<abstract xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml"><p> Mining of minerals that have significant impact on landscape and landscape functions affects 1% of the land surface worldwide. In the Czech Republic the extent of mining sites is estimated to be more than 800 km<sup>2</sup> and according to the state legislation the land affected by mining should be reclaimed. There are several approaches to land restoration, which are shortly reviewed in this article, from pure technical approach to one adopting natural processes. The review shows increasing appeal of scientist and conservationist to use natural processes e.g. natural or directed succession as an alternative method of post-mining sites or industrial deposits restoration due to growing evidence of conservational value of such sites in human dominated landscapes. The natural processes used for land restoration are often argued to be slow therefore the rate of spontaneous vegetation succession was assessed in stone quarries and on spoil heaps using a sequence of panchromatic aerial images. The results showed that natural processes act fast and vegetation can reach 100% cover within 10-15 years in granodiorite quarries and on spoil heaps.</p></abstract>

Mining of minerals that have significant impact on landscape and landscape functions affects 1% of the land surface worldwide. In the Czech Republic the extent of mining sites is estimated to be more than 800 km2 and according to the state legislation the land affected by mining should be reclaimed. There are several approaches to land restoration, which are shortly reviewed in this article, from pure technical approach to one adopting natural processes. The review shows increasing appeal of scientist and conservationist to use natural processes e.g. natural or directed succession as an alternative method of post-mining sites or industrial deposits restoration due to growing evidence of conservational value of such sites in human dominated landscapes. The natural processes used for land restoration are often argued to be slow therefore the rate of spontaneous vegetation succession was assessed in stone quarries and on spoil heaps using a sequence of panchromatic aerial images. The results showed that natural processes act fast and vegetation can reach 100% cover within 10-15 years in granodiorite quarries and on spoil heaps.

Restoration Practices Used on Post Mining Sites and Industrial Deposits in the Czech Republic with an Example of Natural Restoration of Granodiorite Quarries and Spoil Heaps

Department of Physical Geography and Geoecology, Faculty of Science, Charles University in Prague; Albertov 6, CZ-128 43 Prague

Journal of Landscape Ecology

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 License.

Mining of minerals that have significant impact on landscape and landscape functions affects 1% of the land surface worldwide. In the Czech Republic the extent...

Restoration Practices Used on Post Mining Sites and Industrial Deposits in the Czech Republic with an Example of Natural Restoration of Granodiorite Quarries and Spoil Heaps

Published Online: Nov 26, 2015

Page range: 29 - 46

Received: Apr 07, 2015

Accepted: Aug 28, 2015

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1515/jlecol-2015-0007

Keywords
reclamation, restoration, quarry, spoil heaps, granodiorite quarry, aerial image, vegetation succession, Skuteč

© 2015

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 License.

Restoration Practices Used on Post Mining Sites and Industrial Deposits in the Czech Republic with an Example of Natural Restoration of Granodiorite Quarries and Spoil Heaps

Published Online: Nov 26, 2015

Page range: 29 - 46

Received: Apr 07, 2015

Accepted: Aug 28, 2015

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1515/jlecol-2015-0007

Keywordsreclamation, restoration, quarry, spoil heaps, granodiorite quarry, aerial image, vegetation succession, Skuteč

© 2015

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 License.

Keywords
reclamation, restoration, quarry, spoil heaps, granodiorite quarry, aerial image, vegetation succession, Skuteč