Overview
I am a PhD student with Karen Hudson-Edwards. I began with a military career in the Royal Marine Commandos, then did some time in the US Army where I underwent strenous training in Alaska. I then decided to pursue a career in research, trying to identify solutions to pressing environmental problems. The focus of my PhD is to identify the extent of Acid Rock Drainage/ Acid Mine Drainage globally, and to see how this impacts the biogeochemical cycle, and to the greater extent our biosphere.
The primary objective of this research is to determine the global scale of AMD/ARD within a geospatial model and to observe the impacts on the biogeochemical cycle. The overall objectives are to create a geospatial model using ArcGIS in collaboration with Catapult Satellite Applications Company, to input ARD/AMD total flux into a 7-box reservoir biogeochemical model, and to then use a spatial overlapping coincidence tool on the geospatial model of ARD/AMD with ecologically sensitive areas using various species as biological indicators.
Qualifications
Sep 2013 – 2016 ~ University of East Anglia & University of York: Environmental Science
- BSc Upper Second Class (Hons.)
- Entry scholarship for this by the University of East Anglia Alumni for previous academic achievement.
- BSc Final Year Dissertation (First – class mark): An investigation into the role of public aquariums in freshwater and marine conservation in terms of genetic preservation in the face of climate change
Sep 2016 – 2017 ~ University of Manchester: MSc in Pollution and Environmental Control
- Distinction & highest mark of cohort
- Msc Final Year Thesis (Distinction & highest mark of the cohort): First-time coastal field assessment to observe the effects of redirected acid mine drainage from Parys Mountain copper mine, evaluating the degree of coastal contamination utilizing macroalgae as biomonitors
Career
Postgraduate Teaching Assistant with the University of Exeter
Publications & Professional Memberships:
- Chalkley, R., Child, F., Pittman, J. and White, KN. Long-term changes in coastal metal pollution arising from hazard management and remediation of a disused copper mine. Manuscript in preparation
- Associate member of the Institution of Environmental Sciences (AMIEnvSc)
Publications
Key publications | Publications by category | Publications by year
Publications by category
Journal articles
Hudson-Edwards K (2022). A Multi-Scale Feasibility Study into Acid Mine Drainage (AMD) Monitoring Using Same-Day Observations.
Remote Sensing,
15, 15-15.
Abstract:
A Multi-Scale Feasibility Study into Acid Mine Drainage (AMD) Monitoring Using Same-Day Observations
Globally, many mines emit acid mine drainage (AMD) during and after their operational life cycle. AMD can affect large and often inaccessible areas. This leads to expensive monitoring via conventional ground-based sampling. Recent advances in remote sensing which are both non-intrusive and less time-consuming hold the potential to unlock a new paradigm of automated AMD analysis. Herein, we test the feasibility of remote sensing as a standalone tool to map AMD at various spatial resolutions and altitudes in water-impacted mining environments. This was achieved through the same-day collection of satellite-based simulated Sentinel-2 (S2) and PlanetScope (PS2.SD) imagery and drone-based UAV Nano-Hyperspec (UAV) imagery, in tandem with ground-based visible and short-wave infrared analysis. The study site was a historic tin and copper mine in Cornwall, UK. The ground-based data collection took place on the 30 July 2020. Ferric (Fe(III) iron) band ratio (665/560 nm wavelength) was used as an AMD proxy to map AMD pixel distribution. The relationship between remote-sensed Fe(III) iron reflectance values and ground-based Fe(III) iron reflectance values deteriorated as sensor spatial resolution decreased from high-resolution UAV imagery (
Abstract.
Chalkley R, Child F, Al-Thaqafi K, Dean AP, White KN, Pittman JK (2019). Macroalgae as spatial and temporal bioindicators of coastal metal pollution following remediation and diversion of acid mine drainage.
Ecotoxicology and Environmental Safety,
182Abstract:
Macroalgae as spatial and temporal bioindicators of coastal metal pollution following remediation and diversion of acid mine drainage
Acid mine drainage (AMD) is a significant contributor of metal pollution leading to ecosystem damage. Bioindicator organisms such as intertidal brown macroalgae have an important role in quantifying the risks of metal bioaccumulation in coastal locations exposed to AMD contamination. Measurement of As, Cd, Cu, Fe, Pb, and Zn accumulation was performed in Fucus serratus, Fucus vesiculosus and Ascophyllum nodosum sampled from two marine locations near to an abandoned Cu mine in Anglesey, Wales, UK. Transect samples were taken from a coastal location (Amlwch) that has seen a substantial increase in AMD contamination over 15 years, in comparison to a nearby estuarine location (Dulas Estuary leading to Dulas Bay) with a historic legacy of pollution. These were compared with samples from the same sites taken 30 years earlier. Some of the Dulas macroalgae samples had Cd, Cu and Zn concentrations that were above background but in general indicated a non-polluted estuary in comparison to substantial pollution over previous decades. In contrast, Fucus samples collected from directly below an AMD outflow at Amlwch showed extremely elevated metal bioaccumulation (>250 mg Fe g−1, >6 mg Cu g−1, >2 mg Zn g−1, >190 μg As g−1) and evidence of macroalgae toxicity, indicating severe pollution at this site. However, the pollution dispersed within 200 m of the outflow source. This study has demonstrated the efficiency of three brown macroalgae species as indicators for metal bioavailability at high spatial resolution and over time.
Abstract.
Publications by year
2022
Hudson-Edwards K (2022). A Multi-Scale Feasibility Study into Acid Mine Drainage (AMD) Monitoring Using Same-Day Observations.
Remote Sensing,
15, 15-15.
Abstract:
A Multi-Scale Feasibility Study into Acid Mine Drainage (AMD) Monitoring Using Same-Day Observations
Globally, many mines emit acid mine drainage (AMD) during and after their operational life cycle. AMD can affect large and often inaccessible areas. This leads to expensive monitoring via conventional ground-based sampling. Recent advances in remote sensing which are both non-intrusive and less time-consuming hold the potential to unlock a new paradigm of automated AMD analysis. Herein, we test the feasibility of remote sensing as a standalone tool to map AMD at various spatial resolutions and altitudes in water-impacted mining environments. This was achieved through the same-day collection of satellite-based simulated Sentinel-2 (S2) and PlanetScope (PS2.SD) imagery and drone-based UAV Nano-Hyperspec (UAV) imagery, in tandem with ground-based visible and short-wave infrared analysis. The study site was a historic tin and copper mine in Cornwall, UK. The ground-based data collection took place on the 30 July 2020. Ferric (Fe(III) iron) band ratio (665/560 nm wavelength) was used as an AMD proxy to map AMD pixel distribution. The relationship between remote-sensed Fe(III) iron reflectance values and ground-based Fe(III) iron reflectance values deteriorated as sensor spatial resolution decreased from high-resolution UAV imagery (
Abstract.
2019
Chalkley R, Child F, Al-Thaqafi K, Dean AP, White KN, Pittman JK (2019). Macroalgae as spatial and temporal bioindicators of coastal metal pollution following remediation and diversion of acid mine drainage.
Ecotoxicology and Environmental Safety,
182Abstract:
Macroalgae as spatial and temporal bioindicators of coastal metal pollution following remediation and diversion of acid mine drainage
Acid mine drainage (AMD) is a significant contributor of metal pollution leading to ecosystem damage. Bioindicator organisms such as intertidal brown macroalgae have an important role in quantifying the risks of metal bioaccumulation in coastal locations exposed to AMD contamination. Measurement of As, Cd, Cu, Fe, Pb, and Zn accumulation was performed in Fucus serratus, Fucus vesiculosus and Ascophyllum nodosum sampled from two marine locations near to an abandoned Cu mine in Anglesey, Wales, UK. Transect samples were taken from a coastal location (Amlwch) that has seen a substantial increase in AMD contamination over 15 years, in comparison to a nearby estuarine location (Dulas Estuary leading to Dulas Bay) with a historic legacy of pollution. These were compared with samples from the same sites taken 30 years earlier. Some of the Dulas macroalgae samples had Cd, Cu and Zn concentrations that were above background but in general indicated a non-polluted estuary in comparison to substantial pollution over previous decades. In contrast, Fucus samples collected from directly below an AMD outflow at Amlwch showed extremely elevated metal bioaccumulation (>250 mg Fe g−1, >6 mg Cu g−1, >2 mg Zn g−1, >190 μg As g−1) and evidence of macroalgae toxicity, indicating severe pollution at this site. However, the pollution dispersed within 200 m of the outflow source. This study has demonstrated the efficiency of three brown macroalgae species as indicators for metal bioavailability at high spatial resolution and over time.
Abstract.
RChalkley Details from cache as at 2023-03-21 18:17:11
Refresh publications
