Question

Does replacing the soil removed by strip mining restore the environment?

Answer 1

If the soil is replaced after a strip mining it will help in restoring the environment, but it is not a quick or easy process. For the environment to be restored in a similar way that it was before the strip mining, it will take decades, and that will only happen if the institutions, the green organizations and the locals, collaborate with each other, and make a very detailed plan are put it in practice. Also the place will need to be planted with the same types of plants, the same types of animals will need to be brought back, and the numbers of both plants and animals will have to be carefully managed, so that the ecosystem is similar to what it was.