In this volume John Carranza not only offers a comprehensive review of the current state-of-the-art of processing geochemical data, their integration with complementary geodata sets and multivariate data analysis using spatial statistics to create maps enhanced for mineral exploration, but also brings the Handbook series to something of a milestone. This marks the first volume in which the topic of an earlier volume (Vol. 2) is in effect revisited and updated; though the approach and format are – appropriately – entirely fresh.

The Igarape Bahia gold mine is located in the Carajds region, Para State, northern Brazil. The area is a typical example ofsupergene gold mineralization related to gossans, where superimposed lateritization processes obliterated their upper horizon and gave rise to new and wider dispersion of gold and of other metals, with meaningful consequences for geological exploration in this environment. An exploration program in this area was carried out by Docegeo, a subsidiary of "Companhia Vale do Rio Doce - CVRD", which is the sponsor of the Carajds mining district and, currently, is also minigfor gold at Igarape Bahia.

The most important principles of geochemical prospecting, based on both Soviet and non-Soviet experiences of the last decade, are discussed.
The regularities in the distribution of the chemical elements in crustal rocks, and the main factors responsible for the migration and concentration of elements by natural processes, are used as a theoretical basis for applying the techniques of geochemical prospecting. Special emphasis in the discussion of the above theoretical principles is placed on the logical integration of geochemical techniques with other methods in solving specific problems at various stages of exploration. A special section of the book is concerned with the application of statistics to geochemical prospecting.
This book is intended for geologists engaged in mineral prospecting, as well as for geology students.

Since most of the elements used by the society come from mineral extrac-tion, mining of mineral resources provide essential raw material for sustain-able development. Mining however leads to severe impact on the environ-ment, including contamination by toxic metals. A recent Europe-wide survey identified wide-spread pollution problems caused by mining, abandoned mines in particular (COM, 2003). Younger et al. (2002) estimated that about 1,000 to 1,500 km of watercourses are polluted by metal mine discharges in the EU. Through mineral extraction and subsequent mineral processing huge amount of wastes are produced. Metals and metal compounds in wastes tend to become chemically more available, which can result in the generation of acid mine drainage (AMD). Due to great volumes and slow chemical proc-esses, mine waste can release toxic compound for a very long time on the scale of centuries and thousands of years (BAT, 2003). Thus, remediation of mine sites, including abandoned mines, has to consider long-term solutions and remediation technologies have to be sustainable for a long time (Sind-ing, 1999). As an alternative, passive in situ remediation methods for AMD treatment using wetlands that provide means of cheap and sustainable reme-diation has been proposed (PIRAMID, 2003). Around the mine site, soils and surface water in the receiving environment are often contaminated with harmful elements or compounds of AMD. These contaminated sites act as secondary sources for pollution, especially for historic sites (Jordan and D‟Alessandro, 2004). <...>