BCCL is pioneer in introduction of ecological restoration in mined out areas. In 2011, BCCL made a policy shift regarding biological reclamation from afforestation/ single tier plantation to ecological restoration, which replicates natural forest, with a view to link it with future needs of surrounding community & recreate original ecosystem of the region. BCCL is the 1st company in the coal mining industry, rather the mining industry which has prepared a Road map for ecological restoration through Forest Research Institute (FRI), Dehradun and constituted a dedicated team for successful implementation. A plan for ecological restoration of about 226 ha mined out degraded land in 5 years is drawn up. Ecological restoration has been done over 69 Ha of mined out land/OB dumps during 2011-2013 and further 51.69 Ha is taken up in 2015. The ecological restoration is to establish a three-tier vegetation comprising of native species grasses as lower tier, shrubs and bushes as middle tier and trees as upper tier with an objective to establish biodiversity and food chain; to improve the local climate regime and socio-economic condition. Removal of invasive weeds and addition of biomass to the degraded land creates an opportunity for the native species to germinate and establish biodiversity.
BCCL: Ecological Restoration