Soil protection

Ingulets GOK has completed a project to biologically reclaim an 11-hectare mining site. The project included planting new trees, bushes and perennial grasses so that their root systems would protect the fertile new topsoil from wind and rain erosion.

Ingulets GOK has transformed the Vizyrka quarry, which was mined until 1978, into a nature reserve. The project entailed reclaiming the 121-hectare site, restoring the landscape, and introducing rare flora and fauna. The new nature preserve is now more biodiverse than many natural local landscapes.

The nature reserve’s wildlife includes 103 native species, some of which are listed as threatened in Ukraine and Europe. In 2008, Ingulets GOK received a state science and technology prize for its work on the Vizyrka nature reserve project.