Characterisation of the flora of the Lam-Lam phosphate extraction site (Senegal)

Phosphate is one of the most abundant and exploited soil resources in Senegal, especially in the Thiès region. Phosphate mining has led to many environmental issues in Senegal, resulting in biodiversity loss and ecosystem degradation without any real restoration attempt. In this context, assessing the plant diversity status of phosphate mining sites is necessary. Hence, this study aimed to characterise the floristic composition and diversity of the Lam-Lam phosphate extraction site in the Thiès region, which will be useful in evaluating thesituation and the eventual restoration plan. The phytosociological method was used to inventory and characterise the flora in the study zones' non-exploited and exploited areas. This study registered 78 species from 65 genera and 25 families. The largest diversity was observed in the non-exploited area, with 54 species from 45 genera and 19 families. Fabaceae and Poaceae were the most important families, and Indigofera the most important genus. The biological spectrum and geographical distribution analysis showed that herophyte and phanerophyte were the most frequent types, where African and Afro-Asian species dominated. Generally, the study area's flora was characterised by site-specific and common species. These results show that phosphate exploitation impacts flora diversity and composition within the mining site.