Evaluation Study of Ecological Resilience in Southern Red Soil Mining Areas Considering Rare Earth Mining Process

Jianying Zhang, Hengkai Li (), Duan Huang and Xiuli Wang
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Jianying Zhang: School of Civil and Surveying&Mapping Engineering, Jiangxi University of Science and Technology, Ganzhou 341000, China
Hengkai Li: School of Civil and Surveying&Mapping Engineering, Jiangxi University of Science and Technology, Ganzhou 341000, China
Duan Huang: Key Laboratory of Mine Environmental Monitoring and Improving around Poyang Lake of Ministry of Natural Resources, East China University of Technology, Nanchang 330013, China
Xiuli Wang: School of Economics and Management, Jiangxi University of Science and Technology, Ganzhou 341000, China

Sustainability, 2023, vol. 15, issue 3, 1-16

Abstract: Ion-adsorption rare earth mining areas are located in southern China’s ecologically fragile red soil hills region. For a long time, under the influence of multiple factors such as low mining technology and indiscriminate mining, this area has experienced serious environmental problems. Therefore, it is crucial for the ecological management and restoration of mining areas to accurately conduct a quantitative evaluation of ecological restoration status. We used remote sensing and geographic information data to establish an ecosystem resilience evaluation index system consisting of five criteria (land stress, vegetation conditions, surface conditions, biodiversity, and air pollution) and 17 evaluation factors. The Lingbei rare earth mining area in Dingnan County in the red soil hill region was used as a case study since it is a representative ion adsorption rare earth mining area. The restoration status of the mining area was evaluated from 2000 to 2020. The results showed the following: (1) From 2000 to 2020, the ecological resilience level of the mining area was 0.695, 0.685, 0.664, 0.651, and 0.657, exhibiting a decrease followed by an increase. (2) Spatially, the ecological resilience was low at the mine site and increased with increasing distance, indicating that rare earth mining adversely affected ecological resilience in the mining area. (3) The regional ecological resilience has improved over time due to the implementation of green development policies. However, the rate of improvement is slow and ecological restoration of mining areas will remain an ongoing challenge in the future. This study can provide a scientific basis and practical reference for the ecological protection and restoration of mining areas.

Keywords: rare earth mining area; ecological resilience; mining disturbance; multi-index evaluation; comprehensive evaluation model; combination weighting method; spatio-temporal evolution analysis (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2023
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