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Evaluation of acid mine drainage sludge as soil substitute for the reclamation of mine solid wastes

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Abstract

The reclamation of mine waste deposits is often hindered by the scarcity of natural topsoil. Acid mine drainage sludge (AMDS), as a mass-produced waste in metalliferous mines, is a potential topsoil substitute but had not been validated. In this study, a pot experiment with three plant species was conducted to evaluate the capacity of AMDS to support plant growth, buffer acidification, and immobilize heavy metal(loid)s when reclaiming mine waste rocks. Chemical fertilizer and compost chicken manure were applied to AMDS at different rates to explore their effects on plant growth and the physicochemical properties of AMDS. Results showed that all the plants could survive in AMDS even without fertilization. The contents of heavy metal(loid)s in rhizosphere remained almost unchanged over the experimental period, indicating low leachability of revegetated AMDS. Fertilizers enhanced macronutrients and soil enzyme activities, leading to significant increases in plant biomass. However, owing to manure composting and low richness and diversity of the bacterial community in AMDS, the NH4+-N and bioavailable phosphorus contents were extremely low. Bermuda grass was a suitable pioneer species for reclamation for its better adaptability to nutrient deficiency and heavy metal(loid) stress. Overall, AMDS is a viable soil substitute for mine reclamation due to its capability to support plant growth and environmental safety.

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Data availability

The datasets used and/or analyzed during the current study are available from the corresponding author on reasonable request.

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Funding

This work was supported by the open fund of the State Key Laboratory of Comprehensive Utilization of Low-Grade Refractory Gold Ores.

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  1. Yihan Chi and Qinru Lin contributed equally to this paper

Authors and Affiliations

  1. State Key Laboratory for Comprehensive Utilization of Low-Grade Refractory Gold Ores, Longyan, 364200, Fujian, China

    Yihan Chi, Rongchuan Zhuang & Mingyu Xiong

  2. School of Life Sciences, Sun Yat-Sen University, Guangzhou, 510006, China

    Yihan Chi, Qinru Lin & Zhihong Ye

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  1. Yihan Chi
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  3. Rongchuan Zhuang
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Contributions

YC designed the research protocol, determined the contents of metal(loid)s, and wrote the first draft of the manuscript. QL performed sample collection and most of the determination in this study. RZ and MX revised the research protocol and collected experiment materials (including acid mine drainage sludge and waste rocks) for this study. ZY supervised the entire experiment and preparation of the manuscript. All authors commented on the previous version and approved the final version of this manuscript.

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Correspondence to Zhihong Ye.

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Chi, Y., Lin, Q., Zhuang, R. et al. Evaluation of acid mine drainage sludge as soil substitute for the reclamation of mine solid wastes. Environ Sci Pollut Res 29, 21184–21197 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-021-17290-z

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