Assessment of the impacts of mining activities on vegetation cover and restoration efforts using Geographic Information System (GIS) in the Gwadabawa sand mining site, Sokoto State, Nigeria

Globally, mining is recognized as an inherently economically important process, regrettably, it promotes landscape destruction through deforestation, erosion, pollution, and disruption of soil properties. Addressing these impacts is critical to ensuring environmental health and resilience. This study assesses the impacts of mining activities on vegetation cover and restoration efforts in the Gwadabawa mining sites, Sokoto State, Nigeria. A field survey was conducted to assess the vegetation, the extent of degradation due to mining operations, and the restoration efforts in the area. Landsat images (1995–2020) analyzed using QGIS version 3.18 were used to assess the changes in vegetation for 30 years. Results indicate a significant increase in mining areas (up to 58.23 ha in 2020), a drastic reduction in vegetation cover (from 56.25 ha to 2.15 ha), and an increase in bare soil (from 25.75 ha to 32.1 ha). The presence of natural regenerations and young tree species such as Combretum nigricans, Piliostigma reticulatum, Sclerocarya birrea, and Adansonia digitata was evident in the mined-out areas. However, restoration efforts are limited to only arable crop cultivation and fish farming using mining pools as ponds. Given the inadequacy of these measures and the urgent need to combat climate change and land degradation, biological landscape restoration methods are recommended to enhance ecological resilience and biodiversity conservation in the area.