Over the past few decades, China has encountered a pronounced escalation in mining operations, precipitating many environmental and ecological complexities. These challenges have catalyzed endeavors aimed at the rehabilitation of mining sites. Despite the nation's rapid industrial advancement, environmental deterioration, characterized by soil erosion, land subsidence, and water contamination, remains pervasive. Restoration endeavors in mining regions are aimed at mitigating environmental harm, restoring landscapes, and fostering sustainable land usage. In this review, we investigate the multifaceted strategies employed by China to mitigate environmental damage, restore landscapes, and foster sustainable land utilization in mining regions. Government policies, regulations, and incentive programs underscore a commitment to international environmental objectives through restoration initiatives. The discussion encompasses afforestation, wetland restoration, and water treatment techniques employed in China, which have led to ecosystem revitalization, improved air and water quality, and socio-economic benefits for communities. Nonetheless, restoring mining areas in China presents complex challenges, stemming from the scale of restoration required and various socio-economic factors. Continued investment, collaboration, and perseverance are essential for the success of these restoration endeavors. China's initiatives in the restoration of mining areas underscore its dedication to environmental sustainability, shedding light on the complex nature of such endeavors. Consequently, we stress the significance of embracing responsible mining practices and highlight the global relevance of China's experiences in land reclamation and ecological rehabilitation.

The China Desertification Ecological Restoration Project has effectively curbed the problem of soil desertification in Northwest China, and improved the ecological environment and landscape pattern of the Dunhuang Desertification Control Area. As the birthplace of Dunhuang culture, the ecological landscape of Yueyaquan Village shows strong sensitivity to disturbances, and in order to improve the ecological landscape resilience, an ecological landscape resilience evaluation system for desertification control villages was constructed from three levels: ecosystem, engineering system, and cultural traditions, and the results show that: (1) villages in the context of desertification control are difficult to resist the damages brought by natural disasters, and therefore the ability to resist determines the key factor of the ecological landscape resilience of villages. resilience level. (2) Through the empirical analysis of the ecological landscape system, engineering system and cultural system of Yueyaquan Village, it is found that the engineering system of the village has high resilience, the ecosystem resilience is average, and the resilience of the cultural system is weak, which reduces ecosystem resilience. The research results can guide subsequent improvement strategies for ecological landscape construction and provide new thoughts and ideas for rural environmental renovation and resilience enhancement.

The Three-River Headwater Region (TRHR) is the source of the Yangtze River, Yellow River, and Lancang River, which is significant to fresh water resources in China and Asia. The ecosystem in the TRHR has undergone great changes in recent decades owing to dramatic climate change and tremendous human pressure. This study focused on assessing the ecosystem change in the TRHR from 2005 to 2012, which was indicated by ecosystem pattern, quality, and service. Based on the actual observation records and widely used biophysical models including Revised Universal Soil Loss Equation (RUSLE), Revised Wind Erosion Equation (RWSQ), and Carnegie-Ames-Stanford Approach (CASA) models, this study assessed the ecosystem services including soil conservation, water conservation, carbon sequestration, and species conservation. The climate variability and ecological rehabilitation promoted ecological restoration, which was indicated by vegetation cover, productivity (carbon sequestration), streamflow, and habitat area increase. However, the increasing precipitation intensified water erosion by enhancing rainfall erosivity, and increasing temperature induced glacier melting and permafrost degradation, which posed a threat to the sustainable development of regional environment. The ecosystem change is the combined result of ecological rehabilitation and climate variability, the effectiveness of ecological conservation efforts is uneven, indicated by coexistence of restoration and degradation, and is likely a temporary improvement rather than fundamental change. The experience of ecological rehabilitation and ecosystem change in the TRHR exemplified the ecological conservation should take climate variability into account, and facilitate synergies on multiple ecosystem services in order to maximize human well-being and preserve its natural ecosystems. (C) 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.