Abstract
Connectivity modeling approaches for abandoned mine lands (AML) patches are limited in post-mining landscape restoration, especially where great land use changes might be expected due to large-scale land reclamation. This study presents a novel approach combining AML patch sizes with a proximity index to characterize patch-scaled connectivity for determining the spatial positions of patches with huge sizes and high connectivity. Then this study propose a scenario-based method coupled with landscape-scale metrics for quantifying landscape-scaled connectivity, which aims at exploring the optimal reclamation scheme with the highest connectivity. Using the Mentougou District in Beijing, China, as a case study, this paper confirmed which patches should be reclaimed first to meet the predetermined reclamation numbers; then this paper tested three different reclamation scenarios (i.e., cultivated land-oriented, forest-oriented, and construction land-oriented scenarios) to describe the impact of the different development strategies on landscape connectivity. The research found that the forest-oriented scenario increased connectivity quantitatively, showing an increase in the integral index of connectivity (IIC) and other landscape-scale metrics. Therefore, this paper suggests that future land-use policies should emphasize converting AML into more forest to blend in with the surrounding land-use categories. The findings presented here can contribute to better understanding the quantitative analysis of the connectivity of AML patches at both the patch scale and the landscape scale, thus providing scientific support for AML management in mine-site rehabilitation.
Highlights
Large-scale mining activities have led to a great number of abandoned mine lands (AML), which refers to idle or abandoned lands after mining or exploration activities that cannot be reused without remediation [1,2,3]
The AML patch sizes were calculated in ArcGIS 10.2
Six AML patches were larger than 100 ha in 2007, and most of them passed through the coal mining industrial region located in the eastern part of the research area
Summary
Large-scale mining activities have led to a great number of abandoned mine lands (AML), which refers to idle or abandoned lands after mining or exploration activities that cannot be reused without remediation [1,2,3]. In China, rules for AML reclamation are that patches with high connectivity and large areas should be given priority and that the patch restoration should coincide with the surrounding land cover category to achieve high landscape connectivity. Though this management strategy is frequently recommended, only limited qualitative analyses have been conducted as quantitative methods for measuring connectivity in the field of mining landscape restoration are commonly not used in China and internationally. At the patch-scale, Gustafson and Parker developed the proximity index to describe the aggregation degree of the patches of the same land-use type [5,6,7]. Kirmikil and Arici investigated the utility of metric parameters such as the shape index and fractal dimension for analyzing parcel conditions pre- and post-land consolidation in four villages within the county of Karacabey in Bursa, Turkey, aiming at eliminating scattered land forms [14]
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