Abbas Aghajani Bazzazi; Ahmad Adib; Maryam Shapoori; Mohammad ali Farjoudi Ahangari; Amir Hossein Bangian Tabrizi
Abstract
Introduction: The area of the lands that are influenced by mining operations, especially waste dump, is increasing continuously. Therefore, the necessity of mine reclamation is more important than the past. Selecting suitable plant species is one of the main topics in open pit mine reclamation regarding ...
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Introduction: The area of the lands that are influenced by mining operations, especially waste dump, is increasing continuously. Therefore, the necessity of mine reclamation is more important than the past. Selecting suitable plant species is one of the main topics in open pit mine reclamation regarding mined land use and environmental protection. Material and methods: In this research, the selection of suitable plant species regarding the environmental rehabilitation of Sungun copper mine was performed. At first, suitable plant species were selected by main criteria such as post-mining land use, climatic condition, and ecological parameters of soil. Then, selected species were ranked based on a questionnaire completed by experts using the combination of Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP), Simple Multi-Attribute Rating Technique (SMARTER), and Technique for Order of Preference by Similarity to Ideal Solution (TOPSIS) methods. Results and discussion: Suitable tree species in acidic and metallic pollutant lands were Ulmus minor, Juniperus communis, Betula pendula, Robiniapseudoacacia, Acer compestre, and Rhus coriria, respectively. Native tree species such as Ficus carica, Fraxinus excelsior, and Juglans regia were selected for the alkaline region, in a decreasing order.Conclusions: From the selected tree species for this region, the more successful species in reducing pollution and preventing soil erosion are preferred. Robiniapseudoacacia is not considered one of the native trees of the region. Yet, because it is more successful than other trees in environmental protection, it was selected as the superior plant species for this region. Among the native species of the region, Acer campestre has priority due to the purpose of preserving the environment.
