Foreword
The Twentieth century has
witnessed an unprecedented expansion of human activities in the area of industry,
agriculture and dwellings. As a direct consequence of these activities,- carried
on and with the earth, large tracts of land has undergone a characteristic
change `from land belonging to natural ecosystems' to `land in managed (mismanaged!)
ecosystems'. For example, as of today, nearly one-third of the countries limited
land area requires to be considerably ameliorated to restore their natural
capabilities. Not withstanding the fact that mining areas occupy an insignificantly
small share of the country's total land area, land use planning in mining
areas assume special importance because an improper or unplanned use of mined
land causes environmental stress on a very large area beyond the mine boundaries.
Against this background, CME has, ever since its launching, put significant
emphasis on land use planning in mining areas. Dr. (Mrs) Rekha Ghosh has been
spear heading this front. This tome is an attempt,albeit in a some what summarized
format, to put within the bound of two covers her expertise in the area.
This monograph is an extremely valuable addition to the rather scanty literature
available in land use planning of mining areas. The author has presented the
principles of the varied and complicated systems of mining area land use planning
in a style which is at once lucid and precise. Some of the details have never
before been covered by the technical literature.
I am sure readers will find this monograph to be an immensely useful reference
for preplanning of land uses for proposed or impending mining projects.
Gurdeep Singh