# Migration and Accumulation of Uranium-Associated Heavy Metals in Mining-Affected Ecosystems (Water, Soil, and Plants)

## TL;DR

This paper reviews how uranium mining releases toxic metals into water, soil, and plants, creating long-term environmental and health risks.

## Contribution

The study synthesizes global research to clarify how uranium and heavy metals spread and accumulate in mining-affected ecosystems.

## Key findings

- Mining waste like tailings and waste rock are long-term sources of uranium and heavy metals.
- Soils act as a main sink for these metals, while plants absorb and spread them into food chains.
- Pollutants migrate through water, acid drainage, and air, affecting ecosystems and human health.

## Abstract

Uranium mining provides important raw materials for energy production, but it can also leave harmful substances in the environment long after mining stops. These substances include uranium and other toxic metals that can spread into water, soil, and plants. This study reviews scientific research to understand how these pollutants move through nature and where they accumulate. The results show that mining waste, such as tailings and waste rock, acts as a long-term source of contamination. Pollutants can be carried by rainwater into rivers and underground water, stored in soils for many years, and taken up by plants growing in polluted areas. Some plants accumulate these substances in their leaves and stems, allowing the pollutants to enter food chains and eventually affect people and animals. The study concludes that pollution from uranium mining is not confined to a single part of the environment but spreads through interconnected systems of water, soil, and living organisms. Understanding these pathways is important for protecting ecosystems and human health. The findings are valuable for improving environmental monitoring, guiding cleanup actions, and helping communities and decision-makers reduce the risks posed by contaminated land and water.

Uranium mining generates complex multi-element contamination that affects interconnected ecosystem components, posing long-term ecological and sanitary risks; this review places these impacts in a broad environmental context and aims to synthesize current knowledge on the distribution, migration, and accumulation of uranium and associated heavy metals in water, soil, and plants. A structured analysis of international peer-reviewed literature was conducted, focusing on documented pathways of metal release from tailings and waste dumps, geochemical controls on mobility, and biological uptake by vegetation. The reviewed studies consistently show that tailings and disturbed ore-bearing strata act as persistent sources of uranium and heavy metals (e.g., Cd, Pb, Cr, Ni, Zn, Mn, As), which migrate through infiltration, acid mine drainage, and atmospheric dispersion, leading to elevated concentrations in surface and groundwater and long-term accumulation in soils. Soils function as the principal sink controlling metal bioavailability, while vegetation reflects the bioavailable fraction and exhibits pronounced species-specific accumulation patterns. These processes establish an active “soil–water–plant” transfer chain that facilitates entry of contaminants into food webs. The synthesis indicates that combined uranium and heavy metal contamination represents a sustained ecological and public health concern in uranium-mining regions and underscores the need for integrated monitoring of soils, waters, and vegetation, along with quantitative risk assessment and scientifically grounded remediation strategies.