Environmental impacts caused by phosphate mining and ecological restoration: a case history in Kunming, China

Yu-You Yang (), Huai-Na Wu (), Shui-Long Shen (), Suksun Horpibulsuk (), Ye-Shuang Xu () and Qing-Hong Zhou ()

Natural Hazards: Journal of the International Society for the Prevention and Mitigation of Natural Hazards, 2014, vol. 74, issue 2, 755-770

Abstract: This paper presents the environmental impacts caused by surface mining and the ecological rehabilitation of Haikou phosphate deposits, Kunming, China. Surface mining entails the removal of the overburden to expose bare rock surfaces, not only causing destruction of pre-existing vegetation, but also occupying large areas of land for dumping the spoil. Severe environmental impacts are caused, e.g. rock desertification, poor forest stand structure, loss of biodiversity, aesthetic depreciation of the landscape, and the potential hazard of landslide and ground erosion. Ecological restoration has been conducted in a demonstration area since 1989 by means of control of geological hazards and revegetation of the disturbed areas. On-site dumping of waste rock for restoration of the abandoned mine area was adopted, providing a new mode of mining reclamation with high economic, environmental, and social value. Countermeasures for prevention and control of landslides included cut and fill technology, drainage, safety netting protection, retaining wall construction, and vegetation cover. By recruiting native plant species to the mine site and planting a forest imitating a natural mixed forest, the mine area was successfully revegetated. Copyright Springer Science+Business Media Dordrecht 2014

Keywords: Surface mining; Environmental impacts; Geological hazards; Environmental restoration (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2014
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
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DOI: 10.1007/s11069-014-1212-6

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