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Forest restoration after severe degradation by coal mining: lessons from the first years of monitoring

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Abstract

Restoration after mining often requires strong interventions, including soil reconstruction, which makes vegetation establishment a challenge. We analyzed regeneration of woody plant species in the first years of restoration in areas severely degraded by coal mining in the south Brazilian Atlantic rainforest. At the four restoration sites, we collected data on cover of the herbaceous layer (including invasive grasses) and on abundance and richness of introduced trees and of spontaneously establishing woody plants. We also evaluated soil chemical features at all sites. We compared functional characteristics of the woody regeneration with nearby forest remnants (target communities) and evaluated the dynamics of regeneration over 3 years by principal coordinates analyses. The influence of biotic and abiotic variables for the regeneration of woody species was analyzed by partial redundancy analysis. We found high variation in community composition and structure among restored sites. Most of this variation was explained by variables related to soil chemistry and introduced trees. Over time, an increase in woody species establishment could be observed, and woody species communities appear to be at the start of trajectories toward target communities. Fertilization of soil, as commonly applied in restoration, seems to increase cover of exotic grasses, which clearly impedes the development of planted trees and woody species regeneration. Although the restoration of abandoned mining areas is a challenge due to the severe degradation, our results—despite the short period of observation—allow for the conclusion that restoration is possible, even with high initial costs. We highlight the importance of monitoring the initial process of restoration and of (re)defining intermediate goal and project targets, following an adaptive management approach.

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Acknowledgements

We thank the companies that authorized us to carry out research in their restoration areas. We also thank Martin Molz, Rafael Martins and Vanilde Citadini Zanette for help with species identification. This study was supported by Justiça Federal of Santa Catarina state through the research 01/PROJPESQ/2010, by Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa e Inovação do Estado de Santa Catarina through Project FAPESC T.O. 2012/000077, and Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq – Grant to SCM; 307719/2012-0).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Programa de Pós-Graduação em Ecologia, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, Av. Bento Gonçalves, 9500, Porto Alegre, RS, 91540-000, Brazil

    Edilane Rocha-Nicoleite, Gerhard Ernst Overbeck & Sandra Cristina Müller

  2. Departamento de Solos e Recursos Naturais, Universidade do Estado de Santa Catarina, Av. Luiz de Camões, 2090, Lages, SC, 88520-000, Brazil

    Mari Lucia Campos

  3. Instituto Nacional de Pesquisas da Amazônia, Av.André Araújo, 2936, Manaus, AM, 69067-375, Brazil

    Guthieri Teixeira Colombo

  4. Departamento de Botânica, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, Av. Bento Gonçalves, 9500, Porto Alegre, RS, 91540-000, Brazil

    Gerhard Ernst Overbeck

  5. Departamento de Ecologia, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, Av. Bento Gonçalves, 9500, Porto Alegre, RS, 91540-000, Brazil

    Sandra Cristina Müller

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  1. Edilane Rocha-Nicoleite
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  2. Mari Lucia Campos
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Contributions

ERN conceived and designed the research, performed the field work and the organization of the dataset, analyzed the data, wrote and edited the main part of the manuscript and obtained a grant from FAPESC (Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa de Santa Catarina). MLC designed and supervised the field work related to soil analysis and interpreted soil data and contributed on soil–plants interactions, writing and reviewing the manuscript. GTC performed the field work and the organization of the dataset. GEO helped to design the research, analyzed the data and participated in writing and editing the manuscript. SCM helped to conceive and design the research, analyzed the data and participated in writing and editing the manuscript, and GEO and SCM received productivity grants from CNPq (Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico).

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Correspondence to Edilane Rocha-Nicoleite.

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Rocha-Nicoleite, E., Campos, M.L., Colombo, G.T. et al. Forest restoration after severe degradation by coal mining: lessons from the first years of monitoring. Braz. J. Bot 41, 653–664 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40415-018-0486-4

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