Soil Bioengineering as a tool for the redevelopment of disused quarries with the aim of improving environmental protection

Quarrying activity is a key component of the Gross Domestic Product of industrialized economies and is closely related to several industrial sectors. However, the cessation of industrial production creates a need for redevelopment of the altered areas in order to counteract both irreversible environmental damage and visual changes affecting the natural landscape. The effects of soil bioengineering techniques on the redevelopment of disused quarries and their effectiveness in enhancing erosion control and slope stabilization are analyzed, showing on the one hand their variability in association with parameters such as latitude, climate, and so on, and on the other hand their positive influence on the environment. The purpose of this study is to investigate the current state of soil bioengineering strategies, focusing on how their development could be affected by geographical conditions. For this reason, the current state of the art has been examined in two different European contexts. Austria, in the central European region, and then Spain, in the Euro-Mediterranean Region, have been taken into consideration. Some indicators have also been introduced in order to compare the usefulness of soil bioengineering techniques in these regions with the current situation in Italy. In light of the above, the valuable impact of soil bioengineering on the environment has been highlighted, and conclusive recommendations include the integration of soil bioengineering techniques with projects for the redevelopment of altered and degraded areas .