Changes in the Circulation of Matter in Landlocked Basins

Abstract

The most significant change in the circulation of matter in the Upper Silesian Coal Basin as a consequence of mining activity is the creation of numerous landlocked basins. Most of them are subsidence troughs; some result from the damming of a valley with a waste heap or fencing it off with mine tailing embankments with a flood-preventing function. A total of 233 landlocked basins were identified, with a total area of 122 km2. These forms are found mainly in the north-central part of the USCB, especially in the Siemianowice Upland, which was partially excluded from fluvial drainage. The essence of the circulation of matter in landlocked basins is its accumulation at the bottom of the forms. This process involves mineral matter from slopewashing blurring the edges of water reservoirs, wet and dry deposition from the atmosphere, and decomposed organic matter. The creation of landlocked basins has changed the conditions of the circulation of matter, especially in the area of the Vistula–Oder watershed, which is built of Triassic rocks with a cover of Quaternary clay deposits.