Ecology, Environment and Conservation Paper

Vol 29, Issue 1, 2023; Page No.(229-240)

IMPACT OF SURFACE COAL MINING ON SOIL PROPERTIES OF THEREGION AT TALABIRA MINING AREA, SAMBALPUR, ODISHA

T.M. Rao, S.N. Ahmed, A.K. Sahu, S. Shroff, A.K. Behera and I. Baitharu

Abstract

Large scale surface coal mining activities result in disturbance of the local ecosystem bycreating differentland uses that alter soil properties and hydrological balance of the mining area and surroundingenvironment.This study aims to evaluate the changes in soil properties in mining affected lands (mine face topsoil,wasteland and agriculture land) and reclaimed mine soil (RMS), and to quantify the changes ofthe selectedsoil properties with respect to reference Sal forest (Shorearobusta Gaertn. F.). Changes in soil propertieswere analyzed on a profile basis (0–20, 20–40 and 40–60 cm). The study indicates that soil pH, electricalconductivity, and bulk density were increased significantly, while a decrease in nutrient content(N, P, andK) was observed in the mining affected lands. The overall findings of this study indicated that conversionof Sal forest into other land uses due to mining significantly reduced the nutrient content andsoil quality ofthe area. Reclamation of the mine degraded land in short duration does not restore the overall properties ofthe soils, which has long term impacts on the surrounding ecosystem.