An assessment of energy efficiency in reclamation to forest

The work presents an assessment of energy efficiency in reclamation to forest as illustrated by an open-cast sand mine in southern Poland. A total of 20 plots of different age class (5, 17, 20 and 25 years old) were set up on reclaimed areas of the open cast or in succession areas. Studies of initial soil conditions and plant community biomass were conducted to establish carbon content and accumulation. This was the basis on which energy in the ecosystem was calculated using known conversion factors. It was found that a full reclamation treatment increased the amount of accumulated energy in the developing ecosystem by approximately (at least) two-fold in comparison to ecosystems left to natural primary succession. (C) 2007 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.