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28-510: The river maintains its colour for an approximate length of 50 kilometres. After the 50 kilometre mark, the chemistry that makes the Rio Tinto river so unique appears to slowly decline, as does the odd colouring. The location where the chemistry of the river is altered is near the town of Niebla . The river's chemistry begins to significantly change following the town of Niebla as the Rio Tinto blends itself with other streams that are connected to

56-577: Is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . Chemolithoautotrophic A lithoautotroph is an organism which derives energy from reactions of reduced compounds of mineral (inorganic) origin. Two types of lithoautotrophs are distinguished by their energy source; photolithoautotrophs derive their energy from light while chemolithoautotrophs (chemolithotrophs or chemoautotrophs) derive their energy from chemical reactions. Chemolithoautotrophs are exclusively microbes . Photolithoautotrophs include macroflora such as plants; these do not possess

84-608: Is still undetermined if the unique water chemistry of the Rio Tinto developed as a result of thousands of years of mining or by natural causes, it is possible that the river's chemical makeup is due to the combination of both natural causes and acid mine drainage . The river drains an area with huge deposits of sulphides which was formed more than 350 million years ago. When sulphides are exposed to air, water, and microorganisms, drainage from acidic rocks flows into surface and ground water. Mining, however, greatly increases exposed areas. This river has gained recent scientific interest due to

112-548: The Atlantic Ocean . The river is approximately 100 km (62 mi) long and is located within the Iberian Pyrite Belt . This area has large amounts of ore and sulphide deposits. The Rio Tinto area has been the site of approximately 5,000 years of ore mining , including copper , silver , gold , and other minerals, extracted as far as 20 kilometres from the river shores. As a possible result of

140-469: The weathering of parent material (bedrock) to form soil , as well as biogeochemical cycling of sulfur , potassium , and other elements. The existence of undiscovered strains of microbial lithoautotrophs is theorized based on some of these cycles, as they are needed to explain phenomena like the conversion of ammonium in iron-reducing environments. Lithoautotrophs may be present in the deep terrestrial subsurface (they have been found well over 3 km below

168-408: The 2010s led to efforts by EMED Mining to reopen the mine, but difficulties in acquiring all necessary property rights, environmental concerns, and obtaining regulatory approval delayed reopening. The mine, which employed as many as 20,000 in the past, would employ 350 people during its startup phase. Environmental concerns are centred on long disused water reservoirs which might not be able to withstand

196-732: The Metropolitan Archdiocese of Sevilla in the Visigothic Kingdom , founded probably around 400. It survived the Muslim conquest of Iberia , until the arrival of the most intolerant Almohads in the 12th century, when its last (name lost) bishop fled to Seville. Its former territory is now entirely comprised in the Diocese of Huelva . In 1969 the diocese was nominally restored as Latin Titular bishopric under

224-623: The Rio Tinto area traces back to the Tartessans and the Iberians starting mining in 3000 BC, followed by the Phoenicians , Greeks , Romans , Visigoths , and Moors . The Rio Tinto region has been the source of approximately 5,000 years of ore extraction, and chemical refinement primarily for copper , silver and gold , and later for iron , manganese and other minerals. This long standing mining activity has vastly modified

252-451: The Rio Tinto, high in metal sulphides, provide an ideal environment for chemolithoautotrophic microorganisms, with the sulphides acting as a food source. The product of metal sulphide metabolism through oxidization is ferric iron and secretion of acidic liquid. The continuation of this process for an extended period of time is thought by some scientists to be responsible for keeping the river's pH between 2 and 2.5 in most areas. Even in

280-489: The Rio Tinto. Niebla's history dates back 3,000 years. The town's early importance was due to the silver industry, exploited by Phoenician traders by the 8th century B.C. The town was a commercial and political centre known as Ilipla in Roman times. By 713 the town of Ilipla was under Muslim control. The town became part of the emirate of Cordoba in 756 and further fortifications were constructed. From 1023 Niebla became

308-573: The ability to use mineral sources of reduced compounds for energy. Most chemolithoautotrophs belong to the domain Bacteria , while some belong to the domain Archaea . Lithoautotrophic bacteria can only use inorganic molecules as substrates in their energy-releasing reactions. The term "lithotroph" is from Greek lithos ( λίθος ) meaning "rock" and trōphos (τροφοσ) meaning "consumer"; literally, it may be read "eaters of rock". The "lithotroph" part of

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336-578: The capital of the Taifa of Niebla, whose army fought the Taifa of Seville . The battle was lost and Niebla fell under the control of Seville in 1053. Islamic rule began to weaken after 1212, and the town was conquered in 1262 by Alfonso X of Castile . Descriptions of the siege suggest that this town was the place where gunpowder was first used in Spain. Niebla has once been a Catholic bishopric, suffragan of

364-412: The current water level, and as far away as 20 kilometres from the current river's path, may suggest that the unusual ecosystem is a natural phenomenon since before human mining activities started in this region. On the other hand, it is known that toxic water emanates from these vast underground and open pit mines and chemical ore refinement that had been active off and on for thousands of years. While it

392-480: The diversity in using inorganic compounds that lithoautotrophs exhibit as a group, one particular lithoautotroph would use only one type of inorganic molecule to get its energy. A chemolithotrophic example are Anaerobic Ammonia Oxidizing Bacteria (ANAMMOX), which use ammonia and nitrite to produce N 2 . Additionally, in July 2020, researchers reported the discovery of chemolithoautotrophic bacterial cultures that feed on

420-404: The extremely acidic water, both red and green algae have been observed to thrive in relatively high concentrations. Despite algae levels in the Rio Tinto accounting for over half of the total biomass in the river, algae is understood to have minimal effects on the characteristics of the complex ecosystem. The discovery of multiple oxide terraces mediated by microorganisms at up to 60 metres above

448-537: The genus Nitrospira . Several environmental hazards, such as ammonium (NH 4 ), hydrogen sulfide (H 2 S), and the greenhouse gas methane (CH 4 ), may be converted by chemolithoautotrophs into forms that are less environmentally harmful, such as N 2 , SO 4 , and CO 2 . Although it was long believed that these organisms require oxygen to make these conversions, recent literature suggests that anaerobic oxidation also exists for these systems. Lithoautotrophic microbial consortia are responsible for

476-643: The metal manganese after performing unrelated experiments and named its bacterial species Candidatus Manganitrophus noduliformans and Ramlibacter lithotrophicus . Some chemolithotrophs use redox half-reactions with low reduction potentials for their metabolisms, meaning that they do not harvest a lot of energy compared to organisms that use organotrophic pathways. This leads some chemolithotrophs, such as Nitrosomonas , to be unable to reduce NAD directly; therefore, these organisms rely on reverse electron transport to reduce NAD and form NADH and H . Lithoautotrophs participate in many geological processes, such as

504-490: The mining, the Río Tinto is notable for being very acidic ( pH 2) and its deep reddish hue is due to iron dissolved in the water. Acid mine drainage from the mines leads to severe environmental problems because the acidity (low pH) dissolves heavy metals into the water. It is not clear how much acid drainage has come from natural processes and how much has come from mining. There are severe environmental concerns over

532-422: The name refers to the fact that these organisms use inorganic elements/compounds as their electron source, while the "autotroph" part of the name refers to their carbon source being CO 2 . Many lithoautotrophs are extremophiles , but this is not universally so, and some can be found to be the cause of acid mine drainage . Lithoautotrophs are extremely specific in their source of reduced compounds. Thus, despite

560-458: The names of Elepla (also Curiate Italian) / Eleplen(sis) (Latin adjective). It has had the following incumbents, so far of the fitting Episcopal (lowest) rank : [REDACTED] Media related to Niebla, Spain at Wikimedia Commons 37°22′N 6°41′W  /  37.367°N 6.683°W  / 37.367; -6.683 This article about a location in Andalusia, Spain,

588-469: The phenomenon known as acid mine drainage , whereby pyrite present in mine tailing heaps and in exposed rock faces is metabolized, using oxygen , to produce sulfites , which form potentially corrosive sulfuric acid when dissolved in water and exposed to aerial oxygen . Acid mine drainage drastically alters the acidity and chemistry of groundwater and streams , and may endanger plant and animal populations. Activity similar to acid mine drainage, but on

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616-471: The pollution in the river. Although the river represents a harsh environment for life, some microorganisms classified as extremophiles do thrive in these conditions. Such life forms include certain species of bacteria , algae and heterotrophs . The ore body was deposited during the Carboniferous period (300–350 Ma ) by hydrothermal activities on the sea floor. The history of mining in

644-470: The presence of extremophile anaerobic bacteria that dwell in the acidic water. The subsurface rocks on the river bed contain iron and sulphide minerals on which the bacteria feed. The extreme conditions in the river may be analogous to other locations in the Solar System thought to contain liquid water, such as groundwater on Mars . Scientists have also directly compared the chemistry of

672-526: The province of Huelva , in Andalusia , southern Spain . It lies on the banks of the Rio Tinto , 30 km from Huelva and 60 km from Seville . According to the 2008 census , it has a population of 4,200 inhabitants. A 2-km town wall surrounds the perimeter of the town. The Alcazar or castle dates mostly from the 15th century. Just outside the town a Roman bridge , still in use today, crosses

700-416: The stress of renewed waste inputs. Due to the extreme conditions of the river, there is very little in the way of life, with the exception of small amounts of microorganisms , including algae . The presence of anaerobic bacteria in the sediments is thought to contribute somewhat to the river's famously low pH (acidity), that in turn increases the concentration of dissolved heavy metals . The waters from

728-481: The surface of the planet), in soils , and in endolith communities. As they are responsible for the liberation of many crucial nutrients, and participate in the formation of soil , lithoautotrophs play a crucial role in the maintenance of life on Earth. For example, the Nitrogen cycle is influenced by the activity of ammonium-oxidizing archaea, ANAMMOX bacteria, and Complete Ammonium-Oxidizing (COMAMMOX) bacteria of

756-720: The topography of the region. After a period of abandonment and disuse, the mines were rediscovered in 1556 and the Spanish government began operating them once again in 1724. In the 19th century, companies from the United Kingdom started large-scale mining operations. In 1873, the Rio Tinto Company was formed to operate the mines. Production declined after the peak of production in 1930, and it ended in 1986 for copper mining and in 1996 for silver and gold mining. All mining ended in 2001. Increased copper prices in

784-455: The water in which the Mars rocks of Meridiani Planum were deposited in the past with the Río Tinto. Likewise, the moon Europa contains an acidic ocean of water underneath its ice surface, thus the Rio Tinto river is of interest to astrobiologists studying the environmental limits of life and planetary habitability . Niebla, Andalusia Niebla is a town and municipality located in

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