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Oil, Gas & Mining vocabulary · Environmental Impact & Closure

Reclamation

Meaning in oil, gas & mining, with examples

/ˌrekləˈmeɪʃən/nounCommon term

In oil, gas & mining, reclamation means: Returning land disturbed by mining or drilling to a safe, stable and useful condition, for example by reshaping waste dumps, spreading topsoil and planting vegetation.

In Turkish: rehabilitasyon, arazinin doğaya yeniden kazandırılması, arazi ıslahı

How it is used

Also called rehabilitation, especially in Australia and the UK, or restoration. Mines prepare a closure and reclamation plan and often post a financial bond to guarantee the work. Progressive reclamation means restoring areas while mining continues elsewhere.

Example sentences

  1. Reclamation of the old waste dump will start once mining moves to the east pit.

  2. The company planted 50,000 trees as part of its reclamation programme.

Common collocations

  • mine reclamation
  • reclamation plan
  • progressive reclamation
  • reclamation bond
  • decommissioningSafely shutting down and removing an oil and gas facility, platform, pipeline or plant at the end of its life, including plugging the wells and cleaning up the site.
  • overburdenThe soil and waste rock lying on top of an ore body or coal seam, which must be removed before the valuable material can be mined.
  • tailings damAn embankment built to hold mine tailings and water in a storage area. If it fails, a flood of mud can destroy villages and rivers downstream.
  • environmental impact assessment (EIA)A formal study of how a planned project such as a mine, pipeline or refinery will affect air, water, land, wildlife and local communities, and how those effects will be reduced.

More terms: Environmental Impact & Closure

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