260 Advances in Geospatial Applications for Environmental and Engineering Geology (Posters)

Recent advancements in geospatial technologies have enhanced our ability to analyze, model, and predict geological and environmental processes with high precision. This session will explore the latest innovations in remote sensing, GIS, and data analytics applied to environmental engineering geosciences.

Wednesday, 22 October 2025
8:00 AM - 5:30 PM
HBGCC, Hall 1

Evaluating the Applicability of Soil Moisture Estimation Algorithms to Mine Tailings Impoundments

Paper number: 260-4
Program: Technical Sessions
Time: 8:00 AM – 8:00 AM

Authors

Abstract

Mine tailings impoundments are structures that are built to contain the chemical and sediment byproducts generated by ore extraction activities. In this standard method of mining waste storage, the tailings can be pumped into containment ponds and held behind earthen embankments to prevent the release of dangerous substances into the surrounding environment. The ability to monitor environmental factors that influence the structural stability of tailings impoundments, in both active and inactive mines, is necessary to identify areas at risk of failure.  Soil moisture is a factor that has the potential to impact the stability of the mine tailings impoundment structures. In this study, four soil moisture estimation algorithms were used to estimate moisture levels at a tailing’s impoundment. Data from SMAP, Sentinel-1, Sentinel-2, and Landsat-8 satellites were analyzed from 2017 to 2021, based on their temporal coverage and spatial resolution, along a small section of active tailings impoundment. The Sentinel-1 Dual-Polarization soil moisture estimation technique and Sentinel-2 optical trapezoid model (OPTRAM) have 10 m spatial resolution. However, the Sentinel-1 satellite had roughly 4 times the number of data points for the given area, demonstrating much higher temporal resolution. The 9 km resolution SMAP and 30 m resolution Landsat-8 thermal-optical trapezoid model (TOTRAM) are coarser resolution estimation techniques that resulted in 4 to 20 times fewer data points, making them inaccurate for fine-scale soil moisture estimation at tailings impoundments. From these calculations, it was determined that the Sentinel-1 model provides the highest spatial and temporal resolution for the small geographic region surrounding an impoundment structure.

Geological Society of America Abstracts with Programs. Vol. 57, No. 6

doi: 10.1130/abs/2025AM-414853

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