Dubbed one of the top 10 gold mine complexes in the country, the Zaozigou gold mining area, located in Hezuo city, Gannan Tibetan autonomous prefecture in Northwest China's Gansu province, has seen its annual gold production more than double compared with 13 years ago.

"This great change is thanks to the gold mining area being included in the national-level green mining projects at the end of 2012," said Xia Zifeng, deputy general manager of the area's operating company.

Concerted efforts have been made to manage collapsed areas, slag yards and tailings ponds to achieve full coverage of soil, grass and trees.

"The land reclamation and greening alone have cost 130 million yuan ($18.12 million)," Xia said. By 2020, 90 percent of the green area in the gold mining area had been restored to green.

The Zaozigou gold mining area has taken on a green, tranquil look. [Photo/gansudaily.com.cn]

In 2021, major shareholders of the gold mining area launched an initiative to transform the terrain into a place replete with verdant pastures, in a bid to enhance the achievements of its green mine construction.

By the end of 2024, the gold mining area had planted 20,115 spruce trees and 260,000 sea buckthorn trees over the past 13 years, covering an area of nearly 136,000 square meters for management and greening.

Energy conservation and emissions reduction are acknowledged as being essential things for building green mines. Responding to that, the operating company has eliminated outdated motors and adopted permanent magnet rare earth motors, which save 24.8 percent of electricity in one hour compared with second-level energy-efficient motors, saving 1.8 million kilowatt hours annually.