Dr. Heather Jamieson

Heather Jamieson grew up in Noranda, Quebec and is now a Professor in the Department of Geological Sciences and Geological Engineering at Queen’s University, Kingston, Canada. She also holds an appointment and teaches courses in the School of Environmental Studies at Queen’s. Her expertise is in the area of environmental geochemistry, particularly the mineralogical controls on the mobility of metals and metalloids (notably arsenic) in mine waste and the application of synchrotron-based X-ray experiments and other microanalytical methods to metal speciation in mine tailings, soils, sediments and household dust.  Much of her fieldwork is in the Canadian Arctic but she has also conducted research in Nova Scotia, California, Montana, Spain and Australia.

Research Interests/Current Research

Environmental Geochemistry and Mineralogy, Environmental Impact of Mining

Supervising Information

New projects are always available. Please contact me if you are interested in joining our research group.

Current and recently completed:

Professional Associations

• Mineralogical Association of Canada
• Mineralogical Society of America
• Geological Association of Canada
• Geological Society of America
• Association of Applied Geochemists
• International Medical Geology Association

Publications

Recent publications (student and postdocs noted in bold)

• Miller, C.B., Parsons, M.B., Jamieson, H.E., Galloway, J.M., Patterson, R.T. (2016) Geochemical baselines and metal(loid) mobility in a changing northern climate: Courageous-Mackay Lake Greenstone Belt, Slave Geological Province, NWT.  Poster presented at the Yellowknife Geoscience Forum, November 15-17, 2016. 
• Radková, A, Jamieson, H.E., Lalinská-Voleková, B., Majzlan, J., Števko, M., Chovan, M. 2015. Mineralogical controls on antimony mobility during tetrahedrite-tennantite weathering at historic mine sites Špania Dolina-Piesky and Ľubietov́a-Svätodušná, Slovakia. Submitted to American Mineralogist.
• Purdy-Lussier C.J.K., Jamieson H.E. 2015. Rare earth element mobility from mine tailings. Environmental Science and Technology. Accepted subject to revisions.
• DeSisto, S.L., Parsons, M.B., Jamieson, H.E. 2015. Vertical Variations in Arsenic Hosts Following Long term Weathering of Gold Mine Tailings. Applied Geochemistry. Accepted subject to revisions.
• Clyde, E.J., Champagne P, Jamieson, H.E., Gorman, C., Sourial, J., 2015. The use of a Passive Treatment System for the Mitigation of Acid Mine Drainage at the Williams Brother Mine, CA: Pilot-Scale Study. Journal for Cleaner Production. Accepted subject to revisions.
• Stavinga, D.B., Jamieson, H.E., Paradis, S., Falck, H. 2015. Geochemical and Mineralogical Controls on Metal(loid) Mobility in the Oxide Zone of the Prairie Creek Deposit, NWT. Geochemistry: Exploration, Environment, Analysis. Submitted.
• Skeries, K., Day, S., Falck, H., Paradis, S., Jamieson, H.E. 2015. Geochemical and Mineralogical Controls on Metal Dispersion in Streams and Sediments in the Prairie Creek District, NWT. Geochemistry: Exploration, Environment, Analysis. Submitted.
• Castillo, F., Avalos-Borjac, M., Villalobose, M., Jamieson, H., Hernández-Barcenasa, G., Martínez-Villegas, N. 2015. Identification of diagenetic calcium arsenates using synchrotron-based micro X-ray diffraction. Boletín de la Sociedad Geológica Mexicana. Accepted
• Jamieson, H.E., Walker, S.R., Parsons, M.I. 2015. Mineralogical Characterization of Mine Waste. Invited Review Paper, Applied Geochemistry 57: 85-105.
• Walker, S.R., Jamieson, H.E., Lanzirotti, A., Hall, G. E. M., Peterson, R.C. 2015. The effect of ore roasting on arsenic oxidation state and solid phase speciation in gold mine tailings. Geochemistry: Exploration, Environment, Analysis 15, 273-291
• Fawcett, S.E., H. Jamieson, D. Nordstrom, B. McCleskey. 2015. Arsenic and antimony geochemistry of mine wastes, associated waters and sediments at the Giant Mine, Yellowknife, Northwest Territories, Canada. Applied Geochemistry 62, 3-17.
• Jamieson, H.E. 2014. The legacy of arsenic contamination from mining and processing refractory gold ore at Giant Mine, Yellowknife, Northwest Territories, Canada. In: Arsenic: Environmental geochemistry, mineralogy, and microbiology. Eds: Bowell, R.J., Alpers, C.N., Jamieson, H.E., Nordstrom, D.N., Majzlan, J. Reviews in Mineralogy and Geochemistry, 79, 533-553.
• Bowell, R.J., Alpers, C.N., Jamieson, H.E., Nordstrom, D.N., Majzlan, J. 2014. The Environmental Geochemistry of Arsenic: An Overview. In: Arsenic: Environmental geochemistry, mineralogy, and microbiology. Eds: Bowell, R.J., Alpers, C.N., Jamieson, H.E., Nordstrom, D.N., Majzlan, J. Reviews in Mineralogy and Geochemistry, 79, pp 1-15.
• Jamieson, H.E., Gault, A.G. 2012. Application of synchrotron microanalysis to studies of soils, sediments, dust and mine waste. In: Quantitative Mineralogy and Microanalysis of Sediments and Sedimentary Rocks, Mineralogical Association of Canada Short Course 42, ed. P. Sylvester, St. John’s NL, May 2012, 35-53.
• Hudson-Edwards, K. A., Jamieson, H.E., Lottermoser, B.G. 2011. Mine Wastes: Past, Present, Future. Elements, Special Issue on Mine Wastes, 375-380.
• Jamieson, H.E. 2011. Geochemistry and Mineralogy of Solid Mine Waste: Essential Knowledge for Predicting Environmental Impact. Elements, Special Issue in Mine Wastes, 381-386.
• Opio, F., Peacey, J., Jamieson, H.E. 2011 Tooeleite as a new possibility for arsenic fixation: thermal decomposition and stabilisation. Environmine 2011, Proc. 2nd Interntl. Sem. Env. Issues Mining Industry, Santiago, Chile.
• Bromstad, M., Jamieson, H.E. 2011.The persistence and mobility of roaster-derived arsenic in surface soils at Giant mine, NWT. Mining and the Environment International Conference V, Sudbury, ON
• Jaggard, H., Jamieson, H.E. 2011 Mineralogical characterization of tailings and respirable dust from lead-rich mine waste and its controls on bioaccessibility. Mining and the Environment International Conference V, Sudbury, ON
• Drysdale, M., Ljung, K., Jamieson, H.E., Weinstein, P., Cook, A., Watkins, R.T. 2012. Evaluating the respiratory bioaccessibility of nickel in soil through the use of a simulated lung fluid. Environ Geochem Health 34 (2), pg. 279-288.
• Bromstad, M., Jamieson, H.E. 2012. Giant Mine,Yellowknife, Canada: Arsenite waste as the legacy of gold mining and processing. Chapter 2 (page 25-42) in The Metabolism of Arsenite (eds.) J.A. Santini and S.A. Ward. Volume 5 of the series Arsenic in the Environment. CRC Press ISSN: 1876- 6218.
• Walker, S.R., Jamieson, H.E., Rasmussen, P.E. 2011 Application of synchrotron microprobe methods to solid-phase speciation of metals and metalloids in house dust. Environmental Science & Technology 45, 8233-8240. 
• Jamieson, H.E., Walker, S.R., Andrade, C.F., Rasmussen, P. Beauchemin, S., Lanzirotti, A., Parsons, M.B., Wrye, L.A. 2011 Direct identification of metal compounds in contaminated soil, mine tailings, lake sediments and house dust using synchrotron-based microanalysis. Human and Ecological Risk Assessment 17:1292–1309.
• Corriveau, M.C., Jamieson, H.E., Parsons, M.B., Hall, G.E.M. 2011 Mineralogical characterization of arsenic in gold mine tailings from three sites in Nova Scotia, Geochemistry: Exploration, Environment, Analysis 11, 179-192.
• DeSisto, S., Jamieson, H.E., Parsons, M.B. 2011. Influence of hardpan layers on arsenic mobility in historical gold mine tailings. Applied Geochemistry 26, 2004-2018
• Corriveau, M.C., Jamieson, H.E., Parsons, M.B., Campbell, J.L., Lanzirotti, A. 2011. Direct characterization of airborne particles associated with arsenic-rich mine tailings: Particle size, mineralogy and texture. Applied Geochemistry 26, 1639-1648.
• Fawcett, S.E., Jamieson, H.E. 2011. The Distinction between ore processing and post-depositional transformation on the speciation of As and Sb in mine waste and sediment Chemical Geology 283, 109-118.
• Osborne, T.H., Jamieson, H.E., Hudson-Edwards, H.E., Nordstrom, D.K., Walker, S.R., Santini,J.M. 2010. Microbial oxidation of arsenite in a permafrost environment: diversity of arsenite oxidase genes and identification of a new psychrotolerant arsenite oxidiser. BMC Microbiology 10, 205.
• Fawcett, S.E., Jamieson, H.E. 2010. The distinction between ore processing and post-depositional transformation on the speciation of As and Sb in mine waste and sediment Chemical Geology, Published online February 2010.
• Lange, K., Rowe, R.K., Jamieson, H., Flemming,R., Lanzirotti, A. 2010. Characterization of geosynthetic clay liners using micro-analytical methods: Implications for metal mitigation. Applied Geochemistry. 25, 1056-1069.
• Clyde, E.J., Champagne, P., Jamieson, H.E. 2010. The use of passive treatment alternatives for the mitigation of acidic drainage at the Williams Brothers Mine, California: Bench-Scale Study. Applied Geochemistry 25, 958-971.
• Meunier, L., Walker, S.R., Koch, I., Wragg, J. Parsons, M.B., Jamieson, H.E., Reimer, K.J. 2010. Effects of Soil Composition and Mineralogy on the Bioaccessibility of Arsenic from Tailings and Soil in Gold Mine Districts of Nova Scotia. Environmental Science Technology 44, 2667–2674.
• Andrade, C.F., Jamieson, H.E., Praharaj, T., Fortin, D., Kyser, T.K. 2010. Biogeochemical cycling of arsenic in mine-impacted sediments and co-existing pore waters. Applied Geochemistry 25, 199– 211.
• Akabzaa, T.M., Jamieson, H.E, Jorgenson, N., Nyame, K. 2009 The Combined Impact of Mine Drainage in the Ankobra River Basin, SW Ghana. Mine Water Environment 28, 50-64.
• Fawcett, S.E., Gordon, R., Jamieson, H.E. 2009. Optimizing experimental design, overcoming challenges and gaining valuable information from the Sb K-edge XANES region. American Mineralogist 94, 1377–1387.
• Walker, S.R., Parsons, M.B., Jamieson, H.E., Lanzirotti, A. 2009. Arsenic mineralogy of near- surface tailings and soils: Influence on arsenic behaviour and bioaccessibility in the Nova Scotia  gold mining districts. Canadian Mineralogist 47, 533-556
• Sidenko, N.V., Cooper, M.A., Sherriff, B.L., Jamieson, H.E. 2009. Formation and Stability of (Na,K)2Zn3[Fe(CN)6]2×nH2O in Gold Heap Leach Mine Waste. Canadian Mineralogist 43, 1157- 1170.
• Lange, K,. Rowe, R.K., Jamieson, H.E. 2007. Metal Retention in Geosynthetic Clay Liners Following Permeation by Different Mining Solutions. Geosynthetics International 14, 178-187

Return to Faculty