Abstract
The rapid growth of developing countries has placed unprecedented pressure on water resources, severely hindering the realization of sustainable development goal 6 (SDG 6) in river basins. In this study, sustainable water resource utilization (SWRU) in the Yellow River basin (Shaanxi section) from 2005 to 2019 is evaluated through an analysis of water resource overload combined with the water footprint (WF) and the water planetary boundary (WPB) and an analysis of water resource utilization quality combined with the WF and city development index (CDI) based on the coupled coordination model. Then, the results are incorporated into the drive-pressure-state-impact-response framework to analyze the impacts of the socioeconomic system on SWRU and the feedback effect of related policies. The results show that there were obvious differences in the spatiotemporal evolution characteristics of the WF in different geographical units. The WF of Guanzhong first increased and then decreased, and the WF of Northern Shaanxi grew continuously. The water deficit state is increasing. Although the coordination level between the WF and CDI in the basin increased by 500.31%, it was characterized by nonequilibrium and volatility. Compared to water resource endowment, socioeconomic development and government policies have greater impacts on SWRU; furthermore, the influencing factors demonstrate spatial variability, revealing the complexity of achieving SDG 6 in the basin. As policy implications, adaptive water resource policies should be formulated on the basis of strengthening the overall basin management. This study provides a scientific basis for promoting the realization of SDG 6 through watershed water management.
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All data generated or analyzed during this study are included in this published article and its supplementary information files.
Abbreviations
- CCD:
-
Coupling coordination degree
- CDI:
-
City development index
- DPSIR:
-
Drive-pressure-state-impact-response
- SDG:
-
Sustainable development goal
- SWRU:
-
Sustainable water resource utilization
- WD:
-
Water deficit
- WF:
-
Water footprint
- WFI:
-
Water footprint intensity
- WPB:
-
Water planetary boundary
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Acknowledgements
We are grateful for the support of the standard map service system provided by the Ministry of Natural Resources of the People’s Republic of China. We thank American Journal Experts (AJE) for English language polishing.
Funding
This work was supported by the Humanities and Social Sciences Research Planning Fund of Ministry of Education of China (grant numbers [21YJA790073]).
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All authors contributed to the study’s conception and design. Material preparation, data collection, and analysis were performed by Yi Yang, Yuanyuan Zhang, and Le Wang. The first draft of the manuscript was written by Yi Yang and Yuanyuan Zhang, and all authors commented on previous versions of the manuscript. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.
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Highlights
1. The interactions between watershed human activities and water resources are explored.
2. Key drivers and response policies affecting SWRU are identified.
3. The coordination level of “WF-CDI” in the basin is in nonequilibrium and fluctuates.
4. There are differences in the factors affecting SWRU in the basin.
5. The basis of realizing SDG 6 in the basin is to formulate adaptive water policies.
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Yang, Y., Zhang, Y. & Wang, L. Water resource sustainable use assessment methodology and an impact factor analysis framework for SDG 6–oriented river basins: evidence from the Yellow River basin (Shaanxi section) in China. Environ Sci Pollut Res 30, 110175–110190 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-023-29997-2
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-023-29997-2