Hüttl R F, Weber E
Brandenburg University of Technology at Cottbus (BTU), Research Center Mining Landscapes, Universitätsplatz 3-4, 03044 Cottbus, Germany.
Naturwissenschaften. 2001 Aug;88(8):322-9. doi: 10.1007/s001140100241.
The restoration of surface mining landscapes requries the (re)creation of ecosystems. In Lusatia (eastern Germany), large-scale open-cast lignite mining operations generated spoil dumps widely consisting of acidified, phytotoxic substrates. Amelioration and rehabilitation measures have been developed and applied to these substrates since the 1950s. However, it is still not clear whether these approaches are sustainable. This paper reports on collaborative research work into the ecological potential of forest ecosystem development on typical minesites in the Lusatian lignite district. At first sight, pine stands on minesites along a chronosequence comprising about 35 years did not show differences when compared with stands on non-mined sites of the general region. Furthermore, with some modification, conceptual models for flora and fauna succession in forest stands on non-mined sites seem to be applicable, at least for the early stages of forest ecosystem development. For example, soil organism abundance and activity at minesites had already reached levels typical of non-mined sites after about 20-30 years. In contrast, mine soils are very different from non-mined soils of the test region. Chemically, mine soil development is dominated by processes originating from pyrite oxidation. Geogenic, i.e. lignitic, soil organic carbon was shown to substitute for some functions of pedogenic soil organic matter. Rooting was hampered but not completely impeded in strongly acidified soil compartments. Roots and mycorrhizae are apparently able to make use of the characteristic heterogeneity of young mine soils. Considering these recent results and the knowledge accumulated during more than 30 years of research on minesite rehabilitation internationally, it can be stated that minesite restoration might be used as an ideal case study for forest ecosystem development starting at "point zero" on "terra nova".
恢复露天采矿后的地貌需要重建生态系统。在卢萨蒂亚（德国东部），大规模的露天褐煤开采作业产生了大量弃土堆，这些弃土堆大多由酸化的、具有植物毒性的基质组成。自20世纪50年代以来，人们已开发并应用了改良和恢复措施来处理这些基质。然而，这些方法是否可持续仍不明确。本文报道了关于卢萨蒂亚褐煤区典型矿址森林生态系统发展的生态潜力的合作研究工作。乍一看，在一个约35年的时间序列上，矿址上的松树林与该地区未开采土地上的树林相比没有差异。此外，经过一些调整后，非开采土地上森林植被和动物群落演替的概念模型似乎也适用，至少在森林生态系统发展的早期阶段是这样。例如，矿址上土壤生物的丰度和活性在大约20 - 30年后已达到未开采土地的典型水平。相比之下，矿土与试验区的非矿土有很大不同。从化学角度看，矿土的发育主要受黄铁矿氧化过程主导。地质成因的，即褐煤成因的土壤有机碳被证明可以替代一些成土土壤有机质的功能。在强酸化的土壤区域，根系生长受到阻碍但并未完全被阻止。根系和菌根显然能够利用年轻矿土特有的异质性。考虑到这些最新研究结果以及国际上30多年来在矿址恢复研究中积累的知识，可以说矿址恢复可能是“新土地”上从“零点”开始的森林生态系统发展的理想案例研究。
