ORIGINAL RESEARCH article
Front. Environ. Sci.
Sec. Soil Processes
This article is part of the Research TopicMonitoring, Early Warning and Mitigation of Natural and Engineered Slopes – Volume VView all 13 articles
Effects of Coal Mining Subsidence on Soil Anti-erodibility in the Loess Mining Area of Northern Shaanxi, Middle Reaches of the Yellow River
Provisionally accepted
- 1Power China Northwest Engineering Corporation limited, Xi'an, China
- 2Xi'an University of Science and Technology, Xi'an, China
- 3Liaocheng University, Liaocheng, China
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A scientific understanding of soil erosion effects in coal mining subsidence areas is essential for promoting green development and ecological restoration in the large coal bases located in the middle reaches of the Yellow River. This study focuses on the shallow soil layer (0–40 cm) of a loess mining-induced subsidence area and typical slopes in northern Shaanxi. By integrating field sampling, laboratory measurements, and model-based calculations, we investigated the impact of mining subsidence on soil anti-erodibility from the perspective of the coupled "slope position × soil depth" effect. The results indicate that: (1) Mining subsidence significantly reduces the content of water-stable aggregates larger than 0.25 mm and decreases the mean weight diameter of soil aggregates on the loess slope, with the content of >0.25 mm water-stable aggregates being the most affected; (2) The adverse effect of mining subsidence on key indicators of shallow soil anti-erodibility weakens progressively from the slope top to the slope toe, with the 0–20 cm soil layer at the slope top exhibiting the greatest sensitivity to subsidence; (3) Following subsidence, the comprehensive soil anti-erodibility index of shallow soil on the slope decreased significantly, indicating markedly enhanced erosion susceptibility. Specifically, the most pronounced reduction—by 97.13%—was observed in the "slope top + 0–20 cm soil layer", which should thus be prioritized as a key area for erosion control on subsided loess slopes. These findings provide a scientific basis for targeted soil erosion management in coal mining subsidence areas of northern Shaanxi within the Yellow River's middle reaches.
Keywords: Coal mining subsidence, Soil anti-erodibility, Loess slope, Influence law, northernShaanxi coal mine area
Received: 29 Oct 2025; Accepted: 28 Nov 2025.
Copyright: © 2025 Li, Song, Ma, Wu, Wu and Sun. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
* Correspondence: Shijie Song
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