Abstract: Inner Mongolia grazing areas are rich in mineral resources, but the ecological environment is sensitive and fragile. The national strategy of "energy security" necessitates large-scale development and utilization of coal resources, but at the same time the strategy of“ecological security”demands ecological and environmental protection, causing the conflict between development and protection in the areas. Resolving this conflict is of practical importance and profound significance for the mineral resource development and environment protection in the ecologically sensitive areas of western China. This paper argues that the coal-rich and ecologically sensitive areas need to be analyzed from the perspective of spatial balance, and a model of development is chosen accordingly. The thought process for choosing a model of development should be: First, select a typical area of coal resource development, analyze the spatially coupling relationship between the developmental areas and ecological areas, reveal the spatial imbalance by comparing the spatial coupling types, and explore the reasons for the spatial imbalance. Second, build index system and structural matrix, and categorize the supply capacity of the areas. Finally, taking together the reasons for spatial imbalance, categorization of the areas’supply capacities, and demands for resource development and ecological protection, propose a model of spatial balance and necessary countermeasures for the regional development.

Key words: development models of mineral resource, grazing areas, Inner Mongolia, spatial balance