Topsoil management on mined lands

Excerpt

NEARLY half of the nation's strippable coal reserves underlie agricultural land in the Northern Great Plains. Most of this land is rangeland. Some is used for small grain and hay production.

Federal and state laws mandate that mined land be reclaimed to a level of productivity equal to or greater than that which previously existed. These laws require that the soil resource be removed before mining and redistributed over the graded overburden after coal is extracted.

These legal requirements pose a series of questions for reclamation specialists as well as land managers. How much and what quality of topsoil should be used? Is it necessary to segregate the developed soil horizons for subsequent replacement? What is the effect of topsoil stockpiling?

How much topsoil?

Several research projects were initiated in the 1970s to determine the best topsoil depth for establishing and maintaining permanent vegetational cover on reclaimed areas. The question of topsoil depth requirement on mined land is site specific. The amount of available topsoil and quality of spoil material to be covered are controlling factors.

In North Dakota researchers (13) determined the optimum topsoil depth requirements for reclamation purposes on sodic materials. From 0 to 90 inches …