Quantitative assessment of resources and environmental carrying capacity in the northwest temperate continental climate ecotope of China

Abstract

Quantitative assessment of resources and environmental carrying capacity (RECC) is a critical requirement of regional economic development. This paper proposes a new indicator assessment system for RECC that uses the ecological and environmental stress index model (ESI) and state-space method for analysis. A quantitative analysis of the northwest temperate continental climate ecotope of China was performed through a comprehensive evaluation of the present ecological carrying capacity (ECC), resources exploitation and pollution discharge conditions. Regional statistical data from 2010 were used to analyze the RECC distribution trend and explore the relationship between the ECC and socioeconomic pressure. Results indicated that the smallest ECC index was 0.0810, the ecological environment of the western and central parts of this region was particularly fragile. The highest socioeconomic pressure index was 0.0960, reflecting greater development pressure in the central areas. The approximate decoupling index (ADI) indicated that the influence of the ecosystem on RECC was small, within “relative decoupling”. RECC and socioeconomic pressure were within “absolute hook”, denoting RECC deteriorating faster than the economy grew. Development pressure from net primary productivity, population density, the energy consumption index and the water use index was significant. However, the study area is still developing, and different development strategies must be devised for different regions.