Pit lakes are an increasingly common legacy of modem, large-scale surface mining operations. Pit lakes formed in open pit metal mines, where base and precious metals are extracted from ore deposits hosted in predominantly igneous and metamorphic silicate rocks, comprise one category of pit lakes. This category is referred to as hardrock metal-mine pit lakes, to distinguish them from pit lakes formed in above-ground hydrocarbon, industrial minerals, and aggregate mining operations.
Eary, L. E. and D. Castendyk (2013) Hardrock Metal Mining Pit Lakes: Occurrence and Geochemical Characteristics. Chapter 3.2.2 In Acidic Pit Lakes (M. Schultz and W. Geller, Eds.), Springer, Berlin, pp. 75-106.
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