Spontaneous combustion phenomenon of coal gangue as an associated product of coal is frequent in the process of long-termstockpiling, which directly or indirectly produces ecological pollution, water pollution, geological disasters and many other problems, resulting in huge economic losses and human casualties. Coal gangue is a complex physical and chemical reaction process that is influencedby many factors, including its own properties, self ignition conditions, and external environment, from the initial stage of accumulation tothe combustion state. In order to improve the prevention and control of spontaneous combustion of gangue in mining areas, the researchstatus of the spontaneous combustion theory of coal gangue was analyzed. The research progress of scholars at home and abroad onthe mechanism of spontaneous combustion of coal gangue and governance methods at this stage was systematically summarized. Themain key influencing factors and process mechanisms that trigger spontaneous combustion were presented focusing on three necessary factors affecting the spontaneous combustion of gangue, combustibles, oxygen, and temperature. A more comprehensive introduction was given to the main methods of prevention and control of spontaneous combustion in existing gangue mountains. The advantages and disadvantages of self ignition fire extinguishing methods of various conventional coal gangue and treatment technologies were compared and analyzed.The limitations of the effectiveness of conventional techniques for treatment were pointed out. The land remediation and ecological restoration are disposed of in response to coal gangue replacing sand and stone materials for backfilling areas such as open pits and coal miningsubsidence areas. It is proposed to identify the control targets for spontaneous combustion management in the prevention and treatmentprocess, enhancement of specific properties of fire protection materials, intelligent equipment to improve the accuracy of identification offine monitoring, and the use of a variety of monitoring and early warning technology synergistic spontaneous combustion preventionand control materials. The future development of coal gangue spontaneous combustion prevention and control technology, the research direction of mining fireproofing materials were proposed, providing reference and theoretical support for the subsequent research onthe mechanism of spontaneous combustion of coal gangue and the application of spontaneous combustion control engineering.