Rehabilitation is the process of clearing land for economic or conservation purposes. This process usually involves revegetation. The main purpose of restoration is to return the land to a self-sustaining ecosystem or prepare it for human use, i.e. crops, grazing and plantations. Rehabilitation should occur at a significantly higher rate than natural succession. For successful rehabilitation several principles are implemented. These principles include the need to prevent disasters and anticipate problems before they occur; if this is taken into account, rehabilitation will be less expensive and hassle-free. When rehabilitating a site, all components that make up the ecosystem must be examined individually. They include soil, climate, vegetation, weather and animals. These components must interact at certain speeds for the desired effect to be achieved and therefore may need to be modified. There are other rehabilitation principles that will be discussed in more detail. There are many methods and strategies involved in rehabilitation that are specific to a site. In this case the clearance of surface mines and agricultural land will be examined. A step by step illustration of the processes involved will be covered. When restoring mined land, it is important to first prepare a plan before the mining takes place. Research and obtain data on the floral and faunal elements of the ecosystem by conducting investigations on the species present in the upper, middle and lower parts. If the goal is to restore the territory to its original ecological balance and conserve the species present, then further studies should be conducted on the ecology of native species, that is, on the biology of the seeds of all species. Propagation techniques and the order of reestablishment of species should be studied. During restoration work on bauxite mines in the south-west of Western Australia, special research was conducted on the germination requirements of sown seeds. The aim in this case was to re-establish a self-sustaining forest, which maintains water, timber and all the valuable qualities of the forest. The temporal component was carefully considered when removing topsoil in summer to ensure maximum seed reserve, achieved when the forest was cleared after planting. Hand sowing was done immediately after ripping to ensure that the seeds and other propagules were well established before germination. When conducting mining operations it is generally desirable for restoration work to occur at the same rate as mining occurs. The soil component in this case needs to be removed in layers (topsoil and cover layer) and accumulate stocks during the extraction process. The soil is very important because it contains most of the seeds, propagules and microorganisms necessary for