EGU25-8042, updated on 14 Mar 2025
https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu25-8042
EGU General Assembly 2025
© Author(s) 2025. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
Poster | Thursday, 01 May, 10:45–12:30 (CEST), Display time Thursday, 01 May, 08:30–12:30
 
Hall X3, X3.111
Spatial Distribution of Potentially Toxic Elements in Reclaimed Post-Mining Soils: Impact of Topography and Tree Species
Pankaj Maurya1,2,3, Reginald Ebhin Masto1,2, Hridesh Agarwalla1,2, Dane Lamb3, and Jorge Paz Ferreiro3
Pankaj Maurya et al.
  • 1Academy of Scientific and Innovative Research (AcSIR), Ghaziabad-201002, Uttar Pradesh, India
  • 2Environment, Emission and CRM Section, CSIR-Central Institute of Mining and Fuel Research, (Digwadih Campus) Dhanbad-828108, Jharkhand, India.
  • 3Chemical and Environmental Engineering, School of Engineering, RMIT University, Melbourne, Victoria, 3000, Australia (s4077858@student.rmit.edu.au)

Mitigating potentially toxic elements (PTEs) contamination in post-mining land is essential for restoring the environmental health of post mining ecosystems. A comprehensive understanding of how post-mining topography and vegetation impact PTEs distribution can help devise targeted reclamation strategies to reduce PTEs toxicity.

This study investigated the influence of topographical regions of a post-mining overburden heap (top, middle, and bottom) and selected tree species (Azadirachta indica, Senna siamea, and Leucaena leucocephala) on the total and bioavailable fractions of PTEs in reclaimed coal mine soil from Eastern India.

The total concentration revealed that chromium (Cr: 226–354 mg/kg), cadmium (Cd: 1.37–1.92 mg/kg), mercury (Hg: 0.11–0.45 mg/kg), and zinc (Zn: 104–213 mg/kg) pose a significant potential risk across the site. These risks were supported by high geo-accumulation index values (Igeo > 1.0 for Cd, Cr, and Hg) and contamination factors (Cf). Despite this, bioavailable fractions of PTEs remained below 25%, with values for Cd (2.92–11.46%), Cr (0.10–0.22%), and Zn (5.15–22.4%), indicating reduced immediate ecological risk.

While topography did not significantly affect the pollution load index (PLI), tree species played a crucial role. Among the tree species studied, L. leucocephala exhibited the lowest PLI (0.95) and effectively reduced the bioavailable concentration of Cd under its canopy. These findings position L. leucocephala as a promising candidate for the revegetation of post-mining landscapes.

This study highlights the critical role of vegetation in regulating the concentration and bioavailability of potentially toxic elements (PTEs) in reclaimed mining soils, offering essential insights for developing sustainable strategies for post-mining land restoration and ecosystem rehabilitation

Keywords: slope, plant species, post-mining, landscape, toxic elements.

How to cite: Maurya, P., Masto, R. E., Agarwalla, H., Lamb, D., and Ferreiro, J. P.: Spatial Distribution of Potentially Toxic Elements in Reclaimed Post-Mining Soils: Impact of Topography and Tree Species, EGU General Assembly 2025, Vienna, Austria, 27 Apr–2 May 2025, EGU25-8042, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu25-8042, 2025.