Soil Properties and Biomass Attributes in a Former Gravel Mine Area after Two Decades of Forest Restoration

Frederick Gyasi Damptey, Klaus Birkhofer, Paul Kofi Nsiah and Enrique G. de la Riva
Additional contact information
Frederick Gyasi Damptey: Department of Ecology, Brandenburg University of Technology, 03046 Cottbus, Senftenberg, Germany
Klaus Birkhofer: Department of Ecology, Brandenburg University of Technology, 03046 Cottbus, Senftenberg, Germany
Paul Kofi Nsiah: Department of Environmental Management, University of Energy and Natural Resources, Sunyani 00233, Ghana
Enrique G. de la Riva: Department of Ecology, Brandenburg University of Technology, 03046 Cottbus, Senftenberg, Germany

Land, 2020, vol. 9, issue 6, 1-18

Abstract: The ongoing global deforestation resulting from anthropogenic activities such as unsustainable agriculture and surface mining threatens biodiversity and decreases both soil carbon and above-ground biomass stocks. In this study, we assessed soil properties and below- and above-ground biomass attributes in a restored former gravel mine area in Ghana two decades after active restoration with potted plants and fresh topsoil. We compared conditions to four alternative land-use types (unrestored abandoned gravel mine, arable land, semi-natural forest, and natural forest) representing pre- and post-disturbance as well as natural reference states. We hypothesized that soil properties and related levels of below- and above-ground biomass in the restored area share similarities with the natural reference systems and thereby are indicative of a trajectory towards successful restoration. Eight replicated subareas in each land-use type were assessed for a set of soil parameters as well as below- and above-ground biomass attributes. The soil properties characteristic for the restored area differed significantly from pre-restoration stages, such as the abandoned gravel site, but did not differ significantly from properties in the natural forest (except for bulk density and base saturation). Above-ground biomass was lower in the restored area in comparison to the reference natural forests, while differences were not significant for below-ground biomass. Silt and effective cation exchange capacity were closely related to above-ground biomass, while below-ground biomass was related to soil organic carbon, bulk density, and potassium concentration in soils. Our results suggest that major steps towards successful restoration can be accomplished within a relatively short period, without the wholesale application of topsoil. Improving soil conditions is a vital tool for the successful development of extensive vegetation cover after surface mining, which also affects carbon sequestration by both above- and below-ground biomass. We emphasize that the use of reference systems provides critical information for the monitoring of ecosystem development towards an expected future state of the restored area.

Keywords: carbon sequestration; degradation; forest management; mining; restoration success (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q15 Q2 Q24 Q28 Q5 R14 R52 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2020
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (2)

Downloads: (external link)
https://www.mdpi.com/2073-445X/9/6/209/pdf (application/pdf)
https://www.mdpi.com/2073-445X/9/6/209/ (text/html)

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:gam:jlands:v:9:y:2020:i:6:p:209-:d:376871

Access Statistics for this article

Land is currently edited by Ms. Carol Ma

More articles in Land from MDPI
Bibliographic data for series maintained by MDPI Indexing Manager ().