Abstract
Improving ecological well-being performance (EWP) is the essential requirement of green transformation development and ecological civilization construction. With the help of a network DEA model and threshold panel regression model, this study evaluated urban ecological well-being performance to explore the evolution process, impact, and optimization path of urban ecological well-being performance in the Yangtze River Delta from 2001 to 2017. The findings are as follows: (1) The ecological well-being performance of all cities in the region had been steadily improving since 2001, most cities had realized the transformation from a low performance level to a higher performance level, and there was an obvious spatial mismatch between urban economic development level and ecological well-being performance. (2) A regional urban ecological well-being performance development mode was constantly optimized, sustainable urban development ability was improved, and the number of high-high (HH) mode cities was gradually increasing while the number of low-low (LL) mode cities was gradually decreasing. (3) Under the influence of threshold variables of population density, industrialization level, and environmental regulation, the impact of urbanization on ecological well-being performance had different threshold characteristics. Economic growth, industrialization, and government macro-control had significantly negative restraining effects, while consumption level, industrial structure upgrading, energy efficiency, and technological innovation had significantly positive driving effects.
Highlights
To make green contributions for the construction of a clean and beautiful world, it is necessary to transform conventional economic growth modes into green development modes, cultivate innovative demonstration areas for sustainable development, and realize the unification of ecological economic and social benefits
The ecological well-being performance (EWP) value was divided into five levels to visualize: higher perforperformance (EWP > 0.8), high performance (0.6 < EWP ≤ 0.8), medium performance mance ( EWP > 0.8 ), high performance ( 0.6 < EWP ≤ 0.8 ), medium performance (
The measure is well suited for the Yangtze River Delta, an economically developed region facing serious problems, such as resource shortages, environmental pollution, and severe ecological destruction, and has a strong policy guiding significance to reduce the consumption of natural resources and improve the quality of life and happiness of urban residents
Summary
Improving ecological well-being performance (EWP) is the essential requirement of green transformation development and ecological civilization construction. (1) The ecological well-being performance of all cities in the region had been steadily improving since 2001, most cities had realized the transformation from a low performance level to a higher performance level, and there was an obvious spatial mismatch between urban economic development level and ecological well-being performance. (2) A regional urban ecological well-being performance development mode was constantly optimized, sustainable urban development ability was improved, and the number of high-high (HH) mode cities was gradually increasing while the number of lowlow (LL) mode cities was gradually decreasing. To make green contributions for the construction of a clean and beautiful world, it is necessary to transform conventional economic growth modes into green development modes, cultivate innovative demonstration areas for sustainable development, and realize the unification of ecological economic and social benefits.
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