40 years of the Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act (SMCRA): what have we learned in the State of Wyoming

Schladweiler, Brenda K.

doi:10.1007/s40789-018-0193-6

Cited by 6 publications

(5 citation statements)

References 6 publications

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“…Rehabilitation of the post-mining site is essential and become responsibility for all miner operations. Some related regulatory framework and policies have been proposed, ratified and enforced (Dwiki 2018;Schladweiler 2018). Rehabilitation is the term used for the progression towards the reinstatement of the original ecosystem (McDonald et al 2016).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Spontaneous plant recolonization on reclaimed post-coal mining sites in East Kalimantan, Indonesia: Native versus alien and succession progress

Hapsari¹,

Trimanto²,

Budiharta³

2020

Biodiversitas

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Abstract. Hapsari L, Trimanto, Budiharta S. 2020. Spontaneous plant recolonization on reclaimed post-coal mining sites in East Kalimantan, Indonesia: Native versus alien and succession progress. Biodiversitas 21: 2003-2017. Comparative vegetation analyses subjected to recolonization of spontaneous plants were carried out in two post-coal mining reclamation sites, with different ages of reclamation, specifically 9 years old and 17 years old, in Bontang, East Kalimantan. This study aims to determine the spontaneous plant diversity and composition, identify the spontaneous alien plant species invasion (IAS), analyze the underlying micro-climates and soil factors and their association to the spontaneous plant recolonization, also to evaluate the succession progress. Results showed that both reclamation sites have undergone some vegetation and environmental improvements. The plant succession stage of both sites was identified at the same stage, as establishment phase of early-succession stage in transition to mid-succession stage. The spontaneous plants were comprised of two layers, i.e. (i) understories include grasses, ferns, lianas, herbs, shrubs and tree seedlings; and (ii) saplings include some of trees and small trees. Plant diversity indices on both sites were in moderate category. At understory layer, the 9-y.o. site was mostly dominated by grass Polytrias indica, whereas the 17-y.o. site was dominated by shrub Asystasia gangetica. At sapling layer, the 9-y.o. site was mostly dominated by Glochidion obscurum, whereas the 17-y.o. site was dominated by Macaranga tanarius. Dominant pioneer tree and shrub species in two reclamation sites mostly from general species component of secondary tropical forests from the families Euphorbiaceae, Phyllantaceae, Melastomaceae, Leguminosae, and Lamiaceae. It was recorded seven IAS in the 9-y.o. site, which six out of seven species were dominant. Meanwhile, in the 17-y.o. site was recorded eight IAS but only four species were dominant. Two dominant noxious weed species were also identified. Each IAS and noxious weed species has invasiveness traits that make them well-grown, successfully recolonized and invaded the reclamation site. Environmental factors include air temperature, air moisture, and light intensity; and soil conditions include pH, C/N ratio and physicochemical properties affected the variation of spontaneous plant establishment on each reclamation site. These comparative study findings may become inputs for coal mining operations management to evaluate and improve their reclamation program; such as by soil reconditions, controlling the populations of IAS, and planting more intensively of native tree species.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Spontaneous plant recolonization on reclaimed post-coal mining sites in East Kalimantan, Indonesia: Native versus alien and succession progress

Hapsari¹,

Trimanto²,

Budiharta³

2020

Biodiversitas

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“…study by [5] stated that mining results in urban growth, leading to LULC changes in many areas worldwide, especially in developing countries such as Zambia [6]. Open-pit, ore, and strip mining can lead to LULC change [7] which have already contributed to severe environmental landscape degradation in mine-adjacent areas of the USA [8].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Land Use Land Cover (LULC) Change Dynamics Associated with Mining Activities in Kitwe District and Adequacy of the Legal Framework on Mine Closure in Zambia

Mutimba,

Watanabe,

Chand

2024

Earth

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Land use land cover (LULC) changes resulting from copper exploration in Kitwe District, Copperbelt Province has adversely impacted the environment. To understand LULC change dynamics associated with mining activities, this study mapped LULC changes using the Google Earth Engine (GEE) from 1990 to 2020. In addition, the Zambian legal framework for mine closure was assessed in terms of adequacy and comprehensiveness. A remote sensing analysis using Landsat TM (1990, 2000, and 2010) and OLI (2020) images was performed and the GEE Random Forest classifier algorithm was employed to detect LULC changes. Then, transition matrices and overall changes were calculated for each LULC class. The LULC classification had an overall accuracy and kappa coefficient of 82.47% and 0.78, respectively. In total, 45.2% of the district area (360.92 km2) experienced LULC changes from 1990 to 2020. The overall change indicates that the areas of built-up area, bare land, and grassland/pasture/agricultural land gained 35.84, 14.67, and 43.53 km2, respectively, while forest lost 95.30 km2, with the major driver being the privatization of mining companies. Several concerns regarding the mine closure process practiced in Zambia have principally been raised to the government. Although the legislation generally conformed to international best practices, a gap involving various pieces of legislation, overlapping requirements, and different interpretations of the laws by different governmental departments makes the system complex and unmanageable. An area of concern is the government’s capability and competence to implement legislation. Ineffective law enforcement, that is, the inadequacy of the legislation, is to blame for LULC changes in mining areas, resulting in mining corporations not paying attention to the changes made, particularly regarding mine closures. This study provides decision-makers and land use planners with baseline knowledge on LULC changes that can be valuable for future mining legislation and how these legislations can be effectively executed to ensure sustainable mine closure.

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“…The coal mining area is the integrated region of coal mining, utilization, and land resource occupation and destruction [ 3 ], where land reclamation can exert a positive influence on improving local environmental conditions, which has become an increasingly hot topic all over the world. In August 1977, the United States Congress promulgated the first national land reclamation law, “Open-Pit Mining Management and Reclamation Law”, which unified and standardized the land reclamation process in American mining areas [ 4 ]. The “Prussian Mining Law” of Germany, issued in 1950, clearly requires the reclamation of the landscape for mining areas [ 5 ].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Changes in Reconstructed Soil Physicochemical Properties in an Opencast Mine Dump in the Loess Plateau Area of China

Zhou

Ming

et al. 2022

IJERPH

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Soil construction and revegetation are essential for ecological restoration in mining areas. The influence of vegetation on the horizontal and vertical distribution patterns of soil properties should be fully understood. However, most studies on reconstructed soils in mining areas only concentrate on the surface soil, without exploring the vertical variations in soil properties. Overall, this study aims to explore the potential mechanisms by which surface vegetation exerts some influence on the spatial distribution of soil physicochemical properties, and to provide some insight into revegetation and soil reclamation in mining areas. Descriptive statistics and one-way analysis of variance (one-way ANOVA) were employed to evaluate the differences in the soil physicochemical properties in horizontal and vertical directions under different land-use types in the south dump of Antaibao opencast mine in Pingshuo, Shanxi Province, China. The main results of this study are as follows: (1) In the horizontal direction, except for the strong variation (variation coefficient ≥ 100%) in soil organic matter (SOM) content at some depths, the degree of variation in other soil physicochemical properties at various depths was moderate or weak (variation coefficient < 100%). The soil physicochemical properties gradually remained constant after years of reclamation. In the vertical direction, the soil bulk density (SBD), soil porosity, SOM content, soil C/N ratio, soil total nitrogen (STN) content, soil available phosphorus (SAP) content, and soil available potassium (SAK) content showed significant variations (p < 0.05) between soil depths. In contrast, no significant difference was found for other physicochemical properties. (2) The SBD, STN, SAK, soil porosity, and soil clay content were significantly different (p < 0.05) under different vegetation cover types, but the influence of vegetation on other soil physicochemical properties seemed to be limited. The results reveal that trees have a stronger ability to reduce soil grain sizes and enhance SAP contents than shrubs or herbs; however, the beneficial effects of herbs on the physicochemical properties of shallow soil are more obvious than those of trees and shrubs. (3) This study indicates that more shrubs and trees should be planted in the areas with low vegetation coverage, and more measures should be taken to improve soil physicochemical properties in order to prevent the occurrence of large-scale degradation. The reconstruction of soil structure should be preferentially considered in the process of soil reconstruction and revegetation in areas under similar conditions. Herbs should first be planted in the early reclamation stage. At the same time, shrubs or trees can be adopted in the middle and late stages of vegetation reconstruction in order to achieve comprehensive revegetation.

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40 years of the Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act (SMCRA): what have we learned in the State of Wyoming

Cited by 6 publications

References 6 publications

Spontaneous plant recolonization on reclaimed post-coal mining sites in East Kalimantan, Indonesia: Native versus alien and succession progress

Spontaneous plant recolonization on reclaimed post-coal mining sites in East Kalimantan, Indonesia: Native versus alien and succession progress

Land Use Land Cover (LULC) Change Dynamics Associated with Mining Activities in Kitwe District and Adequacy of the Legal Framework on Mine Closure in Zambia

Changes in Reconstructed Soil Physicochemical Properties in an Opencast Mine Dump in the Loess Plateau Area of China

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