Post-mining restoration sites often develop novel ecosystems as soil conditions are completely new and ecosystem assemblage can be spontaneous even on afforested sites. This study presents results from long-term monitoring and evaluation of an afforested oil-shale quarry in Estonia. The study is based on chronosequence data of soil and vegetation and comparisons are made to similar forest site-...

Abstract. Recent experience suggests that native Appalachian hardwood trees can be successfully established on coal surface mining sites if appropriate reclamation techniques are used. The Forestry Reclamation Approach (FRA) is a set of mine reclamation techniques developed for that purpose. Questions remain regarding how soil surface grading and choice of herbaceous vegetation affect tree surv...

Most soil moisture sensor systems (SMSs) marketed for landscape irrigation respond to the dielectric permittivity of the soil. Compared to potable water (PW), reclaimed water (RW) may contain more salts, which can modify the dielectric permittivity of the soil and, hence, alter the readings of SMSs when measuring the soil water content. The main objectives of this experiment were to evaluate th...

The mining of oil sands in northern Alberta leaves behind large open pits, tailings, and overburden piles in which the surface and subsurface hydrology has been completely disrupted. Extensive reclamation work is required to reconstruct the entire landscape and reestablish the various elements of the hydrologic cycle. Syncrude Canada Ltd. has established a series of small instrumented watershed...

A main objective of restoration and afforestation at post-mining sites is establishing a long-term sustainable ecosystem which depends on adaptations of tree species and which in turn depends on the soil nutrient flux. The nutrient concentration (nitrogen (N), P, K, Ca, Mg, and sulfur (S)) of Scots pine needles was investigated in reclaimed mine soils (RMS) located at the following post-mining ...