Find out how the landscape is repaired after open cut mining. This is a PowerPoint presentation showing rehabilitation work carried out at the Ensham open cut coal mine in Central Queensland. The slides are predominantly pictorial and illustrate the processes of planning, removal and stockpiling of overburden, mining, surface reshaping, return of topsoil, planting and monitoring.

Part 1 – This PowerPoint introduces the Ensham open-cut coal mine located in near Emerald in central Queensland. The process of ‘progressive rehabilitation’ is explained using diagrams. Maps of the rehabilitation plan, ecosystems and vegetation are also included.

Part 2 – This PowerPoint explains the processes involved in spoil pile construction and rehabilitation.

Part 3 – This PowerPoint explains the method of topsoil collection and its use in spoil pile rehabilitation.

Part 4 – This PowerPoint explains the sequential processes involved in revegetation from species selection to use of fertiliser and mulch in the rehabilitation process.

Part 5 – This PowerPoint examines the planting of trees as part of the rehabilitation process, introduces an environmental engineer and provides an insight into the costs around rehabilitation.

Educational value statement

• Includes cross-section diagrams showing the mining and restoration process
• Captions are concise and relevant.
• Illustrates the work of environmental scientists
• Includes a breakdown of rehabilitation costs
• Can be downloaded as PPT files as a complete presentation or in five separate sections.

Key learning objectives

• Students describe the processes involved in rehabilitating land after mining and explain their significance.
• Students recognise that the growth and survival of living things are affected by the physical conditions of their environment.
• Students describe changes in the Earth’s surface as a result of human activity.
• Students demonstrate how scientific understandings influence the development of mining practices.

Strands

• Science Understanding: Biological sciences; Earth and space sciences
• Science as a Human Endeavour: Use and influence of science.

Australian Curriculum content statements
Science & HASS: ACSSU073 (4); ACSSU075 (4); ACSSU094 (6); ACSHE121 (7); ACHGE083 (11/12); ACSHE136 (8)