Study of the Sodicity of Phosphate By-Products and Sludge Mixture for Large-Scale Application in Mine Site Reclamation

Morocco has a very long mining tradition, and is threatened by ground salinization. The objective of this study was to evaluate the salinity level in the mixture of phosphate mining by-products and sludge prior to its use to reclaim a mine site or for soil remediation. The experiment was conducted with Italian ryegrass in 4 months under greenhouse. The design was a randomized complete block with 10 treatments and 4 replications. The results revealed that treatments containing phosphogypsum helped to reduce the effect of sodicity on soil. Thus, phosphogypsum associated with sludges can be used as an amendment to reclaim mine soil affected by sodicity.