Old exploitation front of Canteras de Santullán that is intended to be integrated into the landscape to avoid the visual impact caused by the creation of banks and berms.

The opening of the fronts of open-pit mining operations causes serious alterations in the environment that must be corrected. In the case of quarries, the difference in color of the exploitation fronts in relation to that of the surrounding natural outcrops gives rise to a significant impact that is visible at great distances. In general, the morphological characteristics and the particular aspects of mountain quarries (type of slope, vertical slopes, distribution in banks, etc.) make it difficult to use traditional revegetation techniques that are commonly used to mask visual impacts in mines and quarries in less rugged terrain.

More and more experts consider that restoration procedures based on the evolution of natural systems and their self-regeneration capacity should be favored.

In order to propose actions aimed at correcting the visual impact associated with the chromatic contrast between the quarry fronts and the outcrops of the massif, a detailed review of techniques and cases applied in mining operations has been carried out to evaluate their possible application in the case of mining. Santullan quarry.