Monetizing The Climate Benefits of Mine Site Re-Vegetation
- Principal Investigator (PI): Flurin Babst, School of Natural Resources and the Environment (SNRE)
- Co-Principal Investigators: Julie Neilson, Department of Environmental Science (ENVS). Alicja Babst-Kostecka, ENVS; Wim van Leeuwen, SNRE.
- Research Assistants: Center for Environmentally Sustainable Mining (CESM); Arizona Institute for Resilience; San Xavier Mining Laboratory, BHP Copper Legacy Assets.
This strategic initiative, led by CESM, seeks to develop tools to assess and predict vegetation productivity and carbon sequestration on mining-impacted lands. The chief aim of these assessments is to establish carbon drawdown and related climate benefits as a sustainability goal for the hardrock mining industry
Ten sampling plots were established in Spring 2023 at UArizona’s San Xavier Mining Laboratory. Phase 1 of the project is complete, which involved taking measurements and mapping shrubbery and vegetation using field observations, ground, and airborne remote sensing. Soil and wood density samples were obtained, and terrestrial LiDAR scans of the plots were performed.
Phase 2 (Fall 2023) involves independent validation from partners and identification of key parameters that drive carbon sequestration. Phase 3 (Spring 2024) is to implement statistical and/or process-based modeling to predict vegetation productivity and carbon sink.