Data from: A novel environmental restoration method for an abandoned limestone quarry with a deep open pit and steep palisades: a case study

In general, exploitation of rock materials, such as limestone or granite exploitation, can cause serious damage to the ecological environment near a mine area. With economic development and the ever-increasing demand for ore resources, mining activities have induced very serious environmental issues in China. Therefore, environmental restoration work around mines in China is urgently required. This study explores the Chuankou open-pit limestone quarry in Tongchuan City, Shaanxi Province, Northwest China, as the engineering case. The environmental issues caused by over 40 years of limestone exploitation, including land degradation, land occupation, dust pollution and potential geological disasters, were investigated. Combining the characteristics of this quarry with a summary of previous studies on environmental restoration work, this paper proposes a novel and systematic method that was comprehensively carried out through engineering and revegetation measures. The engineering measure, that is, the construction of an artificial slope by using local abandoned construction materials, solved the environmental problems in this quarry and provided site conditions favourable for revegetation. The revegetation measure restored the local ecosystem. This method provides both a new idea for the sustainable development of a mining area and a useful reference for analogous engineering cases.一般而言，石灰石、花岗岩等岩石矿产的开采活动，会对矿区周边的生态环境造成严重破坏。随着经济发展与矿石资源需求的持续增长，采矿活动已在我国引发了极为严峻的环境问题，因此我国矿区周边的环境修复工作亟待开展。本研究以中国西北陕西省铜川市川口露天石灰石矿（open-pit limestone quarry）为工程案例，对该矿区历经40余年石灰石开采所引发的土地退化、土地占用、粉尘污染及潜在地质灾害等环境问题进行了调研。结合该矿场的自身特征，并梳理既往环境修复相关研究成果，本文提出了一种新颖且系统化的修复方法，该方法通过工程措施与植被恢复（revegetation）手段综合实施。其中，工程措施即利用当地废弃建筑材料构建人工边坡，不仅解决了该矿区的环境问题，还为植被恢复提供了适宜的立地条件；而植被恢复措施则修复了当地生态系统。该方法既为矿区的可持续发展提供了新思路，也为同类工程案例提供了有益参考。