Utility Value Criteria in Selection of Species for Sustainable Reclamation of Silica Mining Areas

Silica sand mining in Shankargarh, Prayagraj, India area has led to extensive ecological destruction, environmental degradation and erosion of traditional values in the society. Therefore, an integrated organic and socioeconomic approach is urgently required to bioreclaim degraded mine sites.The most common problems linked with degraded land rehabilitation failures are frequently associated with improper selection of plantation species. Subsistence utility preferences of local people are major acclaimed and convincing reasons in the selection of valuable tree species for Bioreclamation. Socioeconomic Survey were carried out in the nearby villages of Silica mining area to study the existing resources of the area, social structure of the community, dependence on forest and species preferred by the local people. Consequently, a Utility Value Index (UVI) framework was conceptualized, designed and subsequently developed to identify species preferred by the local people and highly valued for supporting their livelihood.