Environmental Impact Assessment of Open Cast Mining Activity in Asansol-Durgapur-Development Authority: A Geospatial Review

Abstract

In recent times rapid urban growth has resulted into fast transformation of LULC patterns, which in turn significantly affects the surface temperature and air quality. This study has been executed in Asansol Durgapur Development Authority (ADDA) region in West Bengal, analyzing the impact of Open Cast Mines on the environmental issues, especially the increasing Land Surface Temperature (LST) and air-suspended particles causing air pollution Apart from monitoring of the spatial extension of open cast mines (1999–2022) in ADDA region this study also examine the Aerosol Optical Depth (AOD) and Land Surface Temperature (LST) by using Dark Target (DT) and Deep Blue (DB) algorithms and single channel algorithm respectively. The results of LST and land use categories are validated with the field information. Outcome of the research reveals a significant positive correlation between the open cast mines and the spatial distribution of LST (R² = 0.87) and AOD (R² = 0.96) respectively. Positive relationship between PM₁₀ and AOD for winter season is also noticed. Contribution of industries on PM₁₀ is also considerable as seen with a decreased level during COVID-19 lockdown period which further suggests that the opencast mining activity acts as a major contributor to the prevalence of the respiratory diseases in the study area.