Cultural relics and historical sites serve as carriers of cultural, historical, and artistic information. However, any damage incurred by these cultural relics can result in the loss of information, consequently impacting sustainable conservation and revitalization of the cultural heritage. Han Dynasty stone reliefs are a representative carrier of art and history during the Han Dynasty, an early stage of Chinese history. Due to the influence of materials, carving techniques, and protective measures, the conservation and revitalization of Han Dynasty stone reliefs have been significantly restricted. In this study, a systematic investigation was carried out to study the current situation and existing problems related to the protection of Han Dynasty stone reliefs. Additionally, a case study was conducted using the Wuling Ancestral Hall (Wuliang Shrine) as an example, to explore the integration of 3D digital technology as a new sustainable approach. The results show that natural weathering and conventional techniques have caused irreversible information loss. Thus, adopting a three-dimensional digital perspective is crucial when considering the information preservation and revitalization of Han Dynasty stone reliefs. To achieve this, 3D digital models of representative stone reliefs, tomb chambers, and other sculptures from the Wuliang Ancestral Hall were established. These models provide new paths for accurately recording 3D information and better utilizing cultural heritage. Faced with the challenge of preserving historical heritage and its associated information, a workflow including 3D scanning, data collection and processing, 3D modeling, visualization, and information utilization is proposed. This approach offers new approaches for sustainable conservation and revitalization of Han Dynasty stone reliefs.

Open-pit mining is one of the main exploiting methods for solid mineral resources. After more than 100 years of high-intensity development, there are a large number of abandoned open-pit mines and related mining relics in the world. The reconstruction of Pumped Hydraulic Energy Storage systems (PHES) from abandoned open-pit mines is an effective utilization mode of the abandoned underground space in recent years. The project planning of PHES should consider not only the technical and economic feasibility of PHES power station but also a series of problems, such as comprehensive utilization of mine dump, slope treatment, industrial heritage and cultural inheritance, ecological environment restoration of mining area, and transformation and matching of nearby resource-exhausted cities. This constitutes a complex planning problem of pumped storage in abandoned open-pit mines. This paper takes Fushun open-pit mine, the second largest open-pit mine in the world, as the analysis object and abstracts a variety of application modes of pumped storage in abandoned open-pit mines with the model research method. On this basis, the modes abstracted such as the single-pit oil–water co-storage mode, single-pit gravity dam reinforcement mode, multi-pit linkage energy storage mode, and multi-pit and dump linkage energy storage mode are all carefully studied in this paper. A series of supporting integrated programs are proposed for each mode with regard to ecological restoration, multi-energy complementary, cultural tourism governance, etc. In addition, based on the PHES with abandoned open-pit mine, this paper also explores the sustainable development of resource-exhausted cities and the transmission of their core industries.

Since the 1980s, China has experienced an unprecedentedly rapid urbanization process, during which the historical environment of many cities has been damaged to some extent. Accordingly, the fragmented historical environment poses great challenges to the protection of the city’s overall historical form and inheritance of cultural context. The interactive relationship between man and nature formed in the process of urban evolution and the form of life supported by it constitute the implicit structure of historical environment. However, as a means by which historical culture influences urban construction, the implicit structure of historical environment has been easily neglected in previous studies. Taking Xuzhou as a case study, this paper studies how the concept of “the Harmony Between Man and Nature” influences the formation of urban historical environment structure. The research methods employed are literature analysis, field investigation, mapping analysis, classified statistical analysis, and schema analysis. From the three dimensions of natural landscape, underground space, and age-old historical buildings, this paper reveals the form and characteristics of implicit structure of historical environment formed in the interaction between urban construction and natural environment. The results show that the natural landscapes of Xuzhou serve as the foundation and core characteristics of the formation of Xuzhou’s historical environment; underground space and age-old historical architecture can trace the long history of city development and reflect the overlapping spatial marks of different ages. Based on the characteristics of Xuzhou’s implicit structure of historical environment, the paper explores the possibility of guiding urban renewal based on such aspects as form control, resource integration, and multi-cultural display. Hopefully, this study is of some help to achieve the balance between and fusion of modern construction and historical inheritance in urban renewal.

The eastern region of the Huang-Huai area is vital for China’s coal production, with high water table mining causing significant surface subsidence and the formation of interconnected coal mining subsidence wetlands. Restoring these wetlands is crucial for biodiversity, environmental quality, and sustainable development. Aquatic vegetation plays a crucial role in wetland ecosystems, underscoring its importance in restoration efforts. Understanding and managing water level fluctuations is essential due to their impact on vegetation. This study examines the Qianshiliying coal mining subsidence wetland in the Yanzhou Mining Area, China, with the goal of devising a water level regulation plan based on the minimum ecological water level to improve the growth and recovery of aquatic vegetation. The research delves into landscape ecological restoration techniques for aquatic vegetation in coal mining subsidence wetlands in the eastern Huang-Huai region, emphasizing the importance of water level management. The results reveal that the minimum ecological water level in the Qianshiliying coal mining subsidence wetland is 32.50 m, and an area of 78.09 hectares is suitable for the reconstruction of aquatic vegetation. This paper utilizes lake morphology, minimum biological space, and water level demand methods for aquatic plants in the landscape to promote restoration of coal mining subsidence wetlands. A notable strength of this approach is its ability to quantitatively predict the survival range and area of aquatic vegetation in these wetlands, enabling a more scientifically informed restoration of ecological balance and promoting landscape ecological restoration in the eastern Huang-Huai region.

Building Information Modeling (BIM), as an auxiliary design platform, is increasingly adopted in construction projects. However, it is not widely applied in the collaborative design of zero energy buildings (ZEBs), due to the cross-discipline and complex features of ZEB projects and lack of research on the procedure and method of collaborative design in this field. This paper introduces a BIM-based collaborative design method for ZEBs. From the perspective of the technical requirements of ZEBs, the study elaborates the application of a BIM-based collaborative design method among specialists from different disciplines in passive design, renewable energy utilization and active design. The feasibility of this method is verified by the actual design and construction of the T&A House in Solar Decathlon China (SDC) competition. The research results show that the BIM-based collaborative design method can facilitate the completion of a construction project and achieve the expected goal of zero energy consumption in ZEBs.

Coal mining activities, while promoting urban development, also lead to significant ecological and environmental issues that directly impact regional habitat quality and perception levels. The effective assessment of habitat services and zoning optimization can facilitate ecological restoration in coal mining subsidence areas and enhance public awareness of the ecological service value of habitats. Taking the Longdai River Basin in Huaibei City as a case study, this research constructs a “habitat quality–habitat perception” assessment framework from a social–ecological coupling perspective, integrating the InVEST and SolVES models for a comprehensive evaluation. The coupling coordination degree model is used to analyze the relationship between habitat quality and perception, allowing for the zoning of habitat services. The results indicate that the average habitat quality in the study area is 0.373, reflecting an overall low level. Its spatial distribution exhibits a trend of “higher in the central–southern and northwestern regions and lower in the southwestern and northeastern regions”. Habitat perception mainly presents a “multi-patch” spatial pattern. The coupling degree C between habitat quality and habitat perception is 0.676, while the coupling coordination degree D is only 0.377, indicating a state of mild imbalance in the coupling coordination development. Moreover, disordered units account for as much as 69.22%. Based on the matching and coupling coordination between habitat quality and perception, the study area can be classified into four main categories and eight smaller habitat service zones. Considering the differences in urban–rural gradient spaces, optimization strategies for habitat services based on social–ecological coupling are proposed.