So begins the process of coal mining. Several natural characteristics of the mined area are disturbed. After mining and subsequent land reclamation, the soil undergoes weathering, settling, and compaction before reaching equilibrium. The result is an area with newly created landscape patterns and processes that may vary significantly over short distances. Understanding these patterns and processes is only one factor in landscape stabilization.
Events leading to reclamation begin even before mining activities start.
The sequence gets under way with the mobilization of trace elements into the coal and the surrounding strata from exposure, oxidation, and fluctuating ground water-activities accelerated by surface mining practices. Coal mine overburden and residue remaining after coal is burned contain elements that frequently are toxic to plant and animal life. Each of these is usually returned to mined pits prior to reclamation. Depending on their mobility and form, they can migrate off site through seepage, runoff, or sediment transport. Of most concern in areas of low precipitation, however, is their potential effect on reclamation vegetation establishment, succession, and diversification.