Has the level of green development in the northwestern provinces of China truly improved? A case study of Shaanxi

Abstract

Evaluating the actual progress in the green development of China’s northwestern provinces can play a role in encouraging local governments to promote the reform of the ecological civilization system. By improving the “green development indicator system” formulated by the National Development and Reform Commission of China, the green development index (GDI) of Shaanxi Province from 2007 to 2016 was measured and compared with Shaanxi’s ecological footprint (EF) and related indicators. The results showed that (1) the GDI in Shaanxi Province increased from 42.774 in 2007 to 64.971 in 2016, while during the same period, the per capita EF increased from 1.994 ha/cap to 2.719 ha/cap, the ecological deficit increased from 0.782 ha/cap to 1.500 ha/cap, and the ecological pressure index increased from 1.645 to 2.176. These results indicate that the green development of Shaanxi Province is still based on excessive ecological occupation. (2) A comparison between GDI and EF shows that the development of Shaanxi Province has changed from “low GDI, low EF” to “low GDI, high EF” to “high GDI, high EF”. Thus, this study proposes countermeasures to change this trend, such as adjusting the energy structure, reducing carbon emissions, improving environmental capacity, and rigorous managing national land space.