SPATIAL DISTRIBUTION AND LANDSCAPE IMPACT ANALYSIS OF QUARRIES IN A
HIGHLY FRAGMENTED ECOSYSTEM
Abstract
Mining activity generates significant changes in the ecosystems in which
it takes place, affecting the atmosphere and the surrounding aquatic and
terrestrial systems, causing the destruction of landscapes, the loss of
vegetation, and altering native environments. As it is an impact
associated with increasing urbanization and population growth, the area
occupied by quarries has increased worldwide. In the province of Buenos
Aires, quarries are often abandoned without any remediation, leading to
further deterioration of the ecosystem. This work aims to analyze
quarrying activity’s spatiotemporal effect on the Pampean grassland in
the Tandilia mountains (Buenos Aires province, Argentina). Based on
Landsat 5, 7, and 8 satellite imagery, from 1996 to the present, and
using QGIS software, we identified the location and extension of
quarries, and we analyzed their evolution through time. Quarries
currently occupy an area of 6428 ha, which was originally part of the
Pampean grassland. The number of open quarries increased by 129%, from
69 in 1996 to 158 in 2022, and the area used for this activity increased
by 172%, with a greater expansion being detected in the last ten years.
These results conclude that this extractive activity represents a major
threat to the Pampean grassland with the consequent loss of biodiversity
and invasion of exotic plants capable of colonizing areas altered by
human activity.