Abstract:

A national mine monitoring system using remote sensing technology has been in service to meet the “strict source control, strict process management, severe punishment for consequences” chain management requirements. The monitoring system revealed that by the end of 2018, 3.61 million hm², or 0.37% of the total land in China, had been destroyed by mining. Of which, the excavation damaged land, occupied land and subsidence land were 1.46, 1.31 and 0.84 million hm², respectively. The total and abandoned mine areas were 1.34 and 2.27 million hm², respectively. Meanwhile, the nationwide mine rehabilitation area was 0.93 million hm² by the end of 2018. During the year 2018, 48.1 thousand hm² additional land in the country were destroyed by mining while 65.2 thousand hm² rehabilitated. This research provides a preliminary analysis of the national ecological rehabilitation status of land destroyed by mining and existing problems, with discussions on countermeasures and suggestions for land management.

Key words: land damaged by mining, mine environment recovery, mine ecological rehabilitation, remote sensing monitoring