Mining can have devastating effects on the soils and vegetation of the area.
Reclamation after mining can take many years as is shown in Table 1. Reclamation of a strip mine in Illinois. 5.9 8.8 91.7 Using topsoil during the restoration process can improve the productivity and rate of revegetation. This is not usually the case, as the soil is adversely affected by the removal and storage. During the process of the mining, topsoil is stripped off and stored in stockpiles until the minespoil is ready for reclamation.