Sustainable Development Of Coastal Areas Research Articles

Analysis of local governments’ marine governance efficiency using a spatiotemporal coupling coordination model: a case study of coastal cities in Liaoning Province, China

Coastal areas have the most obvious ocean–land interaction and experience the most frequent human activities. As the development of coastal areas has a high degree of spatiotemporal variability, local governments bear direct responsibility for marine governance, yet accurately evaluating and analyzing local governments’ marine governance efficiency in coastal areas is challenging. This study constructs a spatiotemporal coupling coordination model to comprehensively evaluate local governments’ marine governance efficiency in six coastal cities in Liaoning Province from 2004 to 2019. A complex system was necessary to obtain the development level, discrete degree, and development speed of each subsystem. The construction of the evaluation index system was the foundation, and the construction of the spatiotemporal weight matrix was the key. The results show that overall, the local governments’ marine governance efficiency level is generally increasing, and the agglomeration effect is obvious. The efficiency of each cities’ economic, ecological, and social governance subsystem is in a process of continuous and dynamic change. The coupling and coordination degrees of the six governance systems have continuously improved and the spatial and temporal differences have decreased; each city shows different coupling and coordination degrees in each subsystem. Regarding the factors affecting comprehensive marine management, Liaoning’s coastal areas fail to attract foreign tourists; the discharge and treatment of industrial wastewater restricts ecological governance; and the reduction of fisheries hinders the social governance system’s efficiency. The results contribute to the understanding of costal cities’ marine governance and promote the sustainable development of coastal areas.

Spatial-Temporal Effect of Sea–Land Gradient on Land Use Change in Coastal Zone: A Case Study of Dalian City

Geographically, the coastal zone is a unit where the marine system and the terrestrial system intersect and have the closest relationship with human survival and development. The study of coastal-zone land use change is therefore of great significance in promoting the sustainable development of coastal areas in terms of resources and environment. However, the relationship between urban land use change and distance from the coastline is indeterminate in current research. This paper aims to assess the spatial and temporal characteristics of coastal land use change with the sea–land gradient, as well as to reveal the role of coastal ecosystems. The indices of the dynamic index, net transfer matrix, and aggregation index were measured in different coastal buffer zones quantitatively. A case study of Dalian between 2000 and 2015 indicates that Dalian’s urban construction land is distributed among the coastal zones with a high total and fast growth rate. The land use conversion direction varies significantly between different buffer zones, with [0, 2.5] km tilted mainly towards urban types and [10, Max] km tilted mainly towards rural areas. The aggregation of land use structure in Dalian fluctuated and increased year by year. As the distance from the coastline gets closer, land use is going to get more diverse.

Sustainability Assessment of the Societal Costs of Fishing Activities in a Deliberative Perspective

Assessing the social cost of fisheries is generally seen as a matter of how to monetize the components of fisheries. This paper presents an assessment of the societal cost of fishing activities, seen as a social process that is expected to contribute to the better management of aquatic resources, affecting sustainable development in coastal areas around the world. The originality of this article lies in considering the sustainability assessment from a deliberative perspective. It aims at defining the types of guiding concepts, frameworks, and information sets that might be appropriate for decision support, as we enlarge our scope of concern from fisheries to the ecosystems of eco-regions in the long term. In defining the societal cost of fisheries, through interviews, the objective is, first of all, to identify the social effects (positive and negative) of fishing métiers. By comparing fishing activities in a multi-criteria and multi-actor analysis, this evaluation is intended as a means for the actors to express in different ways (scientific indicators, institutional objectives, etc.) their judgment regarding the sustainability of the fishing profession. This analysis is the basis for defining the methods of monetizing these effects in different eco-regions (West African coastal upwelling and the deltas of Southeast Asia).

Applying a Set of Potential Methods for the Integrated Assessment of the Marine Eco-Environmental Carrying Capacity in Coastal Areas

The accelerated socioeconomic development has placed the coastal ecosystems under stress, which influences the sustainable development of coastal areas. Marine eco-environmental carrying capacity assessment (MECCA) can provide a scientific basis for coordinating coastal socioeconomic development and eco-environmental protection, ensuring a more effective marine ecosystem-based management approach toward sustainability. However, accurate assessment methods are still in the exploratory stage, as there has been a lack of systematic research and applications combining integrated MECCA with a unified method to underpin coastal management processes. In light of this issue, this study applied the marine eco-environmental carrying capacity in coastal waters (MECCCW) conceptual framework to support the establishment of an assessment indicator system for MECCA and used the regularization method and entropy method to determine weights. This study also applied the simplified state space model to comprehensively evaluate and analyze the marine eco-environmental carrying capacity (MECC) of coastal areas. Focusing on the coastal area of Sanya Bay, southern China, as the study area, we assessed the MECC for the period from 2015 to 2020. The state of the MECC was divided into three grades: load capacity, full-load capacity, and overload capacity. The results showed that (1) the MECCA indicator system in Sanya Bay included a total of three criteria and eight assessment indicators and (2) the weights of the environmental carrying capacity (ECC) and human activities (HA) were both relatively higher than that of ecological resilience (ER). The latter result indicates that either ECC or HA could play a more predominant role in the changes of the MECC state in Sanya Bay. The results also indicated that (3) for each criterion, ECC, ER, and HA were at load capacity from 2015 to 2020. In this instance, ECC and HA presented similar change trends in relation to the MECC state of Sanya Bay. Finally, (4) the overall Sanya Bay’s MECC was also at load capacity and weakened, fluctuating between 2015 and 2020. These findings indicate that the coastal area of Sanya Bay is capable of sustainable development, but that there is a need for further eco-environmental improvement. The results of this study can serve as a reference when decisions have to be made about coastal management from an environmental and ecological perspective. Furthermore, this method may provide a feasible approach for integrated MECCA in other coastal areas.

An ecosystem approach to integrated coastal zone management: Case study on the Gresik Regency, East Java

Gresik Regency is one of the industrial development areas in East Java Province due to its strategic location. This region has the opportunity to actively integrate the ecosystem into development planning. Management of integrated coastal areas is widely advocated at all levels of government as a means of delivering sustainable development in coastal areas. This study was conducted to determine the level of impact caused by each activity cumulatively on coastal and marine ecosystems in Gresik Regency. In general, this study is oriented towards collecting data of marine pollution level from various substances and sources, as well as changes over time in the status of the marine environment in Gresik Regency. The results showed that the increase in population growth accompanied by an increase in the amount of waste, as well as an increase in industry, port and agricultural activities in coastal areas of Gresik Regency require special attention in the management of the coastal and marine environment in Gresik Regency. The use of coastal and marine areas of Gresik Regency can lead to loss of biodiversity, as well as decreased stability and resilience of ecosystems in coastal and marine areas. It is necessary to take into account the pressures and impacts due to activities in coastal and marine areas and then propose the most appropriate development solutions within the framework of Integrated Coastal Zone Management in Gresik Regency.

Coastal reclamation mediates heavy metal fractions and ecological risk in saltmarsh sediments of northern Jiangsu Province, China

Coastal reclamation has created enormous extra land for the rapidly growing economy, but it has also caused serious environmental pollution problems and threatened the sustainable development of coastal areas. However, there are few studies focusing on the distribution patterns, geochemical speciation and ecological risks of heavy metals along the land-to-sea belt, as well as the differences between reclamation and non-reclamation. Here, we collected 69 sediment samples from four sediment types along the land-to-sea sampling belts in the reclaimed and non-reclaimed tidal flats of Jiangsu, China. Geochemical speciation and contents of heavy metals were determined to investigate their spatial distributions, ecological risks and effect factors. Results showed that As, Cd, Cr and Ni in the sediments posed considerable or moderate ecological risk according to the Ontario guidelines and sediment quality guidelines (SQGs) of USEPA, but they were lower than the SQGs of China. Higher geoaccumulation index and potential ecological risk index suggested that the sediments were moderately to heavily polluted by Cd and As. Generally, reclaimed sediments exhibited higher metal pollution levels. Additionally, reclaimed areas showed a unimodal pattern of metal content along the direction of land-to-sea, suggesting that Spartina alterniflora could accelerate the deposition and accumulation of metal pollutants caused by reclamation, and ultimately control the transfer of terrigenous metals to marine environment. We found that residual fraction was the dominant geochemical fraction for the metals determined. Reclamation processes have changed the composition of heavy metal fractions, especially Cd, Pb, Zn, and Ni. Approximately 20% of Cd existed in the acid extractable/exchangeable fraction and posed medium ecological risk according to the risk assessment code. The principal component analysis and correlation matrix further indicate that organic matter and particle size of sediment could be the major factors regulating the metal distribution, and Cd and Zn might be anthropogenic sources.

Coastal adaptability to the risk of environmental incidents from the mainland – A case study in the Southeast coastal area

The coastal area has been facing many negative impacts from the development process, containing many risks of environmental incidents from the continent affecting the ecological environment and the livelihoods of millions of coastal residents people. Therefore, how to increase the adaptability of the coastal area, contribute to limiting risks and reduce damage when environmental incidents occur is a trend of interest to scientists. This study was conducted to assess and zone the adaptability of the Southeast coastal region due to the risk of environmental incidents from the mainland, the most dynamic development region in Vietnam, based on a multi-criteria analysis tool with selected criteria weighted fit, combined with GIS methods. The research results have proposed a set of criteria for assessing the adaptability of coastal areas, with five selected criteria: Income, Education, Health, Mangrove Forest, and Environmental Incident Response. Calculation and assessment of adaptability for 27 coastal sub-regions in the Southeast and classified into 04 groups of adaptation classes: Very high, high, medium and low, accounting for 18.52%; 7.41%; 51.85% and 22.22%, respectively, and propose solutions to increase adaptability for sub-regions with low and medium adaptability. In addition, the research results also contribute to supporting relevant research works and decision-makers to ensure sustainable use of resources and protect the environment, contributing to the sustainable development of coastal areas.

Capacity assessment of integrated coastal management for Taiwanese local government

Most of the members of the Competent Authority are from the professions such as fisheries or urban planning, which has limited capacity for integrated coastal management, and are urgent on getting into capacity development. Therefore, this paper assesses Taiwan's local government's integrated coastal management capabilities through the competency assessment framework provided by the United Nations Development Program as for bridging the gap between required capacity and existing capacity. The main findings of the study are: in terms of Institutional arrangements, the scores of "incorporating stakeholders", "budgeting, management and execution", and "making policies and strategies" are lower. For leadership level and knowledge level, each item has a higher score than 3.30, which shows that local government personnel mostly agree with the leaders of integrated coastal management and have certain knowledge; and in terms of accountability, only "whether your organization has the ability to establish a strong vision of a responsible mechanism" has a lower score of 3.03, which shows that local government personnel also agree on the level of accountability. This shows that the current management and maintaining the status quo of the Competent Authority lacks of overall planning for future coastal use. The leaders of the existing coastal management authorities should form a cross-disciplinary team to fully plan for the coast for the future. In terms of training, there should be a coastal management authority to conduct central training in the first place, and subsidies to the local government. Therefore, we are able to gradually implement integrated coastal management. SummaryIn order to promote integrated coastal management and promote the sustainable development of coastal areas, our country announced in February 2015 the implementation of the "Coastal Zone Management Act", the Ministry of Interior Affairs is responsible for the development of the overall coastal management plan, and the local government is responsible for the formulation of the secondary protection plan and the protection plan. However, only a small number of local governments in Taiwan currently have marine affairs specialized units, the rest of the county and city coastal management affairs are mostly promoted by the Urban Development Bureau or the Construction Department. Most of the members of the Competent Authority are from the professions such as fisheries or urban planning, which has limited capacity for integrated coastal management, and are urgent on getting into capacity development. Therefore, the following study assesses Taiwan's local government's integrated coastal management capabilities through the competency assessment framework provided by the United Nations Development Program as for bridging the gap between required capacity and existing capacity. The main findings of the study are: in terms of Institutional arrangements, the scores of "incorporating stakeholders", "budgeting, management and execution", and "making policies and strategies" are lower. For leadership level and knowledge level, each item has a higher score than 3.30, which shows that local government personnel mostly agree with the leaders of integrated coastal management and have certain knowledge; and in terms of accountability, only "whether your organization has the ability to establish a strong vision of a responsible mechanism" has a lower score of 3.03, which shows that local government personnel also agree on the level of accountability. This shows that the current management and maintaining the status quo of the Competent Authority lacks of overall planning for future coastal use. The leaders of the existing coastal management authorities should form a cross-disciplinary team to fully plan for the coast for the future. In terms of training, there should be a coastal management authority to conduct central training in the first place, and subsidies to the local government. Therefore, we are able to gradually implement integrated coastal management.

Evaluating comprehensive carrying capacity of coastal area using the matter-element extension method: A case study in Fujian Province of China

The acceleration of urbanization and industrialization has placed coastal ecosystems under stress, which influences the sustainable development of coastal areas. As effective carrying capacity is a precondition for coastal sustainability, it is crucial to evaluate coastal carrying capacity by considering coordinated eco-environmental and socio-economic development. However, accurate evaluation is still in the exploratory stage as there is currently no systematic and unified method. In light of this issue, this study applied matter-element extension method, which is appropriate for evaluating multiple factors and complex issues, to evaluate the comprehensive carrying capacity of coastal areas. This research also established a carrying capacity evaluation index system and used the variation coefficient method to determine the weights. Taking the coastal region of Fujian Province as the study area, we assessed the comprehensive carrying capacity for the period from 2011-2018. Carrying capacity status was divided into five grades from Grade Ⅰ (very good) to Grade Ⅴ (very poor). The results showed the grade of each indicator in every research year. They indicated that carrying capacity was Grade III during the study period except when it was Grade Ⅱ in 2016 and 2018. Overall, Fujian's coastal comprehensive carrying capacity was moderate and tended to improve year by year, which meant that the coastal region of Fujian Province was capable of sustainable development and the environment improved as time passed. These results can offer a reference for making coastal management decisions. Furthermore, this approach can provide a novel way to evaluate carrying capacity in other coastal areas.

Negotiation of knowledge for coastal management? Reflections from a transdisciplinary experiment in South Africa

Hybrid science-society approaches for knowledge production are often framed by a transdisciplinary approach. Most forms of “linear” progression of science informing policy or the “production” of knowledge as a one-way process are increasingly being challenged. This is also true for coastal and marine sciences informing decision-making to support sustainable development of coastal areas. From the early 2010s, South Africa had one of the most progressive and well-structured frameworks for the establishment of integrated coastal management (ICM) in order to achieve societal objectives for its valuable coastal area. Even so, the implementation of the legislation, policies and guidelines remain a challenge, especially at the local level in municipalities. This paper reports on a social experiment that was intended to examine the possibility for a new knowledge negotiation process to unsettle the highly structured, nested and regular policy process, which forms the basis of ICM in South Africa. This paper reflects on an experimental application of a participatory methodology known as a “competency group” to co-produce knowledge for coastal and marine management. The group members, a combination of codified, tacit and embedded knowledge holders, agreed to serve on a competency group and met on six occasions over a 12-month period in 2013. This group “negotiated” amongst themselves to achieve a common understanding of knowledge useful for the management of beach water quality on the Golden Mile, the prime beachfront of Durban, a South African city. The paper provides a novel lens into a potentially distinctive, challenging and imminently useful approach of co-producing knowledge for coastal governance, especially in a middle-income country where the social and political context is complex.

Design Wave Height Parameter Estimation Model Reflecting the Influence of Typhoon Time and Space

Typhoon storm surge disasters are one of the main restrictive factors of sustainable development in coastal areas. They are one of several important tasks in disaster prevention and reduction in coastal areas and require reasonable and accurate calculations of wave height in typhoon-affected sea areas to predict and resist typhoon storm surge disasters. In this paper, the design wave height estimation method based on the stochastic process and the principle of maximum entropy are theoretically advanced, and it can provide a new idea as well as a new method for the estimation of the return level for marine environmental elements under the influence of extreme weather. The model uses a family of random variables to reflect the influence of a typhoon on wave height at different times and then displays the statistical characteristics of wave height in time and space. At the same time, under the constraints of the given observations, the maximum uncertainty of the unobtainable data is maintained. The new model covers the compound extreme value distribution model that has been widely used and overcomes the subjective interference of the artificially selected distribution function—to a certain extent. Taking the typhoon wave height data of Naozhou Observatory as an example, this paper analyzes the probability of typhoon occurrence frequency at different times and the characteristics of typhoon intensity in different time periods. We then calculate the wave height return level and compare it with traditional calculation models. The calculation results show that the new model takes into account the time factor and the interaction between adjacent time periods. Furthermore, it reduces the subjective human interference, so the calculated results of the typhoon’s influence on wave height return level are more stable and accurate.

Data integration and participatory process in developing integrated coastal zone management (ICZM) in the northern Baltic Sea

The Maritime Spatial Planning (MSP) Directive was ratified (2014/89/EU) along the Strategy of the European Union (EU) on the Blue Economy to contribute to the effective management of maritime activities and resources and incorporate the principal elements of Integrated Coastal Zone Management (ICZM) (2002/413/EC) into planning at the land-sea interface. There is a need to develop the ICZM approach throughout Europe to realise the potential for both socio-economic and environmental targets set by the EU and national legislations. In this study, we co-developed different approaches for land-sea interactions in four case areas in Estonia and Finland based on the defined characteristics and key interests derived from local or regional challenges by integrating spatial data on human activities and ecology. Furthermore, four ICZM drafts were co-evaluated by stakeholders and the public using online map-based assessment tools (public participatory GIS). The ICZM approaches of the Estonian cases ranged from the diversification of land use to the enhancement of community-based entrepreneurship. The Finnish cases aimed to define the trends for sustainable marine and coastal tourism and introduce the ecosystem service concept in land use planning. During the project activities, we found that increased communication and exchange of local and regional views and values on the prevailing land-sea interactions were important for the entire process. Thereafter, the ICZM plans were applied to the MSP processes nationally, and they support the sustainable development of coastal areas in Estonia and Finland.

THE INTANGIBLE CULTURAL HERITAGE OF PEOPLE LIVING IN THUA THIEN HUE COASTAL ZONE WITH SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT

The community of people living in the coastal zone of Thua Thien Hue with a system of intangible cultural forms, such as customs, beliefs, taboos, rituals, festivals, etc. has been formed and summarized by many generations of ancestors that have been handed down until now. These intangible cultural values ​​are increasingly being affirmed in the trend of sustainable development of coastal areas in Thua Thien Hue province in particular and coastal areas in general. Exploiting the values ​​of intangible cultural heritage of coastal residents in Thua Thien Hue in order to develop in a sustainable way is to realize the Party's strategic vision towards the sea.

Integrated methods and scenarios for assessment of sand dunes ecosystem services

Anthropogenic and natural ecosystems in coastal dunes provide considerable benefits to human well-being. However, to date, we still lack a good understanding of how ecosystem services (ES) supply varies from young dunes (e.g., embryo and fore dunes) to mature dunes (e.g., brown and red dunes). This study proposed a novel modelling methodology by integrating an expert-based matrix, a Bayesian Belief Network (BBN), a structural equation model, and a scenario development method. It aims at evaluating dune ecosystem services for the sustainable development of coastal areas. The model was tested using data collected from dunes in Vietnam. An expert-based matrix to assess the supply capacity of 18 ES in different types of dunes was generated with the participation of 21 interdisciplinary scientists. It was found that red dune ecosystems could supply the most regulation and cultural ecosystem services, while gray dunes provided the least amount. Results from a scenario analysis recommended that decision-making is able to optimize multiple ES by: (i) keeping embryo/fore dunes in their natural state instead of using them for mineral mining and urbanization; (ii) enlarging certified and protected forests areas in gray and yellow dunes; and (iii) optimizing cultural ES supply in red dunes.

BUILDING A STRATEGIC PERFORMANCE MANAGEMENT MODEL FOR ENTERPRISES INVESTING TO COASTAL URBAN PROJECTS TOWARD SUSTAINABILITY

In addition to the sustainable development of coastal areas, the success of local corporations investing in coastal urban projects is significantly affected by severe sea level rises and extreme disasters. Investment companies should plan which objectives need to target to reduce uncertainty in the early project stages, track project execution, and assess project output as projects complete the construction phase and start operational activities. To assist enterprises in planning, evaluating, and monitoring project performance aligning with vision and strategy, this study contributes a strategic management tool developed by integrating the Balanced Scorecard (BSC), Analytic Network Process (ANP), and Decision Making Trial and Evaluation Laboratory (DEMATEL) methods. A case study of a well-known investment corporation in Vietnam illustrates the research approach. This research appreciated stakeholder’s satisfaction as the main consequence and human resource as the most prominent cause of coastal urban projects. Furthermore, the proposed model for Vietnam in this study could be referred by other developing countries to facilitate companies to plan, measure, evaluate, and control the organizational performances for the coastal urban project success.

Impact of Sustainable Development of Coastal Areas and Small Islands in Makassar

Makassar City is a national strategic project development area, namely the construction of the Makassar New Port with the value of the Cooperation contract with Royal Boskalis of 75 million Euros. According to the government’s expectation, Makassar New Port (MNP) can increase import-export activities in eastern Indonesia. Therefore, this study aims to analyze the impact of economic, socio-cultural, and environmental or ecological aspects. The method used is descriptive qualitative and the data obtained were analyzed using Nvivo12 Plus software. The results of this study found that marine sand mining has an impact and risk of environmental damage, such as decreased environmental carrying capacity, reduced natural resources, biodiversity, and weakened ecosystem integrity. These environmental changes greatly impact the productivity of fish income for fishermen. Fishermen’s catch decreases, of course, this has something to do with changing social and economic conditions of fishermen. The phenomenon that is born is a disharmony that is very prone to causing quarrels in the household. While the economic impact, recorded a total loss of 1,043 fishermen from Kodingareng consisting of Traditional Fishing Gear, fishing rods, nets and arrows reached 80.4 billion rupiahs

Current issues of using the coastal areas of the Baltic sea

The article proves that the existing threats to coastal marine areas that are notable for significant vulnerability to human activity require changes in Russian water legislation, which must introduce the category “coastal territories” and clarify the regime of permissions, restrictions and prohibitions within them. This will make it possible to more effectively regulate the economic, environmental and social aspects of the use and protection of the marine environment and coastal areas. For Russian water law, a number of legal structures that are successfully used in Polish water law are of interest, including the allocation of two zones with special legal regime on the coast, environmental planning of the use and protection of the coast and sea waters, as well as a set of measures to ensure sustainable development of coastal areas.

Analysis on the utilization and carrying capacity of coastal tidal flat in bays around the Bohai Sea

The utilization and protection of tidal flat play a crucial role in the sustainable development of coastal areas. This study aims to propose an evaluation index system model for the carrying capacity of the tidal flat resources in bays around the Bohai Sea. Indexes are selected under the framework of DSI (Drivers-State-Impact), considering the socio-economic driving factors, resource conditions, the influence of shoreline change on hydrodynamic environment and the utilization type associating with possible ecological impact. Basic indexes are quantified using publicly available statistical information, hydrodynamic numerical simulation and satellite image interpretation, while the weight of each index is determined using the entropy weight method. The historical changes and future trends of shoreline and the utilization type of the coastal tidal flat in last decades are analyzed, and the carrying capacity of the tidal flat resources around the Bohai Sea has been evaluated. The coast around the Bohai Sea is divided into three areas, the Liaodong Bay, the Bohai Bay and the Laizhou Bay. The results show that the carrying capacity of the Laizhou Bay is better than the other areas. Moreover, the carrying capacity of the three areas showed a large decline from 2003 to 2013, while the decline slowed from 2013 to 2018 and is expected to increase slightly from 2018 to 2028.

Ordenamiento y gestión del territorio en zonas costeras con turismo residencial. El caso de Región Este, Uruguay

Sun and beach tourism associated with residential modality, is one of the most important activities in Uruguay. The urban occupation characteristics of the East Region coasts (Maldonado and Rocha departments) generate from the beginning impacts of great magnitude. Between 1997 and 2003 the first two instruments of land planning and management, involving the defence, protection and sustainable development of coastal areas, were created: the Environmental Impact Assessment (of national application) and the Coastal Ordinance of the department of Rocha. This paper analyzes their current results, through the transformations in the territory and their socio-environmental impacts. By means of quantitative, qualitative and spatial analyses, the successes and failures in the conception and implementation of these instruments are revealed.

Analysis of Water Resources Carrying Capacity of Coastal Cities along the Yangtze River Based on PSR Model

Xu, M.; Chen, M.; Li, Y., and Jiang, Y., 2020. Analysis of water resources carrying capacity of coastal cities along the Yangtze River based on PSR model. In: Wan, Z. (ed.), Coordinated Sustainable Development in Coastal Areas: Environment and Economy. Journal of Coastal Research, Special Issue No. 109, pp. 110–113. Coconut Creek (Florida), ISSN 0749-0208.The coastal cities along the Yangtze River are relatively rich in water resources but the economy is developed, therefore the contradiction between economic society and water resources still exists. According to the characteristics of coastal cities along the Yangtze River, this paper constructs an evaluation index system for water resources carrying capacity based on the Pressure-State-Response(PSR) framework. Based on typical examples of Nantong City's 2010-2018 relevant index data, using the Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) model and with the help of YAAHP software, the following conclusions are obtained: 1) There are pressure state response mechanisms in each element of the water resources carrying capacity system of coastal cities along the Yangtze River. The key to the operation of the system is the limit of water resources carrying capacity. 2) Domestic water demand has the greatest impact on water resources carrying capacity. Domestic water demand has the greatest impact on the carrying capacity of water resources, but in the allocation of water resources, it is important to optimize the production water use of the industrial economy and provide sufficient funds to guarantee.3) During the period of 2010-2018 in Nantong City, with the development of industrial economy, the discharge of industrial wastewater was significantly reduced. Moreover, the investment in the treatment of industrial pollution, especially industrial waste water pollution, has been significantly increased, and the carrying capacity of water resources has been constantly optimized.