Surface runoff from mining operations usually has a low pH and contains high levels of metals such as iron, manganese, zinc, copper, nickel and cobalt. The combustion of fossil fuels pollutes the atmosphere with metal particulates that eventually settle to the land surface. Currently, anthropogenic inputs of metals exceed natural inputs. Water can transport metals that are bound to sediment particles. The primary route for sediment-metal transport is overland flow.
Water also transports dissolved metals.
Although dissolved metals are primarily transported in overland flow, some underground transport is possible. Metals that are introduced to the unsaturated zone and the saturated zone will most likely not be transported a long distance. Dissolved metals that are carried below the land surface will readily sorb to soil particles or lithic material in the unsaturated zone and the saturated zone. Metals introduced into the atmosphere may be carried to the land surface by precipitation and dry fallout. Additionally, because metals readily sorb to many sediment types, wind-borne sediment is a potential route for metal transport.