The mine water pumped out from the Backworth pits was heavily contaminated with Barium brine salts, this was discharged into the local streams as the mine owners had no commercial use for it. It came from the Beaumont coal seam.

The Rising Sun Pit in Wallsend worked the same coal seam which was also rich in barium brine, two large pipes ran from the Rising Sun to the Backworth Barium Works to process the mine water there,

Barium was used in producing photographic plates, most had been sourced from German companies, with the event of the First World War this supply stopped and it became commercially viable to use the barium contaminated mine water. This continued until the early 1970’s. Again the contaminated water from the process was discharged into a local stream, the Briar Dene? It seems the Barium Plant was closed when it was still profitable, and since the closure of the colliery this resource has remained underground.

Abstract from British Mining publication No 73

Barium-rich brines encountered in the Beaumont seam at the Eccles Colliery, Backworth, were exploited for the production of barium sulphate (‘blanc fixe’) between 1937 and 1969.

The BaSO4 was precipitated when the brines were mixed with sulphuric acid, drawn off in filter presses and sold commercially. Additional barium brines were produced by the reaction of hydrochloric acid, a by-product of the precipitation process, with witherite (naturally occurring BaCO3). These were then introduced into the precipitating process, as were additional brines piped from the Rising Sun Colliery at Wallsend. The quality (particle size) of the product could be varied by careful adjustment of four parameters: the temperature, the strength of the sulphuric acid, the rate of flow of the brines, and the introduction of the acid into the decanters (the precipitating vessels). The precipitated barium sulphate was drawn off as a pulp into filter presses then emptied into polythene-lined casks or oven dried. It was then milled and bagged ready for sale. The effluent was neutralised with dolomite and suspended solids were allowed to settle before discharge into a local stream.
These collieries were not the only collieries in the North East coalfield to encounter barium-rich mine waters. However, their brines were the strongest, and most prolific.

Barium Plant Fire at Backworth

20th May 1972 ©Sassaby

Minewater Pollution – Including effluent from the barium works

A major water quality concern related to mining is the reaction of water and oxygen with sulfide minerals (pyrite, pyrrhotite, etc.) contained in mined or exposed rock. It leads to acidic waters that mobilise toxic metals, sulfate, and other dissolved solids. When these waters are discharged into surrounding aquifers, lakes, and streams, they can make the water unsafe for people to drink and degrade habitat suitability for aquatic species. Not all types of ore deposits generate acidic water, but metals and other contaminants still can be released.

A huge volume of water is generated by a coal mine, water pumped up from workings, washing the coals, and in the case of Backworth contaminated water from the barium plant. Coalmines were not covered by the Factories Acts until faiirly late on, the Mines and Collieries Act of 1842 applied and this had no remit around mine pollution. Mine owners could pump whatever they wanted into the local rivercourses, a factor would have been that the mineowner was often the landowner or leased the mining rights from the landowner, In North Tyneside in most cases histrically that would have been the Duke of Northumberland..

 

 

 

When mines were included as workplaces under the Factories Act, and the nationalisation of mining in Britain this was tightened up, sometimes with unforeseen consequences.  Alkali compounds were added to the acidic mine water prior to discharge into streams and other water courses, dosing was quite coarse, often streams were completely changed from acidic to alkaline, not the intended healthy PH for wildlife. This happeded to the Briar Burn, on fave value the stream changed from a vivid red to a clear watercourse, except the PH value now destroyed all aqautic life.

Backworth Briar Dene

Briar Dene running past Whitley Bay golf course

Present Day Minewater Pollution

This is one of the top 10 issues for water quality in England as it harms fish and river insects. Abandoned mines are the largest source of metals to British rivers and seas. Pollution is localised to about 1,500km of rivers – mainly in the North East, Cumbria, Yorkshire & Cornwall.  

In West Allotment and the surrounding area we live on top of a large underground aquifer, The Algernon-Hebburn mine water block, bounded by Shiremoor, North Shields, Wallsend and Wardley in the south. This aquifer is monitored by six boreholes and since the closure of all the pits is slowly rising. As part of the remedial action a pumping station at Willington? beside the river Tyne, pumps water out of this aquifer, and after treatment and filtration this is discharged safely into the Tyne.

Green Energy – A positive of this aquifer is the potential to recover heat from the underground water, and use this in a district heating system, feasibility studies have taken place and it seems to be viable, as far as we are aware nothing has moved past the feasibility stage.

Gateshead Council Minewater Heat Recovery © Mining Remediation Authority

Note – Groundwater is not utilised as a water resource within North Tyneside and
drinking water is sourced from outside the Borough.

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