Rehabilitation Plan Method for an Andezite Open Pit

Mine site rehabilitation generally aims to produce a safe, stable and non-polluting post-mining landscape that serves some agreed post-mining land use.Historically, the presumed post-mining land use has generally driven the rehabilitation process, often regardless of whether the adopted land use matches the pre-mining land use or is achievable.This dictates the flattening of the mine waste landform and the choice of surface cover applied.In the past, the adopted post-mining land use has often been grazing, which dictates that steep (usually angle of repose) mine waste slopes be flattened substantially, and that the surface be topsoiled and grassed.The tops of surface dumps and tailings surfaces often require reshaping to enhance surface drainage or water management prior to capping, topsoiling and grassing.The outer slopes of waste dumps and tailings storage facilities are generally flattened to allow access for equipment, topsoiling and grassing, possibly with the aim of allowing grazing.Even where grazing is not to be the post-mining land use, slope flattening, topsoiling, and grassing are often adopted.Whether or not grazing is the adopted post-mining land use, it may not be utilised, and a grass cover may be difficult to establish and even more difficult to sustain.Further, the limited extent to which steep mine waste slopes can be flattened generally results in slope angles that are still too steep for grazing use, and are prone to erosion, particularly if covered with topsoil and the grass cover is inadequate.This historical approach to mine site rehabilitation has led to repeated failures of flattened, topsoiled and grassed steep mine waste slopes and of regraded, capped, topsoiled and grassed dump tops and tailings.Increasingly, the establishment and sustainability of ecological functionality is seen as the key to achieving a safe, stable, and non-polluting post-mining landscape.Hence, it is argued that ecological function should be the preferred driver of mine site rehabilitation over the post-mining land use, since it better addresses the accepted rehabilitation aims.The paper presents a history of the conventional approach to mine site rehabilitation governed by slope flattening, topsoiling and grass covers, illustrated with global examples of mine site rehabilitation failures due to the adoption of those practices.These include examples from gold mining in Johannesburg, surface coal mining in Australia, and metalliferous mining in Australia, and focusses on the rehabilitation of steep mine slopes in tailings, spoil or waste rock.

This research assesses practices and legislation about post-mining land utilization in the United States. This paper examines insights from these practices and legislation within the Indonesian legal environment. This study employs a normative legal methodology within a comparative legal framework. The research indicates that the United States’s post-mining land use policies and practices are regulated by the Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act (SMCRA) and different federal regulations supporting public purposes such as airports, shopping centers, and industrial zones. Rigorous supervision is enforced on post-mining land prior to its designation as appropriate for use. Specialized land management methods are implemented when mining occurs on prime agricultural land. The efficacy of reclamation is significantly contingent upon the use of scientifically substantiated optimal management practices that emphasize ecological restoration and biodiversity enhancement. Longitudinal studies in the United States about ecological reclamation demonstrate that effective strategies, including surface soil replacement and customized planting schemes, markedly enhance the likelihood of successful revegetation of former mining sites. The United States offers a robust framework underpinned by comprehensive policies and efficient implementation that Indonesia can adopt. Future adoption of post-mining land use policies and practices in Indonesia should establish a harmonious equilibrium that fosters sustainable development, preserves environmental integrity, and promotes active community engagement.

A proposal for engaging a stakeholder panel in planning post-mining land uses in Australia’s coal-rich tropical savannahs

Forestry is becoming the preferred post-mining land use in the Appalachian region for the landowner as the value of forests becomes recognized. During the summer of 1996, a study was conducted in a white pine (Pinus strobus L.) plantation that was established in 1978 on a pre-SMCRA bench located in Wise County, Virginia. The objectives of this study were to illustrate the feasibility of commercial forestry as a post-mining land use, and to identify relationships between tree productivity and mine soil physical properties. The spoil was a deep, non-compacted, slightly-acid. weathered sandstone that had no topsoil applied. A timber inventory of the plantation showed that it was overstocked, therefore the plantation was thinned down to 20 m{sup 2} ha{sup -1} (90 ft{sup 2} of basal area per acre). The average tree height was 14.3 in (47 ft), translating to a very high site index of 35 in (110 ft; base age 50), compared to site indices of 24 in (80 ft) and 18.3 in (60 ft) for adjacent undisturbed forest soils and post-SMCRA reclaimed mine soils, respectively. When these site indices were used to project tree growth for 30 years, the estimated timber per-acre value was $3,480, $1,755, and $122more » for the non-compacted mine soil, undisturbed forest soil, and typical post-SMCRA mine soil, respectively. The twenty-fold difference in the timber value between the non-compacted none soil and the typical post-SMCRA mine soil represents a tremendous lost opportunity. for most post-SMCRA sites that are not reclaimed for commercial forestry. The high productivity of the white pine plantation growing on the pre-SMCRA bench was attributed to low soil bulk density and a moderately-acid sandstone mine soil. Reclamation practices that result in these desirable soil properties need to be encouraged, so that restored forest land will be profitable for the landowner, meet society`s needs, and meet the spirit and letter of the SMCRA.« less

Steep topography and thin native soils characterize the coal mining regions of southern West Virginia. State and federal regulations require replacement of native topsoil during reclamation for re-establishment of a vegetative cover. Due to hazards and expense associated with collecting this thin layer of soil before mining, regulators have allowed mine operators to use substitute topsoil materials, including weathered (brown) and unweathered (gray) geologic materials for growth media. For pasture and hayland post-mining land uses, substitute materials provide suitable physical and chemical properties for establishment and growth of forages with fertilization and liming. When reforestation is the post-mining land use, regulations in West Virginia require a 1.2 m layer of native topsoil and brown weathered sandstone, but unweathered materials may be used if native topsoil quantities are insufficient. This study examined tree growth on areas where brown and gray sandstone materials were applied to the surface as growth media at the Samples Mine in West Virginia. In a study already published at this site, we found significant differences in tree growth on brown and gray sandstone plots. For this study, we selected two additional gray sandstone plots for comparison to the original brown and gray plots. The two original sites were brown sandstone compacted and gray sandstone compacted, and we added nearby plots of gray sandstone slightly compacted and gray sandstone compacted and then ripped. Average pH ranged from 7.3 to 7.9 on the gray plots compared to 5.4 on the brown plot. Tree growth on brown sandstone was more than triple that of tree growth on all of the gray sandstone plots. Mean tree volume index on the brown compacted plot was 3108 cm 3 while mean tree volume index was significantly lower on the gray compacted plot (909 cm³), the gray slightly compacted plot (407 cm 3 ), and the gray ripped plot (885 cm³). Eight years after reclamation, the gray sandstone plots, whether slightly compacted, compacted, or ripped, showed poor tree growth compared to brown sandstone. Gray sandstone has proven to be an inferior topsoil substitute for reforestation on this site.

To examine the current practice of corporate social responsibility (CSR) by the Thai business sector regarding environmental protection and sustainable resource management. It particularly looked at the limitations and constraints faced by the private sector, and the role of the state and civil society concerning to adoption of CSR practice in Thailand. The information used in the study was collected through documentary research and interview with key informants: three Thai businesses with an established reputation for CSR practice, an environmental NGO, and a governmental organization responsible for promoting CSR in Thailand. The findings revealed that there was a mutual and advanced understanding of the concept and practices of CSR among all participants. With regards to interaction between different sectors, the study showed that the respondents viewed that the CSR movement in Thailand corresponds with a trend towards more participatory policy-making and stakeholder involvement in the area of environmental standard. With regards to limitations, the study revealed discrepancies between large and small organizations, as well as variations across sectors. This is due to the lack of rational or cultural institutional environment to support or encourage CSR practice, resulting in disadvantage for small-scale enterprises engaging in beyond-compliance environmental protection. The different capacities between large and small organizations were reflected in their different approaches to CSR practice. While large business organizations adopted a ‘reformist’ approach, the smaller business took a ‘radical’ approach to CSR practice. However, the radical approach to CSR, which is based on local resource and capacity, is likely to be the most appropriate method for a developing country such as Thailand. Finally, this study recommended that the public, private, and civil society sectors should cooperate to establish measures, particularly the necessary regulatory framework and verification mechanisms, in order to support fair and transparent CSR practice in environmental protection and sustainable resource management by all Thai businesses.

This open-pit mining activity has a very helpful environmental potential, soil chemistry, erosion and sedimentation. Change in land use from mining actively after mining requires land and energy closure to ensure that the land is safe for and returned. In accordance with the local spatial pattern in Muara Enim, South Sumatra, the transfer of post-mining land after the dismissal of mining operations will be used as a conservation area managed by the mining community. The concept is an environmental addressing plan to determine the sustainability of various aspects of community life, including local sustainability, food environment, awareness, biodiversity, and sustainability. This study aims to ensure community sustainability after mining operations. The methodology that is an interview with Experts. The results of this research indicate that community empowerment in mining area can use one of the community's natural resource management strategies to ensure social sustainability with land use as agroforestry and integrated agricultural industries.

Ranching is a signficant land use in the Southern Interior of BC. In recent decades, acreages of both grassland and forest land have been disturbed by mining and, as reclamation proceeds, returned to forage production for the purpose of livestock use. Numerous issues surround the capability and suitability of waste rock and tailings sites for grazing. Despite a large amount of research being done on the revegetation of mined land, grazing as a post-mining land use has received limited study. Research is still needed to determine proper stocking rates, season and intensity of grazing for optimum livestock management systems. This paper presents the issues of site capability and suitability for livestock use, potential conflicts with other proposed end land uses and post-mining land management requirements.

Post-mining land use for the production of industrial crops has the potential to mitigate environmental and socio-economic impacts of mine closure and stimulate post-mining economic growth. Fibre-rich plants are of particular interest due to their multi-product potential. In a South African context, where there are many abandoned and end-of-life mines near human settlements, there is an opportunity to assess the feasibility of transforming post-mining land into productive land and building resilient communities through the development of multi-product value chains from fibre-rich plants such as kenaf, hemp or bamboo. Biomass from fibre-rich plants, such as bamboo, kenaf and hemp, can be converted into various semi-fabricated and higher-end products (such as textiles, paper, furnishings, building materials, bio-plastics and bio-composites) as well as energy. The selection and development of viable processes and products for the downstream utilisation of plant biomass from post-mining land is complex and needs to be based on a comprehensive understanding of the options available, while considering the environmental, socio-economic and technical drivers, opportunities and constraints. This paper provides a review and assessment of the various processing routes for recovering value from fibre plant biomass, such as kenaf, hemp and bamboo, through the conversion into useful products, and potential integrated metal extraction, for the creation of post-mining industrial development. Based on findings from a comprehensive review of the published literature, as well as interviews with relevant experts within South Africa, it appears that bast fibre plants are the best downstream option for producing “green” textiles and high-end niche products, whereas bamboo is more suitable as a replacement for conventional timber. The desired products will, however, determine the fibre plant and plant-product processing options, and will be dependent on various local socio-economy and geography factors.

Assessment of carbon sequestration potential of revegetated coal mine overburden dumps: A chronosequence study from dry tropical climate

This paper provides an overview of planning requirements, including regulatory, and implementation approaches for achieving ecologically sound reclamation and restoration of mines upon closure in the USA. Mine closure includes mined-out areas, decommissioning of plants and structures, and appropriate monitoring of post-mining land, water, and air resources. Although the discussion provides general guidelines, each mine closure site presents unique challenges. The overall chemical composition of coal and associated strata with mineable coal seams, structural characteristics of the deposit, weather patterns, environmental conditions, processing and scale of mining of the deposit, and public and private infrastructure must be considered. Future land use and water resource requirements are also important considerations. The planning and closure activities must ensure that the resultant site has the appropriate post-mining land and water resources use, and the site does not pose any future environmental and health and safety risks. These requirements suggest that closure activities should be integrated with the mining activity planning process from the start. This paper discusses mine closure issues and describes several practices for a surface coal mine in the Western USA.

Since the implementation of the federal Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act of 1977 (SMCRA) in May of 1978, many opportunities have been lost for the reforestation of surface mines in the eastern United States. Research has shown that excessive compaction of spoil material in the backfilling and grading process is the biggest impediment to the establishment of productive forests as a post-mining land use (Ashby, 1998, Burger et al., 1994, Graves et al., 2000). Stability of mine sites was a prominent concern among regulators and mine operators in the years immediately following the implementation of SMCRA. These concerns resulted in the highly compacted, flatly graded, and consequently unproductive spoils of the early post-SMCRA era. However, there is nothing in the regulations that requires mine sites to be overly compacted as long as stability is achieved. It has been cultural barriers and not regulatory barriers that have contributed to the failure of reforestation efforts under the federal law over the past 27 years. Efforts to change the perception that the federal law and regulations impede effective reforestation techniques and interfere with bond release must be implemented. Demonstration of techniques that lead to the successful reforestation of surface mines is one such method that can be used to change perceptions and protect the forest ecosystems that were indigenous to these areas prior to mining. The University of Kentucky initiated a large-scale reforestation effort to address regulatory and cultural impediments to forest reclamation in 2003. During the three years of this project 383,000 trees were planted on over 556 acres in different physiographic areas of Kentucky (Table 1, Figure 1). Species used for the project were similar to those that existed on the sites before mining was initiated (Table 2). A monitoring program was undertaken to evaluate growth and survival of the planted species as a function of spoil characteristics and reclamation practice. In addition, experiments were integrated within the reforestation effort to address specific questions pertaining to sequestration of carbon (C) on these sites.

Current reclamation standards require surface mine operators to address many difficult issues, not the least of which is the selection of an appropriate postmining land use plan. When it is determined that this plan should include cropland, there are some specific problems that must be resolved. The planning process is reviewed and specific recommendations are made. Techniques for soil removal and replacement are compared. If soil compaction is excessive, deep tillage is recommended to alleviate the problem. Differential settlement is another problem that may be encountered. It can be prevented, to a degree, by avoiding the creation of a completely level ground through final grading. If it does occur, procedures are available to correct the problem. Revegetation follows standard agricultural practices.

Rehabilitating land following mining is a major and growing issue for Western Australia (WA), with around 2.5 Mha of land currently under an active mining lease. About 85% of mining project proposals assessed by the WA Environmental Protection Authority (EPA) have had rehabilitation and/or closure conditions recommended and subsequently applied by the Minister for Environment through a ministerial statement. This is in addition to the requirements for rehabilitation and/or closure specified under the Mining Act 1978 (Government of Western Australia 1978). This project collected and analysed publicly available information on mine rehabilitation conditions in WA to provide baseline information for the state. Closure conditions required by the EPA were assessed for 277 ministerial statements dating back to 1987. Until the 1990s, conditions related to rehabilitation have primarily been assigned to the decommissioning phase, with progressive rehabilitation requirements starting to appear from 1992 onwards. Despite the importance for assessing completion, just over 31% of the projects specified rehabilitation targets to be met. These rehabilitation targets focussed most often on the percentage of vegetation cover and species diversity. We further aimed to quantify the costs of rehabilitation works as part of assessing the achievability of recommended rehabilitation and/or closure conditions. However, obtaining cost data, evidence of rehabilitation progress, or evidence on rehabilitation success in publicly available documents proved challenging, with very limited amount of information available. The post-mining land use proposed at a site was not always specified and could often not be found for projects pre-2013. Current lack of transparency points at the need for knowledge sharing and/or a data repository where proponents, regulators, and researchers can jointly work towards achievable and acceptable mine rehabilitation.

The future of coal mining landscape in children´s imagination: Using drawings as a research tool in post-mining land use planning