Alcoa in Australia
Bauxite Mining 
Pre-Mining surveys
Regulation
The Mining Process
Mine Rehabilitation
Landscaping
Pre-ripping
Soil Return
Fauna Habitat Return
Final Contour Ripping and Air-Seeding
Recalcitrant Planting
Fertilising
Monitoring
Landscaping

Landscaping is the first step in the rehabilitation process. Landscaping reshapes the mined out pit, removes pit faces and pit floors, buries large rocks and creates a final surface that blends in with the surrounding forest topography.
 
Landscaping also provides an opportunity to create drainage controls within the pit.
 
The surrounding forest has established trees to add structure to the soil, and prevent soil being washed away during rain events. Newly rehabilitated pits don't have this structure yet. Landscaping design allows water to be captured within the pit and prevents the soil being washed off into surrounding forest.
 
The final landscaped pit is left 30-40cm below the surrounding forest. This allows the rehabilitation to be at an equal height with the surrounding forest once soil return has occurred. The rock and wood debris is removed from edges to ensure no barriers between rehabilitation and forest are created.
 


Pit during mining with final landscaped pit in bac

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Pit during mining with final landscaped pit in background.

575 Dozer smoothing down the mined pit face during

Click image to enlarge.


575 Dozer smoothing down the mined pit face during landscaping.

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