Location: Sustainable Agricultural Systems Laboratory
Project Number: 8042-12120-002-005-I
Project Type: Interagency Reimbursable Agreement
Start Date: Jul 15, 2024
End Date: Jul 1, 2028
Objective:
The objective is to determine how to establish vegetation on legacy mine sites using soil amendments and ameliorate the mercury transport associated with the now barren ground. Using targeted soil amendments will improve the fertility of the soils and build soil health and soil carbon stocks while safeguarding human and environmental health. This research focuses on determining which amendments are the most suitable to reestablish vegetation and reduce mercury loss from the soils into groundwater and the atmosphere. The experiments will consist of greenhouse trials and laboratory incubations. This information will establish a foundation to build our understanding of mine site reclamation and soil carbon sequestration accumulation in legacy mine site soils with implications for system resilience and human and ecosystem health.
Approach:
The approach to this research will focus on identifying soil amendments that reestablish vegetation and reduce mercury losses from soils through targeted greenhouse and laboratory experiments. These experiments will quantify plant biomass, soil health improvements, and mercury transport in the soils. The differences between the amendments, like biochar and coir, will elucidate the best approach for the mine site reclamation. Statistical software will determine the significance of each treatment and support the impact of the results and final recommendations.
