TITLE:
How Should Mine Reclamation Design Effectively Respond to Climate Change? A Mini Review Opinion
AUTHORS:
Lina Xie, Dirk van Zyl
KEYWORDS:
Climate Change, Mine Reclamation, Mine Closure, Nature-Based Solutions, Six-Step Framework
JOURNAL NAME:
Journal of Geoscience and Environment Protection,
Vol.10 No.12,
December
14,
2022
ABSTRACT: Climate change is a growing concern with each of the last three decades
being successively warmer than preceding decades. Mine wastes are mandatory
required to be reclaimed after mine operation due to their high risks of
contaminating environment and huge volumes occupying large useable land resources.
However, most traditional mine reclamation plans are designed with an
assumption of unchanged, consistent conditions of environment, climate and hydrology conditions, which may not work
properly under the global climate
change. This paper discussed the previously ignored problem that is how
mine reclamation design should effectively
respond to climate change. Through reviewing the current responding
strategy to the climate change during mine reclamation and closure, this mini
review was structured, and the opinion is concluded that the more active the
designers consider the factors of climate change, the more manageable,
predictable and sustainable the reclaimed ecosystem
and landscape are. Nature-based solutions can act as the general guidelines when considering climate change with mine
reclamation, and the six-step framework aims more specifically on mine
reclamation. The two methods can work together to help designers and regulators
to effectively respond to climate change when planning mine reclamation and
closure.