Production of Organic Matter for Mine Reclamation and Reclamation of Mine Water by Planting Fast-Growing Willows

The exploitation of mining sites gives rise to two (2) major environmental challenges: 1) the effective treatment of mine water, particularly water charged with ammoniacal nitrogen, as well as the management of the large volumes generated (e.g. dewatering water), and 2) the difficulty of sourcing organic matter for the revegetation of mining sites. This project proposes an innovative, cost-effective and environmentally-friendly solution to these two (2) challenges through the use of willow filter plantation (WFP) technology.

Indeed, the unique ability of WFP to reduce volumes of contaminated effluent through evapotranspiration directly minimizes the impact of mining activity on the receiving environment, while ensuring in situ production of woody biomass that will enable the creation of a short organic matter production circuit. This organic input can then be used to create soils capable of supporting vegetation for mine reclamation puproses. The proposed concept has never been tested in Quebec.