Dynamic coupling of habitat quality and landscape ecological risk for sustainable ecosystem management in open-pit...

Open-pit mining disrupts landscape structure and ecological functions, directly affecting habitat quality (HQ) and landscape ecological risk (LER). While balancing these factors is critical for sustainable mining management, integrated approaches remain limited. To address this gap, we propose a two-dimensional framework that integrates habitat quality and landscape ecological risk, offering a more detailed, tree-level assessment compared to conventional land-use-based approaches. The results indicate that (1) low/lower-quality habitats persistently exceeded 69% across mining stages, with degradation dominating initial/developmental phases (1990-2010) and improvement emerging in the stable phase (2010-2020). (2) High LER areas correlated with forest/grassland fragmentation, whereas low LER zones linked to construction/bare land continuity. Notably, forest and farmland expansion in stable stages increased LER, requiring targeted land-use strategies to mitigate risks. (3) The key transitions in ecosystem coordination zones included the conversion of bare land and construction land to forestland_UP-RP (Ulmus pumila-Robinia pseudoacacia, UP-RP), forestland_PT (Pinus tabuliformis, PT), and grassland. Although transitions (e.g., construction land to UP-RP, bare land to PT) improved HQ, they still posed landscape ecological risks. These findings strengthen land-use planning's scientific basis and provide actionable ecological governance insights for mining areas, fragile cities, and resource-based regions, while their enhanced detail improves assessment accuracy and enables precise restoration strategies.