Abstract
Enhancing the level of water use and alleviating the constraints of water shortage on economic and social development are powerful supports to realize the harmonious balance of water and economic society. In this study, the data envelopment analysis (DEA) window analysis method is applied to the study of water use level, and the SBM-DEA model (slack based measure, SBM) is combined to explore the spatial and temporal evolution characteristics of composite water use index (CWUI) in nine provinces from 2012 to 2018. The Malmquist index model is used to decompose the intrinsic causes of total factor productivity (TFP) changes, and the spatial matching degree calculation method is applied to study the matching degree between CWUI and economic and social development levels (E-SDL). The results showed that: (1) the overall trend of CWUI in the nine provinces from 2012 to 2018 was increasing, with significant spatial variability in water use levels; (2) the improvement of TFP of water in the nine provinces was mainly driven by technological change (TC), and the main factor limiting the improvement of TFP of water was technical efficiency change (EC); (3) E-SDL of the nine provinces showed an increasing trend, with the spatial distribution characteristics of decreasing E-SDL of the downstream, midstream and upstream provinces in sequence; (4) the degree of matching between CWUI and E-SDL shows strong regional differences, with different types of matching.
Highlights
UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization) defines the water resource as a source of water of a certain quality and quantity that is available and potentially available to meet the utilization needs of a site in the long term [1]
It is internationally recognized that an important part of achieving Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) is to conduct a comprehensive and in-depth exploration of water security [5], water and soil resource use efficiency [6,7,8], and sustainable energy use [9] in order to break the excessive dependence on energy resources for economic and social development
This study aims to achieve the following objectives: (1) apply the slack variable-based efficiency measurement model (SBM)-data envelopment analysis (DEA) model combined with WindowDEA model to the study of water use level; (2) conduct dynamic evaluation of water use level in nine provinces with consideration of relaxation improvement; (3) clarify the deepseated reasons for the changes in total factor productivity of water in the nine provinces; (4) analyze the matching characteristics between the level of water utilization and the level of economic and social development in the nine provinces under different time scales
Summary
UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization) defines the water resource as a source of water of a certain quality and quantity that is available and potentially available to meet the utilization needs of a site in the long term [1]. Water resources are the basic support for economic and social development, as well as a necessary guarantee for the construction of ecological civilization [2]. Development Summit in 2015 released the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, which identifies 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) covering economic, social, resource, and ecological dimensions [4]. It is internationally recognized that an important part of achieving SDGs is to conduct a comprehensive and in-depth exploration of water security [5], water and soil resource use efficiency [6,7,8], and sustainable energy use [9] in order to break the excessive dependence on energy resources for economic and social development.
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