Fair Development Transition of Lignite Areas: Key Challenges and Sustainability Prospects

As Europe transitions away from fossil fuel energy, the challenges associated with closing mines, along restructuring mine-dependent communities, continue to reduce rate at which this transition occurs. A large volume of research has been published during last decade on fair development context mine reclamation. Using lignite mines as a case study and properly modified analytical-hierarchy-process-based roadmapping methodological framework, current attempted elucidate key bottlenecks that researchers view critical just transition. The results indicated four areas expected drive policymaking: social implications, stakeholder divergence, land-use sustainability prospects. Further, coupling mining operations green strategies, such circular economy recycling, seems be put forward by academics viable solution enhance sector.