Rare earth (RE) ore is one kind of extremely valuable national strategic resources of China. But due to the large scale of mining and refining activities, large amounts of REs have been released to the surrounding environment and caused harmful effects on local residents. Therefore the research of REs’ environmental behavior has significant theoretical and practical meaning in the protection of ecological environment and the reasonable utilization of REs.

The research group headed by Prof. Liang Tao at Institute of Geographic Sciences and Natural Resources Research (IGSNRR), Chinese Academy of Sciences, has initiated a research program to assess the environmental behaviors of rare earth elements in Bayan Obo rare earth mining area.

They have identified the content, chemical form and distribution of REs in different environmental media of REs mining area. Comparing with natural conditions, REE existed in more active states in mining areas, such as exchangeable REEs in soils and dissolved REEs in water bodies. REs were easier to move and transport among different environmental components, as well as to be intake by plants and enter into food chains which indicate possible harmful effect on human.

Related research results have been published in the scientific journals as follows.