Abstract
Focusing on the efficient allocation and scientific management of water resources in China’s Yangtze River Economic Belt (YREB), the total and per capita water ecological footprints (WEFs) and water ecological carrying capacities (WECCs) in each province and municipality from 2004 to 2018 were evaluated through an improved water ecological footprint analysis model. Then, the panel data were used to analyze the spatiotemporal variation, and regression discontinuity models were applied to examine the effect of YREB policy on local WEF. Results show that, first, in terms of temporal trend, for the entire YREB, per capita WEFs first increased and then declined with fluctuation, while per capita WECCs fluctuated in a small range, which is further evident in that only Zhejiang had both a low level and a significant downward trend in per capita WEFs. Second, in terms of spatial features, per capita WEFs were lower in the upstream area and higher in the downstream area (except for Zhejiang), and per capita WECCs were roughly higher in the southern area and lower in the northern area. Third, China’s YREB policy had a negative impact on local WEF, which was specifically more significant in developed regions than in develo** regions and more effective with agriculture than with industry. The findings of this study indicate that the YREB can achieve a harmonious situation of economic development and ecological protection, but attention is needed to ensure industrial water savings and policy implementation in backward areas.
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Acknowledgements
This work was funded by National Natural Science Foundation of China (No. 51879103, U19A2047) and Key R&D Program of Science and Technology of Hunan Province in China (No. 2017SK2351).
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CJ was involved in conceptualization, investigation, writing—original draft; YL performed methodology, formal analysis, writing—review and editing; ZL contributed to funding acquisition, project administration, and supervision; RG done methodology; MH done investigation; JW contributed to writing—review and editing.
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**, C., Liu, Y., Li, Z. et al. Ecological consequences of China’s regional development strategy: evidence from water ecological footprint in Yangtze River Economic Belt. Environ Dev Sustain 24, 13732–13747 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10668-021-02008-5
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10668-021-02008-5