Reducing Environmental Degradation Caused by the Open-Cast Coal Mining Activities

Abstract

Many types of changes are distinguished as a result of mining: degradation of land and vegetation, change in the natural topography whith results in restrictions in the possibilities of using the land for othe purposes, modification of surface and ground water balance and quality, changes in air quality and finally changes in the geotechnical conditions of the rock. The impact varies with local condi - tions of the specific site of mining. Most surface mining methods are large scale, involving removal of massive volumes of material, including overburden, to extract the mineral deposit. Because the materials disposed in refuse dumps are physical-chemically heterogeneous and extremely diverse in terms of mineralogical composition (sand, gravel, clay, marl), over time there have been many occurrences of instability phenomena. Large amounts of waste can be produced in process. Surface mining also can cause noise and disturbance and may pollute air with dust.