Assessing the impacts of gold mining on vegetation and soil degradation using multi-temporal remote sensing in Kintinian, Siguiri prefecture, Guinea

Gold mining, while economically significant, has increasingly driven environmental degradation in many parts of West Africa, including Kintinian in the Siguiri Prefecture of the Republic of Guinea. This study evaluated the extent and environmental impacts of gold mining on soil and vegetation dynamics between 1990 and 2016, with an emphasis on landscape transformation and ecological degradation. The study integrated field observations and ground-truthing with multi-temporal satellite imagery (Landsat 1990, 2000, 2010, and 2016; and Sentinel-1) within the Geographical Pathways to Environmental Sustainability (GPES) framework. Geographic Information Systems (GIS) were employed for change detection analysis, while the Soil-Adjusted Vegetation Index (SAVI) quantified vegetation dynamics and Analytical Hierarchical Principles (AHP) weighed the vulnerability degradation threshold. Findings reveal substantial land-use dynamics associated with intensified mining activities. Agricultural land declined by 13%, while forest cover decreased by 23% over the study period. Vegetation condition deteriorated as SAVI values declined from 0.928 (1990) to 0.602 (2016), indicating reduced vegetative vigor and increasing soil exposure. Soil vulnerability was weighted using Land Use Land Cover (10%), Iron Oxide (35%), Enhanced Built-up and Bare Soil (15%), Ground Soil Index (15%), and Land Surface Temperature (25%), demonstrating significant degradation found at the abandoned industrial mining sites that were reconverted for artisanal mining purposes. The study concluded that gold mining has significantly accelerated landscape transformation, vegetation loss, and soil exposure, suggesting sustainable mining practices and targeted land restoration strategies in the mining-affected regions.