M INING

SCIENCE AND
TECHNOLOGY
Mining Science and Technology 20 (2010) 0215–0223
www.elsevier.com/locate/jcumt

Environmental issues from coal mining

and their solutions
BIAN Zhengfu1,*, INYANG Hilary I2, DANIELS John L2,3, OTTO Frank4, STRUTHERS Sue5
1
Institute of Land Resources, China University of Mining & Technology, Xuzhou 221008, China
2
Global Institute for Energy and Environmental Systems, University of North Carolina, Charlotte NC 28223, USA
3
Natural Science Foundation of the USA, Arlington VA 22230, USA
4
Department of Geoengineering and Mining, University of Applied Science, Bochum 44801, Germany
5
Skapa Mining Services, Orkney KW17 2SX, UK

Abstract: The environmental challenges from coal mining include coal mine accidents, land subsidence, damage to the water en-
vironment, mining waste disposal and air pollution. These are either environmental pollution or landscape change. A conceptual
framework for solving mine environmental issues is proposed. Clean processes, or remediation measures, are designed to address
environmental pollution. Restoration measures are proposed to handle landscape change. The total methane drainage from 56 Chi-
nese high methane concentration coal mines is about 101.94 million cubic meters. Of this methane, 19.32 million, 35.58 million
and 6.97 million cubic meters are utilized for electricity generation, civil fuel supplies and other industrial purposes, respectively.
About 39% of the methane is emitted into the atmosphere. The production of coal mining wastes can be decreased 10% by reuse of
mining wastes as underground fills, or by using the waste as fuel for power plants or for raw material to make bricks or other infra-
structure materials. The proper use of mined land must be decided in terms of local physical and socio-economical conditions. In
European countries more than 50% of previously mined lands are reclaimed as forest or grass lands. However, in China more than
70% of the mined lands are reclaimed for agricultural purposes because the large population and a shortage of farmlands make this
necessary. Reconstruction of rural communities or native residential improvement is one environmental problem arising from min-
ing. We suggest two ways to reconstruct a farmer’s house in China.
Keywords: mine environment; management of mining wastes; reuse of mine gas; mined land reclamation; clean coal mining

1 Introduction significantly since the beginning of the 1990’s and, as

a result, the way and the extent that mining operations
While coal makes an important contribution to impact the environment are also different now. Fig. 2
worldwide energy generation, its environmental im- shows the change in worldwide coal production over
pact has been a challenge. In essence, the coal energy time, which illustrates that coal production increased
production system consists of coal mining, prepara- strikingly after 2000. Six countries, the USA, Russia,
tion or processing and energy generation. Fig. 1 India, China, Australia and South Africa, produced
shows the complete process of the coal energy system. 81.9% of the total coal extracted throughout the
Environmental issues arise at every stage of the proc- world in 2006. These same countries have about 90%
ess. This paper will discuss environmental issues due of the World’s coal reserves. Coal production in
to coal mining. In fact, environmental problems from China accounted for 38.4% of the worldwide total
coal mining have been studied since coal mining be- and has increased about 66% over the past five years
came industrialized. Nevertheless, environmental from 1.38 billion tons in 2001 to 2.3 billion tons in
issues from coal mining have become important con- 2006. During the same time period the number of
cerns only since the 1970’s. The majority of the coal mines was reduced by 50%. The annual produc-
available literature related to mining and the envi- tion of the Daliuta Coal Mine, one of the underground
ronment date from the end of the 1970’s to the end of mines operated by the Shendong Coal Mining Com-
the 1980’s. However, coal production has changed pany, reached 20 million tons from only two longwall
work faces in 2007. In the U.S. the situation is similar
Received 18 July 2009; accepted 06 October 2009 to China. There were 2475 coal mines with a total
*Corresponding author. Tel: 86 516 83885785 production of 945424 thousand short tons in 1993 but
E-mail address: zfbian@cumt.edu.cn
doi: 10.1016/S1674-5264(09)60187-3
1438 coal mines producing 1162750 thousand short
216 Mining Science and Technology Vol.20 No.2

tons in 2006. mark the end of deep mining in Germany remains to

be seen.
Some experts and institutions forecast that coal
will continue to underpin the economic and social
development of the world’s biggest economies in
both the developed and developing world[4]. The
World Bank Group estimated that coal is one of the
World’s most plentiful energy resources and that its
use is likely to quadruple by 2020[5]. Global recover-
able coal deposits exceed 1 trillion tons with enough
deposits to last for the next 270 years at current con-
sumption rates. Hence, it is reasonable to conclude
that coal will continue to be an important energy
Fig. 1 Coal energy system[1] source and that coal mining is not a sunset industry.
This will be especially true in those countries with
abundant coal reserves and increased energy demands
for their development. Using coal as an energy source
requires addressing environmental challenges from
mining. This includes coal mine accidents, land sub-
sidence, water pollution, air pollution, spoil heaps,
acid mine drainage, disturbance of hydro-geology and
so on. The impact of coal mining on the environment
varies in severity depending on whether the mine is
active or abandoned, the mining methods used and
the geological conditions[6].
Fig. 2 Worldwide coal production[2] 2.1 Coal mine accidents
China consumes more coal than Europe, Japan and Every year nearly 80% of the World’s total deaths
the United States combined; 40% of the world’s total. due to coal mine accidents occur in China[7]. The
China’s coal use continues to grow every year and it main causes of coal mine accidents are gas leaks, roof
is estimated that 90% of the rise in world coal con- cave-ins, fires, blasts and floods/water bursting. Table
sumption is from increased activity in China. As a 1 shows accident statistics for Chinese coal mines for
result, mining intensity in some coalfields is ten times the years 2006 and 2007. This data was compiled by
greater than it was in the past. Therefore, the impact the corresponding author from the State Administra-
of mining on the environment today is significantly tion for Coal Mine Safety safety bulletins. It is easy
different from that in the 1980’s. Thus, this paper fo- to see that coal dust and methane blasts are in the
cuses on environmental issues due to coal mining in absolute majority. In addition, 117 of the 374 deaths
the context of current mining operations. in 2006, and 92 of the 399 deaths in 2007, occurred in
coal mines with a production of less than 200 thou-
2 Importance of coal mining to energy sys- sand tons. It was reported that coal mines with small
tems worldwide and challenges to the scale production account for one third of total pro-
environment duction, two third of the total coal mine accidents and
75% of the deaths.
The main use of coal in the United States is to Table 1 Chinese coal mine accident statistics
generate electricity. Coal generates half of the elec- Coal dust and Water CO Roof
tricity used in the United States[3]. Today, 91.9% of all Accidents
methane blast bursting poisoning cave-in
Fires

the coal in the United States is used for electricity Times 15 8 2 1

2006
production. In contrast, less than 50% of all the coal Death 322 31 14 7
mined in China was used for electricity generation in Times 21 3 2 1 1
2005 when 82% of the electricity used in China came 2007
Death 317 41 12 5 24
from coal fired plants. Coal accounts for approxi-
mately 74% of China’s primary energy consumption.
2.2 Land subsidence
Coal is recognized as a dirty source of energy and has
been rendered obsolete in many European countries. Approximately 60% of the world’s coal production
For example, France closed all coal mines in 2004 comes from underground mines. Since 95% of the
and, in early 2007, the German government an- coal production in China is from underground mines
nounced that subsidies for coal production would be and, in 2007, Chinese production was 2523 million
completely phased out by 2018. Whether this will tons, which accounts for more than one-third of the
BIAN Zhengfu et al Environmental issues from coal mining and their solutions 217

world’s production, China accounts for much of the <HDU *URXQGZDWHU

OHYHO
underground operation, see Table 2.  P
Table 2 Percentage of coal production by mining method
in the main coal producing countries (2006)  P

Underground Surface Total

Country  P
mining (%) mining (%) (Mt)*
 P
China 95 5 2380.0
USA 30.9 69.1 1053.6  P
India 19 81 447.0
Australia 22 78 405.1 Fig. 3 Drop of the water table over time at the
Russia 309.2 Jiaozuo coal mine
South Africa 256.9
Germany 197.2
When water is redirected as a result of fracturing or
Indonesia 195.0
cracking it interacts with the various subsurface strata
with which it comes in contact. In these strata there
Poland 156.1
are many compounds and sediments that may be dis-
Total world 60 40 6195.1
solved by the flowing water to eventually leach into
Note: *Data source: http://www.bp.com. the drainage lines. Many of these newly exposed
Land subsidence over underground mines is one minerals can react with gaseous or liquid components
important adverse impact of mining on the environ- in their new environment to yield contaminants.
ment. About 1 million hectares of subsided land ex- These have an impact on water chemistry and aes-
ists today. Mining ten thousand tons of raw coal will thetics and can increase the level of suspended solids
result in 0.2 hectares of subsiding land in China. Land in the water. This results in a significant reduction in
subsidence not only reduces crop production but also the quality of the water and the aquatic habitat. Mine
causes other environmental problems, such as utility drainage can pollute surface water and the disposal of
failures, plant death, surface fracture and soil loss, mining wastes will also affect water quality when
drainage system failure, building damage and so on. contaminants leach into the surrounding surface or
Subsidence falls into two forms of deformation: ground water.
continuous and discontinuous. Continuous, or trough, Acidic Mine Discharge (AMD) is formed when
subsidence involves the formation of a smooth sur- pyrite reacts with air and water to form sulfuric acid
face profile free of steps. Discontinuous subsidence is and dissolved iron. This acid run-off dissolves heavy
characterized by large surface displacements over a metals such as copper, lead and mercury that may end
limited surface area and by the formation of steps or up in ground and surface waters. In the United States
discontinuities in the surface profile. Mining subsi- AMD is still of great concern as it is estimated that
dence will affect land use or the environment differ- there are over 1.1 million surface acres of abandoned
ently depending upon the context of the terrain, coal mines, over 9000 miles of streams polluted by
groundwater level and the original type of land use. acid mine drainage and many miles of dangerous
For example, in eastern China, which has plain embankments, highwalls and surface impoundments.
land-form, shallow groundwater levels and was prime Surface watercourses have to be changed, obviously,
farmland before mining, mining subsidence has re- to strip overburden and apply surface mining to coal
sulted in large area flooding. After this the land use resources. If coal resources are mined underground
was changed as buildings, roads and croplands were subsidence would change the slope of the relief,
seriously damaged by major incidents of land subsi- broaden the surface-water pathways and consequently
dence. Mining subsidence in mountain areas will in- change the surface water regime.
duce slope failure causing the loss of water and soil 2.4 Mining wastes disposal
from the formation of surface cracks and overburden
fracture from mining. Waste products from underground coal mining
comprise coarse discard (mine stone or coal reject)
2.3 Water environment and fines that are produced by the washing process.
Coal mining affects the water environment mainly The former comes to the surface, mostly with ‘run of
by inducing a drop in the ground water table, causing mine’ coal, as a result of the cutting of roadways and
water loss or water pollution and by altering water- drives or other underground development work and
courses. Mining drainage and mine subsidence have the high degree of automation applied to variable ge-
an immediate effect on the water environment due to ology. Surface coal mining involves material that
the connection of underground water bodies to the must be removed to gain access to the coal resource
mined space through fractured overburden. Fig. 3 including topsoil, overburden and waste rock. While
illustrates the drop in the water table over time at the the coalfield operator does not seek to produce waste
Jiaozuo coal mining area in Henan province[8]. unnecessarily geology and mining methods combine
218 Mining Science and Technology Vol.20 No.2

to increase the waste quantities involved. Theoreti- drained during mining operations to keep working
cally, mining methods could be made more sustain- conditions safe. At active underground mines in
able by minimizing waste production. The need to China, large-scale ventilation systems move massive
accommodate both dry mine stone and ‘wet’ fines quantities of air thereby releasing methane into the
imposes the main engineering constraints on tip de- atmosphere at very low concentrations.
sign and that controls the pace of progressive restora- Table 3 Methane emissions from coal mining (million tons
tion. Although waste reduction and reuse have re- CO2 equivalent)
cently become the most preferable methods of waste Methane Most recent year available
Rank as
management (for example, mine stone has been ac- of 2000
Country emissions
in 2000 Year Methane emissions
cepted in many places as alternative aggregate for use
1 China 117.6 2004 193
in embankment, road, pavement, foundation or 2 US 56.2 2003 54.0
building construction) most of the coal mining waste 3 Russia 29.0 2002 20.6
still must be transported to dumps or used to fill gul- 4 Ukraine 28.3 2001 27.0
5 Australia 19.6 2005 21.8
lies or tipped as a hill. 6 India 15.8 2005 19.5
Mining wastes have significant impacts on the en- 7 Poland 11.9 2003 6.7
8 Germany 10.2 2005 5.4
vironment in the following ways: slope failure and
erosion; occupation of lands; potential leaching of
contaminants into groundwater; dust pollution driven 2.6 Landscape change
by wind; air pollution and explosion by spontaneous Coal mining changes the local landscape dramati-
combustion; visual and landscape impact; and land cally by introducing things such as mining waste
use constraints. Oxidation of pyrite within spoil-heap dumps, high shaft towers, large scale surface scarring
waste will pollute the air as well as ground water. from surface mining or land subsidence from under-
This oxidation is governed by access to oxygen, ground mining. All of these are typical within the
which in turn depends upon the particle size distribu- mine landscape. In addition, land use can change,
tion, the amount of water saturation and the degree of native residents may migrate away from the coal
compaction[6]. mining or the course of rivers may change. All these
The impact of mining waste can have lasting envi- things will affect the structure and function of the
ronmental and socio-economic consequences and be ecosystem. For example, in the Yulin coal mining
extremely difficult and costly to address through re- area, which is located in western China, fallow land
medial measures. Coal mining wastes have, therefore, decreased by 125148 hm2 between 1985 and 2000
to be properly managed to ensure the long-term sta- while at the same time grassland and woodland in-
bility of disposal facilities and to prevent or minimize creased by 107975 and 17157 hm2, respectively[9].
any water and soil pollution arising from acid or alka- The major factors responsible for these changes are a
line drainage and leaching of heavy metals. change in the government policy on preserving the
2.5 Air pollution environment, continued growth in mining and ur-
banization. Efforts to restore the deteriorated ecosys-
Air pollution from coal mines is mainly due to the tem have reaped certain benefits in reducing the spa-
fugitive emission of particulate matter and gases in- tial extent of sandy land through replacement by
cluding methane, sulfur dioxide and oxides of nitro- non-irrigated farmland, woodland and grassland. On
gen. Surface mining operations like drilling, blasting, the other hand, continued expansion of the mining
movement of heavy earth moving machinery on haul industry and of urbanization has exerted adverse im-
roads, collection, transportation and handling of coal pacts on the landscape. Coal mining has caused the
and the screening, sizing and segregation units are the destruction of land resources and the fragmentation of
major sources of such emissions. Underground min- the landscape accompanied by land desertification;
ing also emits dust from uncovered coal piles and the situation is even serious in some localities. In the
wastes dumps. The emission of CO, CO2, NOx, SOx Xuzhou coal mining area, which is located in eastern
happens because of spontaneous coal combustion and China, farm land decreased by 13.04% from 1987 to
methane leaking from the coal strata and coal seams. 2001, construction areas increased by 37.62% and
Methane is a “greenhouse gas” that is 21 times flooded land resulting from mining subsidence in-
more potent in its greenhouse effect than carbon di- creased by 137.62%. This subsidence accounts for
oxide. Methane emission from coal mining depends 30% of the total subsided land[10].
on the mining method, the depth of coal mining, the
coal quality and the entrapped gas content within the 3 A conceptual framework and potential
coal seam. As mining proceeds methane is released solutions to the mine environment
into the mine air to be eventually discharged into the
atmosphere. Methane emissions from coal mining are 3.1 A conceptual framework for solving mine
listed in Table 3 by country in terms of the rank as of environmental issues
2000. Methane is highly explosive and has to be The key words green mining, ecological mines,
BIAN Zhengfu et al Environmental issues from coal mining and their solutions 219

recycling economy, industrial ecology, site charac- 3.2 Use of mine gas
terization for remediation of abandoned mine lands
Venting mine gas imposes a considerable burden
and life cycle assessment were proposed by environ-
on the environment and also wastes valuable energy.
mentalists, economists and scholars working in the
Because mine gas is explosive in certain concentra-
field of mining science. The core ways to solve mine
tions it is traditionally removed by intricate ventila-
environmental problems may fall into two types. One
tion systems during active operations of the mine.
is the taking of measures to lessen the impact of min-
Recent statistics show that the number of Chinese
ing on the environment during mining. The other is
coal mines with high methane concentrations is
the taking of measures to clean or remediate or re-
49.8% of all the mines and coal production from
store or reclaim the environment post mining as illus-
these mines accounts for 42% of the total production.
trated in Fig. 4.
Furthermore, coal mine accidents from mine gas ex-
(QYLURQPHQWDOLVVXHVIURPFRDOPLQLQJ plosion account for 94.97% of the total accidents and
deaths in these accidents account for 96.25% of all
(QYLURQPHQWDOSROOXWLRQ /DQGVFDSHFKDQJH deaths. Reducing mine accidents and making full use
of methane as a new energy source is an important
goal. The Ministry of Environmental Protection and
the General Administration of Quality Supervision,
Inspection and Quarantine of China have jointly is-
sued the Emission Standard of Coalbed Methane/Coal
Mine Gas (on trial). The Standard requires that
measures to drain and utilize the mine gas must be
&OHDQRUUHPHGLDWLRQ 5HVWRUDWLRQRUUHFODPDWLRQ taken before mining. Coal mining operations may
only be implemented after the methane content in the
'XULQJPLQLQJRUSRVWPLQLQJ
coal seam is reduced to less than eight cubic meters
per ton of coal. If the concentration of methane is
Fig. 4 A conceptual framework for solving higher than 30% atmospheric release is prohibited.
mine environmental issues There are currently two ways to drain mine gas in
China. One is by drilling wells through the coal seam
Green mining as posed by Professor Qian, a Chi- at the coalfield before mining operations begin. The
nese Engineering Academician, is one of many ideas concentration of methane obtained this way is higher
proposed to solve the environmental issues. The than 90% the other method is to drill boreholes
foundation of these ideas is the distribution behavior through the goaf after coal has been mined. Methane
of joints, fractures and bed separations and the seep- concentrations obtained in this way are higher than
age flow of methane and water through broken rock 30%.
strata caused by mining[11]. Green mining techniques The total magnitude of methane drainage from 56
under development include water-preserved-mining, Chinese coal mines high in methane was about
coal mining under infrastructures, grouting into the 101.94 million cubic meters. Of this gas 19.32 mil-
space between separated rock layers to reduce surface lion cubic meters, 35.58 million cubic meters and
subsidence, partial extraction and backfill mining, 6.97 million cubic meters were used for electricity
simultaneous extraction of coal and coal-bed methane, generation, civil fuel and other industrial purposes,
underground roadway support, underground dis- respectively. About 39% of the methane was not util-
charge of partial mining wastes and underground coal ized and was emitted into the atmosphere. Methane
gasification. The principles of industrial ecology and continues to escape from the old workings of aban-
mining science also should promote the rational doned coal mines where it reaches the surface
utilization of natural resources by reducing waste, through cracks and crevices caused by mining activity.
reusing waste and recycling waste. A reduction in the In Herne, Germany, more than a million cubic meters
mining waste produced by excavating roadways of mine gas were discharged into the atmosphere an-
along coal seams and other innovative mining meth- nually up to the end of 1997 from the closed No.3 pit
ods are one approach to this. Using coal mining waste of the Mont-Cenis colliery, which ceased operation
as fuel for thermal electric plants is a good example 38 years ago. In 2000 extraction units pumped gas
of reusing mining wastes. Recycling of mining waste with a methane content of up to 80% from the old
is a more environmental friendly technique. For ex- mine and delivered it to a cogeneration plant where it
ample, after mining waste is burned in an electric was converted into power and heat. A local utility
plant the fly ash can be used as raw material for ce- company, Stadwerke Herne AG, installed the pilot
ment production. Or rather than just converting fly plant in 1997 and feeds the electricity generated,
ash into cement some useful elements of the fly ash, around 300 million kilowatt-hours per year, into its
such as refractories, can first be extracted. network. The roughly 4.5 million kilowatt-hours of
220 Mining Science and Technology Vol.20 No.2

energy produced each year are used to heat a college method for treating AMD is the addition of alkaline
of continuing education, a hospital and around 250 compounds to raise the pH above the threshold re-
homes[12]. quired by iron oxidizing bacteria; This radically re-
duces the rate of acid generation[17].
3.3 Conservation and restoration of the mine
water environment 3.4 Management of mining wastes
The focus in mine-water environmental research is Coal mining generates huge amounts of waste, in-
on the conservation of aquifers during mining, mak- deed this is the largest source of solid waste account-
ing full use of mine water and the remediation of ing for 40% of all solid wastes in China. The waste
polluted mine water. The conservation of aquifers is consists of materials that must be removed to gain
an important component of green mining. There are access to the coal resource such as topsoil, overbur-
different effects from mining on aquifers and differ- den or waste rock as well as wastes from coal prepa-
ent remediation methods for different mines that have ration and gangue from underground mining. A series
different geological conditions. In general, in eastern of accidents in recent years has highlighted the sig-
China coal mines always are deep underground and nificance of reuse of these mining wastes and the ur-
there is abundant water in the aquifer. Mine-water gent need for better waste management procedures.
invasion into the mine is one of the main disasters. In Management of mining wastes involves their re-
western China the arid climate makes the overburden duction, recycle and reuse. This method goes by
water-poor. Therefore, the methods and the aims of many other names such as cleaner production, clean
water preservation are different, too. technology, waste minimization, pollution prevention,
We developed some mining techniques that make waste recycling, resource utilization, residue utiliza-
full use of water leaking from fractured aquifers that tion, TRU (Total Resource Utilisation) and TPD (To-
preserve the aquifer. For coal mines in western China tal Project Development)[18-19]. Innovative mining
constructing a concrete wall along mined lanes and techniques are the main way to reduce the production
cavities and channeling water resulting from mining of mining wastes. Waste accounts for an average of
into an underground reservoir has proved useful. The 15% of the material removed by traditional long-wall
Bulianta coal mine operated by the Shendong Branch mining methods in China. The exact ratio depends
Company of the Shenhua Group, which has an annual upon specific geological conditions. As fully caving
coal production of about 20 million tons and is lo- methods are improved, road driving along the next
cated in Inner Mongolia, collects 4000 tons of water goaf has been one effective way to improve resource
per day from underground mining operations after recycle efficiency. This also yields economic benefits
constructing such an underground reservoir. For coal and reduces the production of mining wastes. A trial
mines in eastern China we proposed that key strata was carried out to try and reduce mining wastes lifted
should be controlled to prevent fracture, or be re- to the surface by back-filling mining wastes into the
stored by grouting after fracture, to prevent water cavity formed after excavating the coal pillars at the
burst into the mined space. Xingtai Coal Mine in Hebei province, China. The
Acid Mine Drainage (AMD) is a widespread envi- Suncun Coal Mine, operated by the Xinwen Coal
ronmental problem associated with both working and Mining Company in Shandong province, crushed
abandoned mining operations resulted from the mi- mining wastes and mixed them with cement to
crobial oxidation of pyrite in the presence of water back-fill mined cavities as a way to lessen surface
and air. The product is a solution characterized by subsidence. It was verified that the production of coal
low pH and high concentrations of heavy metals and mining wastes could be decreased by 10% using these
other toxic elements. AMD can severely contaminate new techniques. Mining wastes are also widely used
surface and groundwater, as well as soils[13]. For ex- as fuel for power plants, raw materials for making
ample, AMD has adversely impacted at least 44 of bricks and other infrastructure materials such as pav-
Pennsylvania’s 67 counties covering 189000 acres of ing, dam or subsided land fill. The recycle of mining
land and approximately 3100 miles of streams. AMD waste is the way to achieve the goal of sustainable
is widely studied by scientists from all over the world development. It is very difficult to reach the target of
who have developed principles and methods for pre- zero wastes. For example, we can burn coal-bearing
diction, prevention and treatment of AMD[13-16]. The wastes to generate electricity but then more than 80%
primary factors affecting the rate of acid generation of these coal-bearing wastes end up in the combustion
have been recognized to be pH, temperature, oxygen residues as fly ash, bottom ash or boiler slag, which
content of the gas phase (if saturation is less than must then be used for other purposes. Fig. 5 shows
100%), oxygen concentration in the water phase, the the concept of TPD and illustrates the concept of
degree of saturation with water, the chemical activity mining waste recycling.
of Fe3+, the exposed surface area of metal sulfide, the
chemical activation energy required to initiate acid
generation and bacterial activity. The conventional
BIAN Zhengfu et al Environmental issues from coal mining and their solutions 221

lands are reclaimed as forest or grass lands. However,

in China more than 70% of the mined lands are re-
claimed for subsequent agricultural purposes due to
the large population and shortage of farmland in
China.
Table 4 Major problems of mined land and their short and
long-term treatments[19-20]
Limiting Immediate Long-term
Variable Problems
factor treatment treatment
Vegetation,
Too Rip or scarify,
organic matter,
compact deep tilling
straw returning
Structure
Compact or
Too open cover with fine Vegetation
Fig. 5 Chart illustrating TPD material
Physical Stabilizer,
3.5 Reclamation of mined lands Unstable mulch or nurse
Regrade or
Stability vegetation
Erosion Ridge in the
Mined land reclamation is an important work re- Organic matter
field
lated to mine environmental concerns. In China Too wet Drain Drain
mined land reclamation also plays an important role Moisture Organic mulch Tolerant
in restoring the land so it is fit for cultivation. This is Too dry
or nurse species
needed to counter the shortage of farmland. Under- Nitrogen Legume or
ground coal mining causes subsidence that results in Fertilizer
deficiency other N-fixer
large amounts of farmland flooding in the eastern Macronutrients
Fertilizer or
Nutrition Other Appropriate
plains mining areas. It intensifies the loss of water deficiency fertilizer
tolerant
species
and soil in the hilly mining areas of China. Because
Fertilizer or
underground coal mining is the dominant mining Micronutrients Deficient Fertilizer
special species
method in China subsided land reclamation should be
Weathering or
the main concern for land reclamation. In general, Too high
Pyritic waste or
tolerant
organic matter
mined land reclamation follows three steps: reshaping species
the terrain, resoiling and replanting. Reclamation pH Lime, fly ash,
Lime or
techniques for land flooded by underground mining cover with clay,
Too low tolerant
prevent
could be classified as filling and non-filling methods. weathering
species
Toxicity
The filling method uses mining wastes like fly ash or Organic matter,
Inert covering
sludge as fill to raise the subsided surface. In the Heavy metals Too high
isolating layer
or tolerant
non-filling method a drainage system is set up to or tolerant
cultivar
cultivar
lower the ground water table and to reshape the sub- Gypsum, Weathering or
sided lands into a terrace. Salinity Too high irrigation, or tolerant
Surface mining disturbs lands in two ways first by tolerant species species
stripping the overburden and second by disposing of
the spoils. The best way to reclaim land disturbed by In suburban areas the mined lands are always ex-
surface mining is an integrated stripping and dispos- pected to be used for construction purposes. Defor-
ing process. It will require a long-term program to mation control techniques and architectural designs
ameliorate reclaimed soils with major problems for are important components that help achieve this goal.
agricultural purposes. Table 4 summarizes Bradshaw Subsidence and deformation have been a threat since
(1983) and other research work on reclaimed soil im- the beginning of coal mining and they constitute an
provement done since mined-land reclamation first extreme danger to infrastructure and property. The
began[19-20]. Construction on mined lands faces the back filling and grouting methods, and harmonious
problem of bad foundations because of potential sub- mining techniques, are the main measures used to
sidence and uneven deformation. lessen subsidence and deformation. Apart from these
Land reclamation planning is especially important. techniques building on reclaimed sites must consider
The selection of mined land use is the principal con- deformation from poorly compacted filling materials
cern of land reclamation planning because the method as well. The subsidence basin should be filled with
of reclamation affects the reclamation cost as well as mining wastes or other fill if it will be used for con-
the sustainability of subsequent uses and regional struction purposes.
ecosystems. Local physical and socio-economical 3.6 Reconstruction of rural communities
conditions determine the right type of use. This may
be ascertained after suitable evaluation of the land. In Villages are densely located over the coalfields in
European countries more than 50% of the mined eastern China. Coal mining destroyed the farmers’
222 Mining Science and Technology Vol.20 No.2

houses and severely changed the agricultural ecosys- occur during mining. There is also the emission of
tem. Since the beginning of coal mining there has CO2 during coal utilization to consider. But coal is
been conflict between the mining company and local also cheap, affordable, abundant and available. It is
residents. This has been an intractable problem. There easy to transport and secure and will be with us for
are two ways to reconstruct a farmer’s house in China. the long term. It must be considered that the present
The first way is that the farmers are moved outside energy structure in some countries can not be
the original sites affected by coal mining. Land for changed over the short term because of the natural
the new construction sites must be requisitioned and deposits of energy resources. For example, China
the land at the original sites would then be reclaimed predominantly relies on coal resources for energy not
together with the surrounding subsided lands. The because China does not want to use more clean en-
second way is that the farmers’ houses are recon- ergy, such as natural gas or oil, but because these are
structed on the original sites after filling to lift the not abundant enough to meet the needs of rapid social
ground level. The foundations are specially built and and economic development. Demand for coal contin-
anti-deformation measures are taken in the design of ues to grow and coal reserves are adequate to ensure
the structure. Anti-deformation measures include re- that demand can be met far into the future. Therefore,
inforced bottom and top concrete ring beams, install- it is necessary to strengthen cooperation between
ing a slip layer at the building foundation, structural multiple parties to solve the environmental problems
columns, a rigid reinforced concrete mat foundation due to coal mining.
and deformation joints for construction of super long On the one hand, we must seek clean substitute en-
buildings. ergy. On the other hand, we must consider that coal
As farmland decreases because of urbanization and will still be the dominant energy source in some
industrialization the second method has become countries. We must develop clean mining technolo-
popular and more technical problems need to be re- gies. European countries used coal as their main en-
solved. Besides deformation control measures other ergy source for a long time but now coal mining has
things must be considered. Indeed the farmlands sur- become a sunset industry and many coal mines are
rounding the rebuilt housing would still be a lake due abandoned. They also faced environmental problems
to mining subsidence, leaving the local farmers on an from coal mining and have had more experience in
isolated island. Therefore, there are serious technical how to resolve the problems. The United States has
requirements for reclamation of flooded subsidence the most abundant coal resources and the second
lands for reuse as croplands in eastern China. largest coal production in the world. Many develop-
In fact, this second method also has vital short- ing countries in Asia rely on coal resources for energy
comings for the coal mining company. Slow rural for their economic development. Coal continues to
community reconstruction will affect the planning of underpin the economic and social development of the
underground mining works, the mining face, mining World’s biggest economies in both the developed and
and transport lanes and the ventilation system. We are the developing worlds. To solve environmental issues
trying to practice integrated planning of rural com- related to coal mining the developed and developing
munity reconstruction and mining engineering to- countries should work together to draw up and im-
gether. This covers land use policy, mining engineer- plement mine environmental quality control standards,
ing planning and technologies, rural community to develop and extend clean mining technologies,
planning and is different from the methods described such as mine gas utilization, treatment, reclamation
above. In this new way all villages over the coalfield and the utilization of mining wastes and mined land
to be mined are moved outside of the original site reclamation. The industry is committed to sustainable
before mining. The villages are reconstructed in resi- development and will work to meet that challenge in
dential groups as part of the planning. Then the sites partnership with customers, governments and other
of old, dispersed villages are reclaimed into farm- stakeholders.
lands. The new village site is planned to occupy less
farmland than the original sites. At the same time the 5 Conclusions
infrastructure for the rural community may be effec-
tively constructed. Of course, this new approach faces Coal is one of the World’s most plentiful energy
difficulties in terms of land use policy and acceptance resources. It is today and will be in the future the
by the local residents. most important global source of electricity. This is
likely to be true for the next 50 years in light of
4 Strengthening cooperation between par- available natural resources and technological ad-
ties to solve environmental problems vances. Coal mining and utilization will inevitably
from coal mining cause negative environmental effects including coal
mine accidents, land subsidence, pollution of water
Coal is a dirty energy source because of land dis- environments, disposal of mine waste and air pollu-
turbance; subsidence; AMD and water pollution that tion. Current Chinese coal production and its envi-
BIAN Zhengfu et al Environmental issues from coal mining and their solutions 223

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