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<p>Extensive opencast coal mining in India's Korba Coalfield has fundamentally transformed regional landscapes and ecosystems since 1991, necessitating comprehensive evaluation of both environmental impacts and restoration effectiveness using multi-temporal satellite-based monitoring approaches. This investigation employed supervised maximum likelihood classification of Landsat-5 TM (1991, 2001, 2011) and Landsat-9 OLI/TIRS (2021) imagery to delineate eight major LULC categories and fifteen detailed sub-classes across the 780 km<sup>2</sup> study area. Ecological restoration success was assessed through integrated analysis of plantation establishment, canopy density transitions, and landscape heterogeneity metrics. Classification accuracies exceeded 85% with Kappa coefficients ranging from 0.79–0.93, indicating substantial to excellent agreement. Net change analysis revealed significant losses in dense forest cover (−&#xa0;98.71 km<sup>2</sup>, − 12.7%,&#xa0;<i>r</i> = − 3.42% yr⁻<sup>1</sup>) and agricultural land (− 87.51 km<sup>2</sup>, − 11.2%,&#xa0;<i>r</i> = − 0.93% yr⁻<sup>1</sup>), while active mining areas expanded by 25.65 km<sup>2</sup> (+ 194.9%,&#xa0;<i>r</i> = + 3.60% yr⁻<sup>1</sup>). Plantation areas increased dramatically from 2.2 km<sup>2</sup> to 34.67 km<sup>2</sup> (+ 1475.9%,&#xa0;<i>r</i> = + 9.19% yr⁻<sup>1</sup>), primarily on reclaimed overburden dumps. Statistical analysis demonstrated highly significant negative correlations between mining expansion and forest/agricultural cover (<i>r</i> = − 0.992;&#xa0;<i>r</i> = − 0.952), while plantation establishment showed strong positive correlation with mining activities (<i>r</i> = 0.987). Results demonstrate complex ecological trajectories characterized by initial degradation followed by systematic restoration interventions. Dense forest conversion to scrubland represents early-stage ecosystem disruption, while plantation establishment on overburden dumps provides measurable carbon sequestration and habitat restoration benefits. Multi-temporal Landsat analysis provides robust quantitative evidence that systematic biological reclamation programmes can effectively moderate mining-induced ecosystem degradation.</p>

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Multi-temporal remote sensing assessment of mining-induced landscape change and ecological restoration in the Korba Coalfield, India

  • 期刊论文

  • 出版模式：

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  • 发表日期：

    2026年7月12日

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  • Preety Dubey,
  • Gunjan Patil,
  • Abhishek Maitry,
  • Jai Prakash Koshale

摘要

Extensive opencast coal mining in India's Korba Coalfield has fundamentally transformed regional landscapes and ecosystems since 1991, necessitating comprehensive evaluation of both environmental impacts and restoration effectiveness using multi-temporal satellite-based monitoring approaches. This investigation employed supervised maximum likelihood classification of Landsat-5 TM (1991, 2001, 2011) and Landsat-9 OLI/TIRS (2021) imagery to delineate eight major LULC categories and fifteen detailed sub-classes across the 780 km2 study area. Ecological restoration success was assessed through integrated analysis of plantation establishment, canopy density transitions, and landscape heterogeneity metrics. Classification accuracies exceeded 85% with Kappa coefficients ranging from 0.79–0.93, indicating substantial to excellent agreement. Net change analysis revealed significant losses in dense forest cover (− 98.71 km2, − 12.7%, r = − 3.42% yr⁻1) and agricultural land (− 87.51 km2, − 11.2%, r = − 0.93% yr⁻1), while active mining areas expanded by 25.65 km2 (+ 194.9%, r = + 3.60% yr⁻1). Plantation areas increased dramatically from 2.2 km2 to 34.67 km2 (+ 1475.9%, r = + 9.19% yr⁻1), primarily on reclaimed overburden dumps. Statistical analysis demonstrated highly significant negative correlations between mining expansion and forest/agricultural cover (r = − 0.992; r = − 0.952), while plantation establishment showed strong positive correlation with mining activities (r = 0.987). Results demonstrate complex ecological trajectories characterized by initial degradation followed by systematic restoration interventions. Dense forest conversion to scrubland represents early-stage ecosystem disruption, while plantation establishment on overburden dumps provides measurable carbon sequestration and habitat restoration benefits. Multi-temporal Landsat analysis provides robust quantitative evidence that systematic biological reclamation programmes can effectively moderate mining-induced ecosystem degradation.