Utilizing coal remaining resources and post-mining land use planning based on GIS-based optimization method : study case at PT Adaro coal mine in South Kalimantan

Coal mining activities may cause a series of environmental and socio-economic issues in communities around the mining area. Mining can become an obstacle to environmental sustainability and a major hidden danger to the security of the local ecology. Therefore, the coal mining industry should follow some specific principles and factors in achieving sustainable development. These factors include geological conditions, land use, mining technology, environmental sustainability policies and government regulations, socio-economic factors, as well as sustainability optimization for post-mining land use. Resources of the remains of the coal which is defined as the last remaining condition of the resources and reserves of coal when the coal companies have already completed the life of the mine or the expiration of the licensing contract (in accordance with government permission). This research uses approch of knowledge-driven GIS based methods mainly Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP) and Fuzzy logic for utilizing coal remaining resources and post-mining land use planning. The mining area selected for this study belongs to a PKP2B (Work Agreement for Coal Mining) company named Adaro Indonesia (PT Adaro). The result shows that geologically the existing formation is dominated by Coal Bearing Formation (Warukin Formation) which allows the presence of remains coal resource potential after the lifetime of mine, and the suitability of rubber plantation for the optimization of land use in all mining sites and also in some disposal places in conservation areas and protected forests.

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Key Challenges for Land Use Planning and Its Environmental Assessments in the Abuja City-Region, Nigeria

Land ◽

10.3390/land10050443 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 10 (5) ◽

pp. 443

Author(s):

Evidence Chinedu Enoguanbhor ◽

Florian Gollnow ◽

Blake Byron Walker ◽

Jonas Ostergaard Nielsen ◽

Tobia Lakes

Keyword(s):

Land Use ◽

Land Cover ◽

Environmental Assessment ◽

Land Use Planning ◽

Environmental Sustainability ◽

Sub Saharan Africa ◽

Environmental Assessments ◽

City Regions ◽

Sub Saharan ◽

Land Cover Maps

Land use planning as strategic instruments to guide urban dynamics faces particular challenges in the Global South, including Sub-Saharan Africa, where urgent interventions are required to improve urban and environmental sustainability. This study investigated and identified key challenges of land use planning and its environmental assessments to improve the urban and environmental sustainability of city-regions. In doing so, we combined expert interviews and questionnaires with spatial analyses of urban and regional land use plans, as well as current and future urban land cover maps derived from Geographic Information Systems and remote sensing. By overlaying and contrasting land use plans and land cover maps, we investigated spatial inconsistencies between urban and regional plans and the associated urban land dynamics and used expert surveys to identify the causes of such inconsistencies. We furthermore identified and interrogated key challenges facing land use planning, including its environmental assessment procedures, and explored means for overcoming these barriers to rapid, yet environmentally sound urban growth. The results illuminated multiple inconsistencies (e.g., spatial conflicts) between urban and regional plans, most prominently stemming from conflicts in administrative boundaries and a lack of interdepartmental coordination. Key findings identified a lack of Strategic Environmental Assessment and inadequate implementation of land use plans caused by e.g., insufficient funding, lack of political will, political interference, corruption as challenges facing land use planning strategies for urban and environmental sustainability. The baseline information provided in this study is crucial to improve strategic planning and urban/environmental sustainability of city-regions in Sub-Saharan Africa and across the Global South, where land use planning faces similar challenges to address haphazard urban expansion patterns.

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Mining Industry Impact on Environmental Sustainability, Economic Growth, Social Interaction, and Public Health: An Application of Semi-Quantitative Mathematical Approach

Processes ◽

10.3390/pr9060972 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 9 (6) ◽

pp. 972

Author(s):

Muhammad Mohsin ◽

Qiang Zhu ◽

Sobia Naseem ◽

Muddassar Sarfraz ◽

Larisa Ivascu

Keyword(s):

Economic Growth ◽

Energy Source ◽

Coal Mining ◽

Environmental Sustainability ◽

Mining Industry ◽

Provincial Government ◽

Mining Operations ◽

Human Needs ◽

The Government ◽

Operational Activities

The mining industry plays a significant role in economic growth and development. Coal is a viable renewable energy source with 185.175 billion deposits in Thar, which has not been deeply explored. Although coal is an energy source and contributes to economic development, it puts pressure on environmental sustainability. The current study investigates Sindh Engro coal mining’s impact on environmental sustainability and human needs and interest. The Folchi and Phillips Environmental Sustainability Mathematics models are employed to measure environmental sustainability. The research findings demonstrated that Sindh Engro coal mining is potentially unsustainable for the environment. The toxic gases (methane, carbon dioxide, sulfur, etc.) are released during operational activities. The four significant environment spheres (atmosphere, hydrosphere, biosphere, and lithosphere) are negatively influenced by Thar coal mining. The second part of the analysis results shows that human needs and interests have a positive and significant relationship except for human health and safety with Sindh Engro coal mining. Environmental pollution can be controlled by utilizing environmentally friendly coal mining operations and technologies. Plantation and ecological normalization can protect the species, flora, and fauna of the Thar Desert. The government of Pakistan and the provincial government of Sind should strictly check the adaptation of environmental standards. Furthermore, the researchers should explore the environmental issues and solutions so that coal mining becomes a cost-efficient and environmental-friendly energy source in Pakistan.

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Simulating Urban Land Expansion in the Context of Land Use Planning in the Abuja City-Region, Nigeria

GeoJournal ◽

10.1007/s10708-020-10317-x ◽

2020 ◽

Author(s):

Evidence Chinedu Enoguanbhor ◽

Florian Gollnow ◽

Blake Byron Walker ◽

Jonas Ostergaard Nielsen ◽

Tobia Lakes

Keyword(s):

Land Use ◽

Land Use Planning ◽

Environmental Sustainability ◽

Urban Expansion ◽

Urban Land ◽

Data Availability ◽

Sensitive Areas ◽

Environmentally Sensitive Areas ◽

City Regions ◽

Environmentally Sensitive

Abstract In the Global South, including the Sub-Saharan African city-regions, the possible future urban expansion patterns may pose a challenge towards improving environmental sustainability. Land use planning strategies and instruments for regulating urban expansion are faced with challenges, including insufficient data availability to offer insights into the possible future urban expansion. This study integrated empirical data derived from Geographic Information Systems, Remote Sensing, and surveys of experts to offer insights into the possible future urban expansion under spatial planning scenarios to support land use planning and environmental sustainability of city-regions. We analyzed the spatial determinants of urban expansion, calibrated the land cover model using the Multi-Layer Perceptron Neural Network and Markov, and developed three scenarios to simulate land cover from 2017 to 2030 and to 2050. The scenarios include Business As Usual that extrapolates past trends; Regional Land Use Plan that restricts urban expansion to the land designated for urban development, and; Adjusted Urban Land that incorporates the leapfrogged settlements into the land designated for urban development. Additionally, we quantified the potential degradation of environmentally sensitive areas by future urban expansion under the three scenarios. Results indicated a high, little, and no potential degradation of environmentally sensitive areas by the future urban expansion under the Business As Usual, Adjusted Urban Land, and Regional Land Use Plan scenarios respectively. The methods and the baseline information provided, especially from the Adjusted Urban Land scenario showed the possibility of balancing the need for urban expansion and the protection of environmentally sensitive areas. This would be useful to improve the environmental sustainability of the Sub-Saharan African city-regions and across the Global South, where insufficient data availability challenges land use planning.

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Water Preservation and Conservation above Coal Mines Using an Innovative Approach: A Case Study

Energies ◽

10.3390/en13112818 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 13 (11) ◽

pp. 2818

Author(s):

Yujun Xu ◽

Liqiang Ma ◽

Yihe Yu

Keyword(s):

Coal Mining ◽

Water Conservation ◽

Large Scale ◽

Influencing Factor ◽

Mining Area ◽

Mining Operations ◽

Narrow Strip ◽

Geological Conditions ◽

The Impact

To better protect the ecological environment during large scale underground coal mining operations in the northwest of China, the authors have proposed a water-conservation coal mining (WCCM) method. This case study demonstrated the successful application of WCCM in the Yu-Shen mining area. Firstly, by using the analytic hierarchy process (AHP), the influencing factors of WCCM were identified and the identification model with a multilevel structure was developed, to determine the weight of each influencing factor. Based on this, the five maps: overburden thickness contour, stratigraphic structure map, water-rich zoning map of aquifers, aquiclude thickness contour and coal seam thickness contour, were analyzed and determined. This formed the basis for studying WCCM in the mining area. Using the geological conditions of the Yu-Shen mining area, the features of caved zone, water conductive fractured zone (WCFZ) and protective zone were studied. The equations for calculating the height of the “three zones” were proposed. Considering the hydrogeological condition of Yu-Shen mining area, the criteria were put forward to evaluate the impact of coal mining on groundwater, which were then used to determine the distribution of different impact levels. Using strata control theory, the mechanism and applicability of WCCM methods, including height-restricted mining, (partial) backfill mining and narrow strip mining, together with the applicable zone of these methods, were analyzed and identified. Under the guidance of “two zoning” (zoning based on coal mining’s impact level on groundwater and zoning based on applicability of WCCM methods), the WCCM practice was carried out in Yu-Shen mining area. The research findings will provide theoretical and practical instruction for the WCCM in the northwest mining area of China, which is important to reduce the impact of mining on surface and groundwater.

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Geospatial analysis of land use driving force in coal mining area: case study in Ningdong, China

GeoJournal ◽

10.1007/s10708-019-10078-2 ◽

2019 ◽

Cited By ~ 4

Author(s):

Hazem T. Abd El-Hamid ◽

Wei Caiyong ◽

Zhang Yongting

Keyword(s):

Land Use ◽

Coal Mining ◽

Driving Force ◽

Mining Area ◽

Geospatial Analysis ◽

Coal Mining Area

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New Technology of Surface Subsidence Control and Environmental Protection Research in Coal Mining Region

Applied Mechanics and Materials ◽

10.4028/www.scientific.net/amm.675-677.1385 ◽

2014 ◽

Vol 675-677 ◽

pp. 1385-1394

Author(s):

Cheng Rong Jiang ◽

Liu Yang ◽

Hao Xie ◽

Hua Yi Huang ◽

De Ke Sun

Keyword(s):

Coal Mining ◽

New Technology ◽

Mining Area ◽

Industrial Test ◽

Surface Subsidence ◽

High Concentration ◽

Geological Conditions ◽

Surface Subsidence Control ◽

Fissure Water ◽

Overlying Strata

In combination with the geological conditions of Tie'er mining area in Tangshan coal mining, this paper not only analyzes the evolution of overlying strata structure in stope and the development law of overlying strata separation, also proposes a new continuous grouting technology with large flow and high concentration slurry. The industrial test showed that, when the grout-mining ratio of the whole mining area is 25.3%, the reducing subsidence ratio is 51.5%, the effect of reducing the surface subsidence is good. According to the chemical analysis of water quality ingredients of slurry, the test result showed, heavy metals contents in fly-ash slurry water do not exceed the standard, which has no bad effect on the fissure water in the bedrock.

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Land Cover Change in the Abuja City-Region, Nigeria: Integrating GIS and Remotely Sensed Data to Support Land Use Planning

Sustainability ◽

10.3390/su11051313 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 11 (5) ◽

pp. 1313 ◽

Cited By ~ 7

Author(s):

Evidence Enoguanbhor ◽

Florian Gollnow ◽

Jonas Nielsen ◽

Tobia Lakes ◽

Blake Walker

Keyword(s):

Land Use ◽

Land Cover ◽

Urban Development ◽

Land Cover Change ◽

Land Use Planning ◽

Environmental Sustainability ◽

Urban Expansion ◽

Developed Countries ◽

Urban Land Cover ◽

Land Use Plan

Rapid urban expansion is a significant contributor to land cover change and poses a challenge to environmental sustainability, particularly in less developed countries. Insufficient data about urban expansion hinders effective land use planning. Therefore, a high need to collect, process, and disseminate land cover data exists. This study focuses on urban land cover change detection using Geographic Information Systems and remote sensing methods to produce baseline information in support for land use planning. We applied a supervised classification of land cover of LANDSAT data from 1987, 2002, and 2017. We mapped land cover transitions from 1987 to 2017 and computed the net land cover change during this time. Finally, we analyzed the mismatches between the past and current urban land cover and land use plans and quantified the non-urban development area lost to urban/built-up. Our results indicated an increase in urban/built-up and bare land cover types, while vegetation land cover decreased. We observed mismatches between past/current land cover and the existing land use plan. By providing detailed insights into mismatches between the regional land use plan and unregulated urban expansion, this study provides important information for a critical debate on the role and effectiveness of land use planning for environmental sustainability and sustainable urban development, particularly in less developed countries.

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Patterns of Historical and Future Urban Expansion in Nepal

Remote Sensing ◽

10.3390/rs12040628 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 12 (4) ◽

pp. 628 ◽

Cited By ~ 3

Author(s):

Bhagawat Rimal ◽

Sean Sloan ◽

Hamidreza Keshtkar ◽

Roshan Sharma ◽

Sushila Rijal ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Land Use ◽

Land Use Change ◽

Land Use Planning ◽

Environmental Sustainability ◽

Urban Areas ◽

Urban Expansion ◽

Spatial Models ◽

Agricultural Conversion ◽

Historical Land Use ◽

Landsat Satellite

Globally, urbanization is increasing at an unprecedented rate at the cost of agricultural and forested lands in peri-urban areas fringing larger cities. Such land-cover change generally entails negative implications for societal and environmental sustainability, particularly in South Asia, where high demographic growth and poor land-use planning combine. Analyzing historical land-use change and predicting the future trends concerning urban expansion may support more effective land-use planning and sustainable outcomes. For Nepal’s Tarai region—a populous area experiencing land-use change due to urbanization and other factors—we draw on Landsat satellite imagery to analyze historical land-use change focusing on urban expansion during 1989–2016 and predict urban expansion by 2026 and 2036 using artificial neural network (ANN) and Markov chain (MC) spatial models based on historical trends. Urban cover quadrupled since 1989, expanding by 256 km2 (460%), largely as small scattered settlements. This expansion was almost entirely at the expense of agricultural conversion (249 km2). After 2016, urban expansion is predicted to increase linearly by a further 199 km2 by 2026 and by another 165 km2 by 2036, almost all at the expense of agricultural cover. Such unplanned loss of prime agricultural lands in Nepal’s fertile Tarai region is of serious concern for food-insecure countries like Nepal.

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