Reclamation Of Disturbed Lands Research Articles

РЕКУЛЬТИВАЦИЯ НАРУШЕННЫХ ЗЕМЕЛЬ ПРИ СТРОИТЕЛЬСТВЕ ОБЪЕКТОВ НЕФТЕГАЗОВОГО КОМПЛЕКСА

The article deals with topical issues of reclamation of disturbed lands during the construction of subsurface use facilities, lists the main trends in land restoration, reveals the main activities of the technical and biological stages of reclamation. The choice of the direction of land reclamation is carried out taking into account the nature of the disturbed areas, location in relation to the natural and climatic zone and assumes a technical and biological stage of reclamation. The paper presents specific measures for the reclamation of the land under consideration at the technical and biological stages. The biological stage of reclamation of disturbed lands is carried out by the method of creating forest crops of the main breed of economically valuable forest species, in this case, pine.

Analysis of the structure of lands disturbed by underground mining of ore deposits

The purpose of the work is to study and analyze the structure of the lands disturbed by the mining enterprises of Eastern Siberia and the Far East developing ore deposits. While the issue of disturbed land reclamation is treated today by the project documentation of the mining enterprises as an aggregate plan, there is a risk of leaving the lands without due attention after the completion of mining operations. The conducted study included the analysis of the disturbed land structure according to the project documentation and field observations at four mining enterprises. As a result, the nature of the disturbed land sites and their area was determined. The field research revealed disturbances not provided by the projects and requiring extraordinary solutions to eliminate them. The average structure of disturbed lands under underground mining of ore deposits was determined, its differences from the similar structure under open-pit mining were identified. It has been proven that the activities of mining enterprises involved in the underground development of ore deposits and reclamation of disturbed lands lack due attention, which leads to the growth in technogenic relief area and adverse environmental impacts. The presented research methodology includes field work with the visits to mining enterprises, as well as the analysis of design solutions and satellite images.

Biological reclamation of post-technogenic landscapes of Yakutia: problems and prospects

In the context of intensive industrial development in the Republic of Sakha (Yakutia), the issue of restoring technogenically disturbed areas is becoming increasingly relevant. Technogenic landscapes formed during the extraction of mineral deposits often have negative effects on the environment, and severe environmental conditions hinder the restoration of ecosystems affected by industrial activities. This study synthesized the long-term research results of scientists from the Research Institute of Applied Ecology of the North named after Prof., Dr. Savvinov (NEFU) on the study of succession and soil restoration processes in post-technogenic landscapes of placer deposits in the basins of the Anabar River and the Aldan River, as well as at the diamond and coal ore deposits in the Mirninsky, Aldansky and Neryungrinsky regions of Yakutia. Our study demonstrated that the effective restoration of technogenically disturbed landscapes is relevant to the use of seeds and planting materials from local flora in the biological stage of reclamation. On the dumps of ore deposits composed of rocks that are slowly weathered under hypergenesis conditions, effective restoration can be achieved only with the formation of technogenic soil. Due to the deficit of (decipher) PPP and (decipher)PSP, it is necessary to create a technology for the biological reclamation of disturbed lands with the use of alternative materials.

Восстановление нарушенных земель в горных экосистемах

Introduction. The growing volumes of extraction, processing and transportation of minerals in Russia and the world contribute to an increase in disturbed lands, which actualizes the development of new approaches and methods for reclamation work. However, a clear structure of methods for restoring disturbed lands has not yet been developed. Hence the purpose of the work: to explore the world experience in the implementation of traditional and innovative approaches to the reclamation of disturbed lands in order to identify the most promising trends for further research. Materials and methods. The theoretical and methodological basis of the study are the scientific works of Russian and foreign scientists in the field of earth sciences, geo-ecology, physical chemistry, geo-botany and microbiology. Methods of the work are general scientific methods, such as dialectical, historical, analysis, synthesis, comparison, grouping, as well as systematic and empirical approaches. Results and discussion. The study substantiates the identification of two approaches: traditional and innovative; the author’s structure of methods for biological stage of reclamation work has been developed. The traditional approach is characterized by standard, but less effective, labor-intensive, and therefore expensive, methods of reclamation by using a fertile soil layer and potentially fertile rocks with the sowing of perennial grasses, trees and shrubs. An innovative approach is on agenda today. It can significantly reduce the cost of reclamation procedures due to the use of modern technologies and materials for restoring soil fertility and decontaminating pollutants. The innovative approach includes basic methods: 1. Algae; 2. Washing; 3. Bioremediation; 4. Sorbent-oriented. The study offers to improve the term «disturbed lands» in the regulatory field of the Russian Federation in order to take into account, along with the anthropogenic and natural factors. The structure of the disturbed lands of Russia is revealed in the context of the extraction of various types of minerals. Conclusions and offers. The article presents the results of the analysis of the world methodological experience in biological stage of reclamation work. It has been established that both in Russia and abroad, work is underway to improve the biological stage of reclamation. Attention is focused on the method of bioremediation and its sub-method of phytoremediation with the sorbent-oriented method, the combination of which, according to the authors, is of the greatest practical interest. It is revealed that the tasks of using local types of raw materials for the creation of composite sorbents are topical. The authors consider the creation of composite sorbents based on peat, as the most common raw material in Russia, to be a promising direction.

Special aspects of ecosystem recreation in the area of dumps of sub-standard zeolite-containing rocks of Holinsky deposit of Eastern Transbaikalia

The research presents the problem of liquidation of dumps of substandard raw materials of zeolite-containing rocks of the Holinsky deposit, measures for the reclamation of disturbed lands. The most effective way to restore ecosystems is renaturation. Time intervals of succession are considered. Renaturation of disturbed lands consists of 6 stages. Possible dominant plants for the proposed options are considered in detail: Stipa lessingiana, Poa platensis, Festuca valesiaca, Poa angustifolia, Elytrigia intermedia, Artemisia vulgaris, Trifolium pratense , Trifolium repens, Agropyron desertorum.

Influence of Natural, Climatic, and Industrial Factors on Air and Water Quality in The Kemerovo Region (Kuzbass, Russia)

Geographical and climatic features of the Kemerovo region (Kuzbass, Russia) determined the modern geological and geomorphological structure of the territory, as well as a characteristic pattern in the distribution of mineral deposits. The purpose of this work was to study the geomorphological and hydrological features of the Kemerovo region. Atmospheric circulation, relief, and vegetation are the climate's main factors. The combination of these factors forms the climatic characteristics of the region. Soils in open areas (meadows, hayfields) occupy a small area and have high economic and ecological value. Most of the forest is not affected by economic activities. The exception is disturbances in the territories affected by logging and mining enterprises, which especially affect the air and water quality in the region. All the obtained results of the assessment of the geomorphological and hydrological condition of the Kemerovo region should be used when planning further experiments on the stages of technical and biological reclamation of disturbed lands of mining enterprises to restore vegetation cover and the primary state of soils.

Ecological-economic aspects of mining thin coal seams in the Western Donbas


 
 
 The paper draws attention to the ecological-economic aspects of mining thin coal seams in the strategic coal-mining region of the Western Donbas and studies their causes and consequences in detail. It has been analyzed and determined that as a result of coal mining with complete caving of rocks, the processes of the earth’s surface subsidence above the mine fields occur. Due to the proximity of groundwater to the surface, waterlogging of territories and a change in the landscape occur. Using analytical calculations, it has been determined that the total surface subsidence value above the mine field of one of the Western Donbas mines is 1.2 m, which, according to the monitoring of environmental authorities, correlates well with the range of subsidence values in the region of 0.7-1.4 m. The places and parameters of rock dumps accumulating on the earth’s surface in coal mines are identified and analyzed, and the sources of waste rock formations in the technological system of coal mines are also studied. It has been revealed that the largest ingress of all waste rocks to the surface is caused by the stope operations conducted with undercutting of bottom rocks – 39% and underground mining operations to prepare new coal reserves for extraction – 33%. To date, it has been found that the volumes of waste rocks generated in mines are 1.5 times higher than the volumes of their utilization, and the prospect of disturbed land reclamation is limited in time, which, with today’s mining technology, will lead to an increase in their accumulation again. Based on a comprehen- sive study of the mined coal seam structure with a complex texture, using the example of one of the mines, it has been revealed that in the formation of operational ash content, the friable roof caving amounts to 13.0%, the seam rock interlayers – 19.2%, the coal seam natural ash content – 12.8%, and the seam bottom rock undercutting – 55.0%. A close linear relationship has been determined between the value of bottom rock undercutting with a shearer based on collected mine data and the indicator of mined coal operational ash content, which confirms the greatest importance of this factor. It has been proved that the most important factor influencing the formation of the mined coal operational ash content is the undercutting of the seam bottom rocks by a shearer, and with a 2-fold decrease in the ash content of coal, its energy potential increases by 1.25 times. Possible scenarios for the coal mining development in the Western Donbas are considered and a rational direction for solving the leading ecological-economic problems of underground mining of thin coal seams is proposed.
 
 

Ecological Assessment of Drilling Sludge and Development of a Method for their Bioremediation in Western Siberia

The article considers the issue of bioremediation of drilling sludge. The aim of the research is studying of the microbiological processes occurring in soils based on drilling sludge, with their subsequent application for the biological stage of reclamation of disturbed lands. Microbiological characteristics of drilling sludge and four samples of soils based on it with the addition of diatomite, dolomite flour, peat, gypsum, glauconite, humic preparation Rostock in different proportions were studied. Crops were shown on agarized medium: meat-peptone agar (MPA), starch-ammonia agar (SAA), Munz medium, Chapek medium, depending on the determined group of microorganisms. The total number of microflora, the number of saprophytes, microorganisms growing on starch-ammonia agar (SAA), hydrocarbon-oxidizing bacteria (PSB), micromycetes and actinomycetes were estimated. The mineralization coefficient is calculated. The total number of microflora in the samples ranged from 51 to 271 million CFU/g. The share of saprophytes was 16.724.8% of the total amount of microflora. The proportion of microorganisms growing on SAA was 15.6-36.6%. The minimum number of PSB was 2.0 million CFU/g of soil; the maximum was 22.0 million CFU/g. The mineralization coefficient varies from 0.81 to 1.63, which indicates different rates of mineralization processes. The number of micromycetes determined on the Chapek medium ranged from 0.01 to 3.33 million CFU/g, on SAA from 0.03 to 10.4 million CFU/g. At the same time, the number of micromycetes is much lower than the number of bacteria, which is normal for soils. The number of actinomycetes varied from 0.2 to 7.3 million CFU/g. The largest number of actinomycetes was noted when peat and humic preparation Rostock were introduced. The share of actinomycetes in the total number of microflora on the SAA ranged from 0.6 to 14%. There is a development of the total number of microflora, an increase in the diversity of microbocenosis, which indicates a decrease in the concentrations of water-soluble salts, petroleum products and the presence of an additional food source in the form of peat. Based on the data obtained, a conclusion was made about the possibility of using soils based on drilling sludge with the addition of peat and humic preparation Rostock for the reclamation of disturbed lands.

Specifics and practical examples of low-hazard industrial waste utilization for filling technogenic cavities

The presented research focuses on the pressing issues of restoration of land areas disturbed by mining operations. The paper studies legislative peculiarities of industrial waste utilization for the purpose of reclamation of disturbed lands in Ukraine. Real practical examples of using low-hazard industrial waste for reclamation of land areas disturbed by quarrying and failure zones are analyzed. It is noted that, provided that all legal and sanitary requirements are met, low-hazard class IV waste can be used at the mining-technical stage of quarry reclamation. Aspects of the prospects for restoring the earth’s surface level are clarified based on the development of directions for the backfill mass formation in technogenic cavities, which will provide stability and geomechanical reliability of the earth’s surface.

Peculiarities of species composition of phytocenoses with dominance and participation species of the genus Salsola L. in desert and semi-desert regions of Kazakhstan

The purpose of the research was to identify the features of the floristic composition of rammunities with representatives of the genus Salsola L. (North-Western (Aksai), Southem, South-Eastem regions of Kazakhstan). Traditional methods of field geobotanical researches were used in the process of studying. As a result of expedition works, 24 studied plant communities (with predominance and participation of various Salsola) were described. Communities differed from each other by species composition, which is caused by a variety of combination of habitat factors. The analysis of the floristic composition of the described rommunities resulted in the identification of two groups: 1) rommunities dominated by species of the genus Salsola; 2) rommunities in which the presence of species of the genus Salsola was insignificant. During the research, it was revealed that annual species S. nitraria Pall. and S. tragus L. are well adapted to the habitat conditions of desert and semi-desert regions and it was roncluded that they can be used for reclamation of disturbed lands.

THE PROBLEMS AND PROSPECTS OF UTILIZATION OF SEWAGE SLUDGE AND RECLAMATION OF DISTURBED LANDS IN THE NORTH-WEST OF RUSSIA AND WAYS TO SOLVE THEM JOINTLY

This review article raises the related issue of disturbed land reclamation and sewage sludge disposal. One of the components of disturbed land reclamation is considered - the problem of obtaining the most accessible and cheap fertile soil layer in sufficient quantity, options are listed: natural humus horizon; substrates based on peat of varying degrees of decomposition, based on wood waste from logging and woodworking, based on composts (leaf litter, agricultural waste, other). The main emphasis is placed on substrates based on municipal sewage sludge and pulp and paper mill waste, on the basis of which, during processing, organo-mineral compositions can be obtained with their further use as fertile soil layer. Gaps are noted in the modern regulatory framework, especially in relation to the use of sewage sludge as a fertile soil layer for the reclamation of disturbed land, including on forest fund lands. As an example, the situation with the use and disposal of sewage sludge in the Northwestern Federal District was considered based on data on the volume of waste production at existing wastewater treatment plants. Three categories of sewage sludge are distinguished by composition and two main methods of disposal currently used (incineration and removal to municipal service waste landfills). Separately, attention is focused on the situation with the accumulation of sewage sludge at wastewater treatment plants in settlements, including those with a pulp and paper mill as a city-forming enterprise. In conclusion, conclusions are drawn about the need to improve the existing regulatory framework in terms of the use of sewage sludge for the purposes of reclamation, about the priority of developing organo-mineral compositions that meet the tasks of reclamation, giving them an official status, and about the advisability of developing a strategic state document aimed at regulating the issues of reclamation of disturbed lands: the relevance of which is confirmed by the annual increasing areas, passing into the category of disturbed land.

Development of projects for recultivation of lands using GIS technologies

The necessity of reclamation of disturbed lands as a result of mining is substantiated. Disturbed lands lose all economic importance. In addition, they are a source of pollution of soil and air in the adjacent territories, worsen the living conditions of the population and the appearance of the landscape. The technique of drawing up the working projects for the recultivation of disturbed lands as a result of mining by using the GIS software “Panorama” is considered. The use of this software reduces the time needed to complete a project, reduces the costs and improves the accuracy of project calculations. The use of the technique is shown by the example of the recultivation of disturbed lands in the “Kushbulak” plot of the Karakhtay field. Agricultural reclamation with restoration of pastureland use is recommended. It is planned to create a beach zone with a 30 cm layer of sand in the far northwestern section. It is planned to fill the bottom of the quarry with soil to the design level and create a terrace, as well as work on the land area with a fertile soil layer of 20 cm and planning the surface. The efficiency of reclamation in parallel with the use of a mineral deposit is substantiated.

Progressive belowground soil development associated with sustainable plant establishment during copper mine waste revegetation

Critical to the environmental sustainability of hard rock mining is the reclamation of disturbed lands following mine closure through revegetation. Improved understanding of associations between above- and belowground processes that characterize successful plant establishment is critical to the implementation of more efficient revegetation strategies for nutrient-poor mine waste materials. The specific objective of this five-year temporal study was to identify progressive biotic and abiotic indicators of primary soil development on mine waste rock (WR) on a slope hydroseeded with native plant species, and to quantify comparative effects of plant lifeform on soil development. Aboveground plant diversity and belowground substrate properties were measured annually at 67 m intervals along transects following the slope contour. Seeded WR was compared to unseeded WR and the adjacent native ecosystem. A temporal increase in WR microbial biomass was observed in seeded WR relative to unseeded areas. Microbial community analysis found the unseeded WR to be defined by oligotrophic microbes, whereas targeted grass and shrub root zone samples demonstrated significant increases in specific cellulose and lignin degrading and N-cycling phylotypes. More extensive chemical and biological fertility development was observed in shrub root zones relative to grass. Ten chemical and biological indicators increased significantly in shrub WR relative to unseeded WR, whereas grass WR was only enriched in bacterial 16S rRNA gene copy number/g substrate and bacterial/archaeal and fungal diversity. In addition, the shrub root zone had significantly higher nitrogen-cycling potential than grass root zones or unseeded WR. Thus, both grasses and shrubs improve belowground WR development; however, shrub establishment had greater fertility outcomes. Concurrent belowground fertility development is critical to sustainable plant establishment. Coupled evaluation of above- and belowground metrics provides an improved quantitative assessment of revegetation progress and a valuable tool to guide management decisions.

Гумусовая мелиорация нарушенных земель: прошлое, настоящее, будущее (обзор)

Long-term open-pit mining of coal in the south of Western Siberia is accompanied by the destruction of natural landscapes, the disappearance of rare species of flora, fauna, fertile soils in forest-steppe and steppe zones. This actualizes the problem of biological reclamation of disturbed territories. The presented review provides information about the volumes of overburden rocks, the burial of fertile lands by them, and the prospectssoils and for the development of the coal industry. The article considers the history of the use of humus reclamation of disturbed lands, which ensures the introduction of initial fertility and microbiota involved in biogenic soil formation. Attention is focused on the limited availability of humus reserves in the Siberian region, the deterioration of the quality of the alienated fertile layer duringlong-term storage in burts. Information is presented on the initial properties of dump rocks, which act as the underlying rock in artificially created soil-like formations. Attention is focused on the importance of the formation of edaphic services in the root layer. The need to attract innovative developments to increase the nitrogen regime of technozems, as well as microbiological ways to improve the root nutrition of phytoplanets and increase their stress resistance is emphasized. This review reflects the problems of complex and slow restoration of the natural environment, especially in the dry steppe zone, as a result of its rapid destruction during subsurface use.

Preservation of soil resources which were destroyed as a result of military operations by means of land management

It is proved that soil protection has become a national environmental problem, so the contradictions between socio-economic needs of people and environmental safety requirements must be overcome. The existence of standards for the qualitative state of soils and their maximum permissible pollution in the legislative field indicates that they reflect only the chemical nature of anthropogenic loads, but there are no standards at all for such types of loads as physical, mechanical, reclamation and man-made, which is of particular importance in the context of military operations in Ukraine. It is substantiated that when assessing the level of damaged land and soil as a result of hostilities and determining the degree of suitability for their further use, it is necessary to take into account: the level of damage to the land plot as a percentage of its area; the degree of suitability; characteristics of contaminated land; proposals for further use of the land plot and measures to reduce the level of pollutants entering the soil. It is also proposed to implement measures to protect land and soil by means of land management through the development of appropriate land management documentation. Given the anthropogenic load on soils due to the impact of hostilities, the need to develop a working land management project for the reclamation of disturbed lands as a result of hostilities and a working land management project for the conservation of degraded, unproductive and technogenically polluted lands has been proved, which requires amendments to the Resolution of the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine of February 2, 2022, No. 86 "On Approval of the Rules for Developing Working Land Management Projects".

Recycling of municipal waste in crop production as condition for reducing the toxicological load on ecosystems

In the period from 2013 to 2020, in all regions of Russia, there was an increase in household waste by 4.5-6.9 times an average. The study has identified that the properties of some wastes allow using them in economic sphere; it predetermines the interest in wastes as a secondary material resource. Some waste can be used as a fertilizer material and a substance for soil formation. It has to be considered that waste use can cause a number of serious negative processes, affecting all components of the ecosystem. Moreover, the polluting strength depends on the chemical composition of waste and the regulations for waste use. The purpose of the study is a geoecologic assessment of the resource potential of household waste in Orel in order to determine the possibility of their subsequent use in the region’s agriculture. The authors have presented the results of a ten-year monitoring of the resource potential of sewage sludge. According to chemical and biological components determined by the analyses, the examined waste belongs to IV, V classes of danger to the environment. It proves that they can serve as an organomineral fertilizer for the biological reclamation of disturbed lands.

Land degradation in Ukraine: retrospective analysis 2017-2022

ABSTRACT Drawing on fundamental and applied research of leading scientists in the field, we outline the state of the land in Ukraine, identify the factors contributing to its degradation, and propose restorative measures. Soil degradation may be arrested by land use that takes account of soil-landscape and climatic factors; a science-based structure of sown areas and crop rotation; soil-protective and resource-saving cultivation; anti-erosion measures applying GIS and remote sensing but, also, simply restoring vegetation cover; and reclamation of disturbed lands. These well established technologies should become integral to agricultural enterprises and the practice of ministries and departments of Ukraine.

Problems of implementation of the state agricultural policy in the sphere of agricultural land using

The article is devoted to the study of legal problems of the implementation of the state agrarian policy in the field of rational land use and the prospects for further planning of land ownership and land use of newly created agribusiness entities, as well as the development of scientifically based conclusions and proposals from the scientific doctrine of agrarian law of Ukraine. The priority directions of the implementation of the national policy in the field of land relations are highlighted, in particular, the implementation and financial support of national programs for the use and protection of land, reduction of plowed land, reproduction and increase of soil fertility, agroforestry and land reclamation, reclamation of disturbed lands, standardization and regulation in the field of land protection. The key role of land management and land use planning, in particular their zoning, is proven as one of the main mechanisms for coordinating economic interests and preserving and reproducing soil fertility, protecting agricultural land from the destructive processes of water and wind erosion, with the help of which the process of economic activity on the land is adapted to its properties. It is argued that today the projects of the organization of the territory of land use of enterprises, institutions, organizations and citizens regarding the creation of spatial conditions that ensure the ecological and economic optimization of the use and protection of land, the improvement of the ratio and placement of land plots, the development of a system of measures for the preservation and improvement of natural landscapes, the conservation of degraded and unproductive lands are virtually absent. Has been emphasized that the necessary prerequisite for the development of planning and implementation of sustainable agricultural land use in Ukraine and the regulation of further directions for the formation and implementation of the state agrarian policy is an ecological approach, which is capable of forming the social responsibility of agribusiness entities in the field of environmental protection, and will also be an incentive for the introduction environmentally safe agricultural technologies, including organic farming, precision farming, agroforestry during agricultural activities. The methodology of researching legal problems of rational land use in agriculture is based on the provisions of the general scientific dialectical method of scientific knowledge. In addition, formal-logical, formal-legal and hermeneutic methods were used to achieve the research goal.

Problems of waste rock formation during mining of Western Donbass coal reserves: state-of-the-art and solutions

Purpose. The research purpose is to analyze and generalize the problems of waste rock accumulation, as well as to determine the directions for their possible solution in order to improve the ecological-economic conditions for mining coal reserves in the Western Donbass. Methods. A comprehensive scientific-methodological approach is used, which consists in studying regional accounts on the state of the environment, data from the register of waste disposal sites in the Dnipropetrovsk Oblast, peculiarities of placement of dumps according to the Google Earth program and collected mine data. To study the feasibility of processing dumps, a SWOT-analysis is used, as well as the analysis of existing technologies for processing the rock mass from waste dumps, based on foreign and domestic experience. Findings. Nine rock dumps have been identified, formed as a result of the functioning of the Western Donbass coal mines, where almost 130 million tons of waste rocks have been accumulated on an area of about 190 hectares. It is noted that the reclamation of disturbed lands as the main means of rock utilization is insufficient. Based on a thorough analysis of the SWOT-analysis results, a strategic direction for processing has been determined – the use of rock mass as a raw material for construction (materials and roads) with accompanying extraction of coal, aluminum and iron. The existing technologies for the processing of waste rocks have been systematized. It has been determined that the largest scaling of waste dump processing in the Western Donbass mines can be achieved with a combination of mechanical-chemical methods, among which gravity and magnetic beneficiation methods, mechanical grinding and chemical leaching are priority. Originality. The mechanisms for handling coal waste from coal mines in the Western Donbass have been determined to solve ecological-economic problems associated with their accumulation. Practical implications. The research results reveal possible ways of solving the problems of waste rock accumulation in the Western Donbass mines, which makes ecological and economic sense.

Evaluation of Soil Toxicity of an Oil and Gas Condensate Field after Reclamation of Disturbed Lands on the Example of the Field of the Yamal-Nenets Autonomous District

Evaluation of Soil Toxicity of an Oil and Gas Condensate Field after Reclamation of Disturbed Lands on the Example of the Field of the Yamal-Nenets Autonomous District