St.

Paul University Surigao

St. Paul University System
8400 Surigao City, Philippines
Cor. San Nicolas & Rizal Street
College of Engineering

In partial fulfilment of the Mining Engineering Program of College Engineering of

Saint Paul University Surigao

A Research Proposal

Factors Affecting the Growth of Plants in Rehabilitating a Mined Area

(Hinatuan Mining Corporation)

Prepared by:
Rica C. Arreza
Mary Joy P. Ejandra
Gladys Jane T. Patangan
Mariel E. Reyes
Mary Alyssa Yaun
Geerich Jarabe

Submitted to:
Engr. Nathaniel D. Tiu

November 2018
 Abstract

The effective rehabilitation is essential for maintaining a ‘social licence to operate’ according to

the article entitled Mine Rehabilitation by Glenn, V., et. al. 2014. It reduces risk for mining

companies by minimising residual risk payments, reducing administrative uncertainties at

closure and creating an agreed transition to post – mining landscapes.

In rehabilitating, one of the practices is to plant trees or any kind of plants to help restore the

mined out areas. We cannot call it a successful rehabilitation if there are no plants being planted.

To ensure an effective growth of the plants we need to consider the factors that could possibly

affect its growth or we need to know the things that could contribute to an effective growth of

plants used in rehabilitating a mined area.(Role of revegetation in restoring fertility of degraded

mined soils in Ghana: A review, Albert Kobina Mensah, 2015)

This study was purposely designed to identify the factors and determine the effectiveness of its

identified factors that affects the growth of plants in rehabilitating mined-out area in Hinatuan

Mining Corporation, Surigao del Norte in the year 2018-2019. Aiming to gather data and

compare its results to finally determine and mitigate measures for a better rehabilitation

especially in identifying the factors that affect the growth of plants in a mined-out area.
 Introduction

Mining is the process of extracting valuable minerals or other geological materials from the

earth, usually from an ore body, lode, vein, seam, or placer deposits. These deposits from a

mineralized package that is of economic interest to the miner. Mining Industry deals with the

process or business regarding extraction of ore or minerals from mines. The act of extracting is

normally done by the government authority, individual entrepreneurs or maybe by small business

owners. Government agencies, multinational companies or any public sector company generally

take the responsibility of extracting mines as the entire process of extraction require a large

amount of capital. (Mining Industry | Economy Watch, Chadler, C., June 2010).

Rehabilitation plays a vital role in the life of mine, along the process of extracting minerals we

need to consider how we will regenerate the mined areas. Rehabilitation from the mining

industry perspective means putting the land impacted by the mining activity back to a sustainable

usable condition. It recognizes that the restoration of what was previously there is simply

impossible with current best practice. This definition (and implied intention) includes the

concept of minimization of loss of land use capability and of net benefit to society. (Guidelines

for the Rehabilitation of Mined Land, Swart, M.M., November 2007)

 Review of Related Literature

In rehabilitating, one of the practice is to plant trees or any kind of plants to help restore the

mined out areas. We cannot call it a successful rehabilitation if there are no plants being planted.

To ensure an effective growth of the plants we need to consider the factors that could possibly

affect its growth or we need to know the things that could contribute to an effective growth of

plants used in rehabilitating a mined area.

Successful plant growth results from placing each species in a suitable environment. Pasture and

forest species have been widely used in reclamation and have given excellent growth. Success

with these plantings has resulted from the use of species which were not highly bred for a local

environment. Success with a variety genetically tailored for a previous soil condition, such as

hybrid corn, cannot be expected on a newly created mine soil, just as corn tailored for northern

Illinois soils does not excel in southern Illinois. (Geochemical Factors affecting plant growth in

reclamation, Ashby, W.C.)

Maintaining or increasing the ability of the soil to supply nutrients, to store and supply water and

to support root growth should be a major concern in developing a sustainable ecosystem. The re-

establishment of nutrient cycle is essential to the sustainability of rehabilitation. Mining removes

the vegetation and inevitably leads to the loss of some plant nutrients from the site. This is

particularly important where the proportion of the total nutrient in the ecosystem that is

contained in the vegetation and the plant litter on the soil surface is high, as is the case in many

Australian ecosystems. In such cases, there must be an input of nutrients to the system if it is to

reach a productivity level equivalent to that pre-mining ecosystem and be self-sustaining in the
long term. This can sometimes be achieved through a single application of fertilizer during the

establishment phase of the rehabilitation. However, sometimes follow-up application are needed,

particularly for grazing or cropping land uses. Regardless, it is important that nutrient cycles be

monitored in the rehabilitated area and that the results support the re-establishment of a

functional ecosystem. (Rehabilitation Management, Department of Australian Government)

Statement of the Problem

This study aimed to determine the factors affecting the growth of plants in the rehabilitation of a

mined-out area. Most specifically to seek answers to the following queries:

1. What are the common trees/plants that survive the mined-out area?

2. What are the environmental factors that affects the mine rehabilitation area?

3. What are the common problem during the rehabilitation in the mined-out are?

4. How to determine that the rehabilitation is effective?

Scope and Limitation

This study is purposely designed to identify the factors that affects the growth of plants in

rehabilitating mined area in Hinatuan Mining Corporation, Surigao del Norte during the year

2018-2019. This study seeks solution to have an effective rehabilitation that will be sustainable,
in the long term, under normal land management. It also determines the effectiveness of the

identified factors that affects the growth of plants.

Methodology

To gather the data needed in the study, the researchers will send letters to the company of

Hinatuan Mining Corporation, asking permission to let the researchers conduct the study in the

said company. The researchers will visit the site and ask questions to the Environmental

Department and analyse the data’s given, identify the factors and compare data.

Conceptual Framework

The study was anchored on the idea Glenn, et.al (2014) that the effective rehabilitation is

essential for maintaining a ‘social licence to operate’, and in rehabilitating a mined-out area in a

mining site, there are a lot of factors that could possibly affect the growth of the plants. These

factors could define the possible outcome of the rehabilitation so that we can identify what to do

for an effective rehabilitation.

1. Plant growth factor:

The abiotic factors that affect plant growth and development include topography, soil,

and climatic factors. They are the non-living components of the environment which,

along with the biotic or living factors, determine the extent in the genetic factors is

expressed in the plant.

a. Climatic factors include rainfall and water, light, temperature, relative humidity, air and

wind. They are abiotic components, including topography and soil, of the environmental

factors that influence plant growth and development.

b. Rainfall and water Rainfall is the most common form of precipitation. It is the falling

water in droplets on the surface of the earth from clouds.

c. Temperature The degree of hotness or coldness of a substance is called temperature

(Eagleman 1985). It is commonly express in degree Celsius or centigrade and degree

Fahrenheit (F).

d. Air The air is mixture of gases in the atmosphere. According to Miller (2001), about 75%

of this air is found in troposphere, the innermost layer of the atmosphere which extends

about 17km above sea level at the equator and about 8km over the poles.

e. Relative Humidity (RH) is the amount of water vapour in the air, expressed as the

proportion (in percent) of the maximum amount of water vapour it can hold at a certain

temperature.

2. Topography as abiotic factor

a. Topography is a non-living factor that refers to the “lay of the land.” It includes the

physical features of the earth such as the land elevation, slope, terrain (flat, rolling, hilly,

etc.), mountain ranges and bodies of water.

b. Slope or inclination of a land is the percentage change in its elevation over a certain

distance. It is measured by dividing the vertical distance from the foot to the top of the

land by the horizontal distance between those points, multiplied by 100. A 45-degree

angle of elevation is equivalent to 100% slope. The steepness of a slope affects plant

growth through differential incidence of solar radiation, wind velocity and soil type. A
 steep slope is susceptible of rapid surface run off and soil erosion which cause soil

degradation.

c. Altitude or elevation of the land with respect to the level of the sea surface influences

plant growth and development primarily through temperature effect. The relationship of

this abiotic factor to temperature is like that of distance from the equator to the arctic

poles. According to Stiling (1999), temperature decreases by 1C for every 100m

increases in altitude in dry air. This abiotic factor is an important consideration in crop or

site selection for more productive crop farming. The effect of land elevation on plant

growth and development is apparent when exploring a high rise mountain.

d. Soil is the outermost layer of the surface of the earth in which plants grow. It is composed

of eroded rock, mineral nutrients, decaying plant, and animal matter, water and air. Most

plants are terrestrial in that they are anchored to the soil through their roots, with which

they absorb water and nutrients. Variation in the physical, chemical, and biological

properties of the soil have distinct effects of plant growth and development, depending on

natural adaption.

Profile of the plants Factors affecting the

and the mined-out growth of plants:
area:
 Plant Growth
 Natural Factor Expected output
inhabitant :
plants/trees  Abiotic Factor:
 Soil profile Topography
 Figure 1.Schematic Diagram

Expected Output

The expected output of this study are:

 Identify the factors that affect the growth of plants in rehabilitating a mined area through

experimentation.

Mine rehabilitation is necessary at all stages of a mining operation. Current best practices

dictates that all mines should be designed for rehabilitation and rehabilitation are required

for permitting in many jurisdictions

 Mitigate possible actions to the identified factors to attain an effective way of

rehabilitation

In order to attain a successful mine rehabilitation, after identifying the factors we now

then list the possible measures needed to be done to achieve the common goal which is

successful rehabilitation.

 Identify an effective mine rehabilitation

Mine rehabilitation is the restoration of the post-mined landscape to the intended post-

mining land use. Mine completion is the goal of mine closure. A completed mine has

reached a state where mining lease ownership can be relinquished and responsibility

accepted by the next land user. A return of the mine site to a stable natural ecosystem and
 maintains or improves the wellbeing and social sustainability of affected communities is

always the top priorities. And the commitment of the mining companies to the social and

economic development of the communities in which they operate is fully achieved.

References

Glenn, V., Gillespie, M., Doley, D., (2014) “Mine Rehabilitation” Retrieved from

(https://www.researchgate.net/publication/263506865_Mined_Rehabilitation_context)

Mensah, A.K., (February 2015) “Role of revegetation in restoring fertility of degraded mined

soils in Ghana: A review”, Retrieved from

(www.researchgate.net/publication/290623211_Role_of _revegetation_in_restoring_

fertility_of_degraded_mined_soils_in_Ghana_A_review)

Chandler, C., (June 2010) “Mining Industry” Retrieved from

(http://www.economywatch.com/world-industries/mining)

Swart, M.M., (November 2007) “Guidelines for the Rehabilitation of Mined Land” Retrieved

from (https://commondatastorage.googleapis.com)

Department of Australian Government “Rehabilitation Management” Retrieved from

(https://archive.industry.gov.au)

Ashby W.C., “Geochemical Factors affecting plant growth in reclamation” Retrieved from

(https://pdfs.semanticscholar.org>pdf)
Bareja, Ben G., (January 2011) “Topographyand Soil, Abiotic Factors Affecting Plant Growth,

Development and Distribution” Retrieved from

(http://www.cropsreview.com/abiotic-factors.html)