles for algal growth in water bodies and this leads to cycles in
monosulphide black ooze formation and then acid generation. This process then leads to
increased damage to shrimp farms, agricultural land (particularly rice fields) and aquatic
ecosystems near affected areas.

We don't think that anyone knows the full extent of the problem in Vietnam or elsewhere in
Asia. Even in Australia the mapping of the distribution and seriousness of acid sulphate soils is
still being mapped and Australia was the first place to start doing this work (and remains the
world leader on acid sulphate soil assessment). It is quite easy to do analyses to quantify the
distribution of acid sulphate soils but the work takes quite a lot of time. It is also necessary to
distinguish between actual acid sulphate soils (i.e. those where the sulphides have already been
oxidized and the acid already exists in the soil - TAA) and potential acid sulphate soils (i.e. those
soils containing sulphides that will oxidize given any exposure to oxygen - TPA); both types can
coexist indicating that oxidization is incomplete.
Although most of the money would be spent through Southern Cross University (staffing and
analytical costs) we propose to administer the two phases of the work through Mt Aspiring
Geochemical (McConchie IP Group) and that way Mt Aspiring Geochemical can provide the
funds to the university as a block grant that can be used by the university to attract additional
funds from the Australian Federal Government (as an ARC Collaborative Grant). This way the
university gets additional benefits that you don't have to pay for and can therefore afford to
charge out analytical costs etc. at the research rate, which is only about 20% of the standard
commercial rate. we have not worked out exact budgets, but we expect, based on previous
experience, that the A$20,000 for phase I and the A$25,000 for phase II would be fairly close to
the mark and would be much cheaper than doing the work as a conventional consultancy
project.

The Solution

Normal fertilizers (both compost and inorganic compounds such as superphosphate) tend to
increase boom-crash cycles for algal growth in water bodies and this leads to cycles in
monosulphide black ooze formation and then acid generation. This process then leads to
increased damage to shrimp farms, agricultural land (particularly rice fields) and aquatic
ecosystems near affected areas. Our solution is to use our bio-converted material and amend it
with an acid mitigation ammendment. This blended product will provide all the characteristics
of a rich bio-fertilizer product while addressing the Acid Sulphate remediation problem. Our
process will blend the amendment to exacting conditions after testing the local environment.

The ammendment addition either directly or as an additive with compost can solve this
problem very effectively by neutralizing any acid that is produced thereby preventing the pH
falling to the extent that ferric iron can become an oxidant and accelerate the decomposition of
sulphides (by up to a million times). The ammendment also locks up the potentially
troublesome elements such as aluminum, arsenic, copper, etc. The ammendment is better
than lime because it cannot be leached out by water and because if not quite enough lime is
added, the resulting bicarbonate ions can act as a catalyst and accelerate the decomposition of
sulphides; in contrast, it does not add significant bicarbonate because it uses hydroxyl ions to
neutralize acid rather than carbonate or bicarbonate.

The technology can treat both types of Acid Soils but we need to adjust the blend we use
according to the amount of TAA and TPA. We have standard analytical methods for measuring
the amount of TAA and TPA present; these are well documented in government guidelines.
Once finalized blending work is done, a designed software product will enable the proper
blending vs. field measurements and desired results.