Research on the influence of vegetation restoration in loess open-pit coal mines of China: Influencing factors and mechanism

Abstract

The effect and quality of reclaimed mining area land in ecologically fragile areas have been the focus of the state, enterprises and academia. However, the research on the status quo and the interaction between the reconstructed topography, reconstructed soil and reconstructed vegetation in the reclaimed area needs to be further deepened, and its research value for subsequent ecological restoration and management in the mining area needs to be further expanded. In this study, the south dump of the Antianbao open-pit coal mine was taken as the research object. We used typical profile sampling methods, single-factor saliency analysis, Pearson correlation analysis and redundancy analysis to focus on exploring the influence of soil and topography on vegetation and to conduct a preliminary delineation of soil-layer functional areas. The results showed that (1) there was great heterogeneity in the quality of reclaimed land in the study area, in which the heterogeneity of vegetation status was particularly obvious, and the overall variation was medium or high. (2) In terms of topography, elevation and aspect significantly affected vegetation conditions. The soil factors that had the greatest impact on vegetation were the available potassium, total nitrogen, organic matter, gravel concentration in topsoil (0–30 cm), and the available phosphorus, organic matter, gravel concentration in deep soil (30–60 cm). (3) In the reclaimed land of the study area, the main functions of surface reconstructed soil provided nutrients for herbs and acted as a “channel” for the root system of vegetation, while the main functions of deep reconstructed soil provided nutrients for vegetation. Vegetation and soil play an important role in ecologically fragile systems. This study mainly summarizes the effects of soil and topography on vegetation in reclaimed land in the loess area, which is highly significant to improve and manage future reclamation sites at home and abroad, and to improve the homogeneity and system stability of reclamation sites.