Implementation of an Air Pollution Measurement System in Mining Areas of Cerro de Pasco-Peru

One of the big problems in the city of Cerro de Pasco is the air pollution caused by the mining activity that occurs in this area, this activity generates a total of 3737 metric tons per year of particulate matter, which are thrown into the environment in an alarming way, thus reaching that this particulate matter can lodge inside the organism of the inhabitants permanently, causing in them diseases in the respiratory system, thus affecting the most vulnerable population, producing in them infections in the respiratory tract that can even carry those to death. Nowadays the teams that carry out the monitoring of air quality are restricted only to the academic and governmental sphere, so much so that the population does not know the degree of air pollution. For this reason, it is proposed to carry out a system to measure the level of air pollution taking as main data, the measurement of particulate matter and the emission of carbon monoxide, the data that can be recovered from these measurements to be able to compare them with the parameters dictated by the Ministry of the Environment. As a result, an autonomous system was obtained, with which the level of particulate matter, possible toxic gases, and the measurement of the level of carbon monoxide can be measured, all these pollutants that could be in the environment, all these measurements are constant, thus leading the population to become aware of the level of quality of the environment where they live. Keywords- Environmental pollution, articulated matter, carbon monoxide, toxic gases, mining activity, air quality

Evaluation of decadal land degradation dynamics in old coal-mines of Central India

The present study attempts to understand land use dynamics in an area subjected to opencast and underground coal mining for the last few decades in Kotma Coalmines of Anuppur district in Madhya Pradesh, India through geospatial techniques. Land Use and Land Cover (LULC) change detection analysis was performed digitally classifying Landsat 5 (2001) as well as Landsat 8 (2020) satellite data using maximum likelihood algorithm. Results revealed that area under Dense native vegetation decreased drastically (13.74 sq. km) with the gradual and consistent expansion in the activities of coal mines which showed the highest increase in area over time (15.84 sq. km). Bivariate regression analysis showed the positive empirical relationships between vegetation indices and soil physico-chemical parameters. Studies suggested soil and vegetation is degraded over the large mining areas consistently over a long time period. Despite the continuous reforestation activities on mined areas, the decline area under dense vegetation and sparse vegetation over the twenty-year time-scale indicates that the reclamation activities are still in its’ infancy. Land Degradation Vulnerability Index (LDVI) map was generated to understand the extent of decadal land degradation trends and it shows that 8.60 % of the area is highly vulnerable to degradation. The LDI inputs will help the planners to develop alternate strategies to tackle vulnerability zones for safe mining. Monthly estimation of various meteorological parameters was also recorded to generate heat plots for the period 2001-2020. The study concludes that monitoring and assessment of fragile ecosystems are indispensable for holistic environmental management.

Remote-Sensing Evaluation and Temporal and Spatial Change Detection of Ecological Environment Quality in Coal-Mining Areas

The large-scale development and utilization of coal resources have brought great challenges to the ecological environment of coal-mining areas. Therefore, this paper has used scientific and effective methods to monitor and evaluate whether changes in ecological environment quality in coal-mining areas are helpful to alleviate the contradiction between human and nature and realize the sustainable development of such coal-mining areas. Firstly, in order to quantify the degree of coal dust pollution in coal-mining areas, an index-based coal dust index (ICDI) is proposed. Secondly, based on the pressure-state-response (PSR) framework, a new coal-mine ecological index (CMEI) was established by using the principal component analysis (PCA) method. Finally, the coal-mine ecological index (CMEI) was used to evaluate and detect the temporal and spatial changes of the ecological environment quality of the Ningwu Coalfield from 1987 to 2021. The research shows that ICDI has a strong ability to extract coal dust with an overall accuracy of over 96% and a Kappa coefficient of over 0.9. As a normalized difference index, ICDI can better quantify the pollution degree of coal dust. The effectiveness of CMEI was evaluated by four methods: sample image-based, classification-based, correlation-based, and distance-based. From 1987 to 2021, the ecological environment quality of Ningwu Coalfield was improved, and the mean of CMEI increased by 0.1189. The percentages of improvement and degradation of ecological environment quality were 71.85% and 27.01%, respectively. The areas with obvious degradation were mainly concentrated in coal-mining areas and built-up areas. The ecological environment quality of Pingshuo Coal Mine, Shuonan Coal Mine, Xuangang Coal Mine, and Lanxian Coal Mine also showed improvement. The results of Moran’s Index show that CMEI has a strong positive spatial correlation, and its spatial distribution is clustered rather than random. Coal-mining areas and built-up areas showed low–low clustering (LL), while other areas showed high–high clustering (HH). The utilization and popularization of CMEI provides an important reference for decision makers to formulate ecological protection policies and implement regional coordinated development strategies.

Planning RES Projects in Exhausted Surface Lignite Mines—Challenges and Solutions

In the context of the complete phase-out of lignite-fired power plants and the corresponding surface mines, the central priority is to ensure a fair development transition for the lignite mining areas. In the context of the installation of renewable energy system projects in the surface lignite mines of Western Macedonia, this paper aims to analyze the challenges for developing photovoltaic projects in areas with different characteristics and to propose solutions for selecting suitable areas, based on corresponding analysis. The investigated parameters cover a wide range of spatial criteria. The results contribute to a pragmatic transition to green energy generation involving a circular economy and sustainable development.

Human Rights and Socio-Environmental Conflicts of Mining in Mexico: A Systematic Review

Socio-environmental conflicts are situations that exemplify human rights transgressions caused by extractive activities. These are present in developing countries where extractivism, imperialism, and colonialism paradigms prevail. In the context of Mexico, criminalization, violence, and the absence of rule of law promote these conflicts, frequently aggravated by involvement with private interests. In the last 20 years, the relationship between human rights in the mining sector and its impact on the environment has been a critical research subject. This paper aims to carry out a systematic review to analyze human rights transgressions related to the mining industry’s impact in Mexico, and identify factors causing socio-environmental conflicts. The current study shows a systematic analysis based on the PRISMA (Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses) methodology. This method contributed to the collection of references that describe conflicts due to human rights transgressions and environmental damage in mining areas in Mexico. Human rights transgressions caused by mining in a Mexican context demonstrate the inability of the state to stop the increase in socio-environmental conflicts and its lack of concern towards preventing damage to the environment.

Changes in Reconstructed Soil Physicochemical Properties in an Opencast Mine Dump in the Loess Plateau Area of China

Soil construction and revegetation are essential for ecological restoration in mining areas. The influence of vegetation on the horizontal and vertical distribution patterns of soil properties should be fully understood. However, most studies on reconstructed soils in mining areas only concentrate on the surface soil, without exploring the vertical variations in soil properties. Overall, this study aims to explore the potential mechanisms by which surface vegetation exerts some influence on the spatial distribution of soil physicochemical properties, and to provide some insight into revegetation and soil reclamation in mining areas. Descriptive statistics and one-way analysis of variance (one-way ANOVA) were employed to evaluate the differences in the soil physicochemical properties in horizontal and vertical directions under different land-use types in the south dump of Antaibao opencast mine in Pingshuo, Shanxi Province, China. The main results of this study are as follows: (1) In the horizontal direction, except for the strong variation (variation coefficient ≥ 100%) in soil organic matter (SOM) content at some depths, the degree of variation in other soil physicochemical properties at various depths was moderate or weak (variation coefficient < 100%). The soil physicochemical properties gradually remained constant after years of reclamation. In the vertical direction, the soil bulk density (SBD), soil porosity, SOM content, soil C/N ratio, soil total nitrogen (STN) content, soil available phosphorus (SAP) content, and soil available potassium (SAK) content showed significant variations (p < 0.05) between soil depths. In contrast, no significant difference was found for other physicochemical properties. (2) The SBD, STN, SAK, soil porosity, and soil clay content were significantly different (p < 0.05) under different vegetation cover types, but the influence of vegetation on other soil physicochemical properties seemed to be limited. The results reveal that trees have a stronger ability to reduce soil grain sizes and enhance SAP contents than shrubs or herbs; however, the beneficial effects of herbs on the physicochemical properties of shallow soil are more obvious than those of trees and shrubs. (3) This study indicates that more shrubs and trees should be planted in the areas with low vegetation coverage, and more measures should be taken to improve soil physicochemical properties in order to prevent the occurrence of large-scale degradation. The reconstruction of soil structure should be preferentially considered in the process of soil reconstruction and revegetation in areas under similar conditions. Herbs should first be planted in the early reclamation stage. At the same time, shrubs or trees can be adopted in the middle and late stages of vegetation reconstruction in order to achieve comprehensive revegetation.

Environmental Survey of the Distribution and Metal Contents of Pteris vittata in Arsenic–Lead–Mercury-Contaminated Gold Mining Areas along the Bone River in Gorontalo Province, Indonesia

In this paper, we report ecological and environmental investigations on Pteris vittata in the As–Pb–Hg-polluted Bone River area, Gorontalo Province, Indonesia. The density distribution of P. vittata decreases from around the artisanal and small-scale gold mining (ASGM) site to the lower reaches of the Bone River, and it is rarely found near Gorontalo City. The maximum concentrations of As, Hg, and Pb recorded in the soil samples were 401, 36, and 159 mg kg−1, respectively, with their maximum concentrations in P. vittata recorded as 17,700, 5.2, and 39 mg kg−1, respectively. Around the ASGM sites, the concentrations of As, Pb, and Hg in P. vittata were highest in the study area. These data suggest that P. vittata, a hyperaccumulator of As, may be useful as a bioindicator for assessing environmental pollution by Pb and Hg.