Mine soils associated with open-cast coal mining in Spain: a review
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.21701/bolgeomin.122.2.004Keywords:
coal mining, mine soils, restoration, Spain, technosolsAbstract
The different situations that may be found after the closure of coal mines range from the simple abandonment of pits and spoil tips to areas where reclamation work has led to the creation of artificial soils on a reconstituted surface composed of layers of rock and soil or both types of material. Soils of this type are known as mine soils, amongst which those generated by coal mining have been studied most extensively, both to assess their potential for reclamation and to learn more about their pedogenetic evolution. We present here a review of some of the more important works devoted to this subject. We have found evidence to show that in Spain, just as in other countries, the physical and chemical properties of these anthropogenic soils are changing rapidly and so the mine-soil profiles described can be considered as belonging to very young soils still undergoing incipient but rapid development. We have also found that an analysis of information obtained from the soil parameters of surface samples and its interpretation is of great practical use in restoration processes. Nevertheless, the sampling and description of soil profiles has proved to be of much greater interest, allowing us to reach a clearer understanding of the internal processes and properties that are unique to these types of anthropogenic soil.
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