Managing the impact of rock and mineral extraction Management • Safe disposal of mining waste: • Mine waste must be stored to prevent collapse. • Site of the mine must prevent the chances of water pollution. • The waste must be monitored to • Land restoration: • Soil improvement: After (sanitary) landfilling, mine waste can be covered by a layer of soil, that can be enriched with fertilizers. • Mine waste could be reshaped to blend in with the surrounding landforms • Animals will colonize the area • Tree planting • This creates habitats quickly even when the tress grow slowly • It also brigs back the beauty in the area • Some mine waste don’t allow plant growth • You could do the following • Bioremediation: a process of removing pollutants from waste using living organisms. • In situ treatment: treatment of contaminated waste where it’s left. • Ex situ treatment: removal of contaminated waste from a site to a treatment plant • Often happens slowly (can be sped up by providing oxygen and nitrogen). • Microorganisms, like bacteria, can absorb pollutants and metabolise them into less harmful substances. • Some plants could bioaccumulate toxic metals. • After these plants grows for a while, the parts of the plants aboveground are removed • Making lakes and natural reserves: • Several tree and herb species are introduced. • As their populations grow, they create habitats for many species. • These nature reserves become valuable green spaces for human recreation and help in maintaining biodiversity. • If the rock lining the hole (created by the extraction) is non-toxic and impervious to water, it can be filled with water to form a reservoir or lake. • It is used for irrigating farmland or processed to • Using as landfill sites: • Landfilling: the mine waste is tipped into a hole; from time to time, it is levelled off and compacted. • Sanitary landfilling: As in landfilling, the household waste is used to fill the hole, but alternating layers of waste and sand are used.
