Study on Ecological Loss in Coal Mining Area Based on Net Primary Productivity of Vegetation

Abstract

Opencast mining contributes to the severe disturbance of vegetation and serious damage to the ecological environment. Scientific assessment of the ecological losses may provide guidance for the sustainable land use in mining areas. This study uses the Carnegie Ames Stanford Approach (CASA) model to estimate the net primary productivity (NPP) of vegetation in the Pingshuo mining area from 2006 to 2020 and uses statistical analysis and mathematical models to study the impact of mining and land reclamation on NPP. The results show that NPP decreased slowly at a rate of 0.809 gC/(m2·month) per year. In 2006, the urban area of Pinglu and the opencast coal mining area were located in the western part of the study area, while the eastern part was distributed with a large amount of grassland, forested and cultivated land, and the NPP showed a high pattern in the east and low in the west. With the continued eastward movement of Antaibao and Anjialing mining areas, as well as the construction and continuous westward expansion of the East opencast mine, the pits of all three opencast mines moved to a central location in 2020, changing the spatial distribution of NPP to high in the surroundings and low in the middle. The NPP within the three opencast mines decreased significantly, but the change in NPP increased from −7.34 gC/(m2·month) to 7.15 gC/(m2·month) as the reclamation area increased, indicating that mining increased ecological losses while land reclamation mitigated them. The variation of NPP within 600 m outside the mining area is 2.06~7.45 gC/(m2·month), and 0.11~1.00 gC/(m2·month) from 600 m to 1000 m, indicating that NPP is sensitive to the influence of mining. The results may provide guidance for further analysis of the impact of mining on local environments and exploration of more appropriate land reclamation measures.

Long-Term Impact of Ground Deformation on Vegetation in an Underground Mining Area: Its Mechanism and Suggestions for Revegetation

“…The natural law of slow development and changes in the vegetation and other ecological elements makes long-term monitoring necessary. Ecological restoration projects generally have management periods of 1-3 years after completion [52,53]; however, due to the previously discussed long-term impacts of ground deformation on the vegetation, it was found that the changes in the vegetation under the long-term impacts may take 10 or even 20 years to be reflected [54,55], which is mainly determined by the time required for the succession of the plant communities [56][57][58]. The conflict between the laws of nature and the requirements of reality has resulted in many projects paying too much attention to the short-term effects of the repairs.…”