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Multiple datasets related to pond and marine aquaculture have been published using diverse remote sensing technologies, yet a comprehensive dataset detailing spatial distribution on both land and sea sides is lacking. Firstly, a meticulous comparison of datasets which we selected related to aquaculture ponds and marine, ensuring consistency in trends. Subsequently, the datasets published by our team were edited and integrated to illustrate aquaculture activities on both sides of China's coastal zone. Finally, a spatial differentiation of coastal aquaculture in major provinces was analyzed. This analysis also utilizes the types of coastline and statistical data, guiding coordinated resource management efforts. The results unveil a distinctive spatial distribution pattern, concentrating aquaculture in the northern regions—Bohai Sea, Jiangsu, Fujian, and Pearl River coasts in Guangdong. The provinces rich in aquaculture resources, such as Shandong, Guangdong, and Liaoning, exhibit extensive coastlines. However, remote sensing monitoring suggests an underestimation of Liaoning's marine aquaculture compared to statistical yearbook data. Furthermore, southern provinces like Guangdong and Fujian exhibit significantly higher aquaculture output than Liaoning. Zhejiang leads in fishing output. The paper outlines the future development direction of coastal aquaculture, emphasizing a strategic, integrated land–sea approach for sustainable development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

United Nations Sustainable Development Goal SDG11.3.1—the ratio of land consumption rate (LCR) to population growth rate (PGR) (LCRPGR)—aims to measure the efficiency and sustainability of urban land use. In recent years, SDG11.3.1 has been widely used in sustainable urban development research. However, previous studies have focused on the urban core area, while the sustainable development status of the urban peripheral areas (suburban and rural areas) that contribute significantly to the ecological environment has been neglected. To this end, relying on land use/cover change (LUCC) data obtained from high-resolution remote sensing satellite images rather than the single impervious surface data used in traditional research, according to the multiple functions of the land use type, the city is divided into three types of space: production, living, and ecological spaces. Research from the perspective of multi-scale coordination is of great significance for gaining a comprehensive understanding of the sustainable development status of urban space. Taking the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area (GBA) in China as an example, in this paper, LUCC remote sensing data and comprehensive population and gross domestic product (GDP) data are used. From the multi-functional production-living-ecological space perspective, based on the original land use efficiency indicator, the ratio of land consumption rate (LCR) to economic growth rate (EGR) (LCREGR) is introduced and the analytic hierarchy process (AHP) is used to comprehensively evaluate the sustainable development level (SDL) of the space between 2000–2010 and 2010–2020 on the urban agglomeration and prefecture-level city scales. The results show that (1) the level of and changes in the spatial sustainable development are significantly different at different scales; (2) the division of the production-living-ecological spaces can guide cities to optimize different types of spaces in the future. This paper proposes a new evaluation method for spatial sustainable development, which provides a useful reference for any country or region in the world. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As China's economy transitions from a stage of high-speed growth to a stage of high-quality development, the concept of low-carbon and green economic development has gained increasing popularity. Mastering the regional differences and changing patterns of low-carbon economy and economic growth quality is an important prerequisite for further promoting low-carbon economic development and improving the quality of economic growth. Taking the data of 21 prefecture-level cities in Guangdong Province from 2008 to 2019 as examples, we calculated the low-carbon economy and the quality index of economic growth, and analyzed the convergences between them through coefficient of variation analysis and a panel data convergence model with fixed effects. The results showed that: First, the convergence of low-carbon economy was better than the convergence of economic growth quality. Second, the low-carbon economy of Guangdong Province had σ convergence, and the imbalance between regions of low-carbon economy was alleviated, but the quality of economic growth of Guangdong Province did not have σ convergence. Third, there was absolute and conditional β convergence in the quality of low-carbon economy and economic growth in Guangdong Province. Fourth, the convergence rate of low-carbon economy in Guangdong Province showed "club difference"; the same was true of σ convergence, absolute β convergence, conditional β convergence, and dimensional convergence of economic growth quality in various regions of Guangdong Province. The exploration conducted in this article was conducive to better grasping the changing patterns of low-carbon economy and economic growth quality, enriching relevant research. The conclusions of this paper can provide decision-making basis for China to formulate urban and regional economic policies, achieve high-quality economic development, and "double carbon goal". [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Catalyzed by global change and human activities, social and ecosystems are constantly under increasingly dynamic transformations. The Guangdong–Hong Kong–Macau Greater Bay Area (GBA), bordering the South China Sea and located in the Pearl River Delta Plain, is a typical region of complex SESs with rapid socioeconomic development but severe ecosystem degradation. Therefore, based on the relevant data of 11 GBA cities from 2010–2020, this paper constructs an indicator system for assessing land–sea SESs by extracting from three aspects: exposure, sensitivity, and adaptive capacity. Through the construction of a vulnerability assessment indicator system, via the explicit spatial vulnerability indicator calculation model, and vulnerability factor diagnostic model, this study comprehensively analyzes vulnerability levels, spatiotemporal evolution, and SES vulnerability factors. The study found that, since 2010, the SES vulnerability of the GBA has shown an overall trend of alleviation, and the overall geographical distribution of classified vulnerability levels is rather concentrated, with cities around the Pearl River Estuary relatively less vulnerable. The augmentation of per-capita fiscal expenditure, per-capita gross regional product, and decent air quality rate are the critical ingredients to remedy the vulnerability in the GBA. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With the rapid development of the manufacturing industry, demand forecasting has been important. In view of this, considering the influence of environmental complexity and diversity, this study aims to find a more accurate method to forecast manufacturing industry demand. On this basis, this paper utilizes a deep learning model for training and makes a comparative study through other models. The results show that: (1) the performance of deep learning is better than other methods; by comparing the results, the reliability of this study is verified. (2) Although the prediction based on the historical data of manufacturing demand alone is successful, the accuracy of the prediction results is significantly lower than when taking into account multiple factors. According to these results, we put forward the development strategy of the manufacturing industry in Guangdong. This will help promote the sustainable development of the manufacturing industry. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aiming at the ecological footprint model, the traditional trade adjustment method only considered the international trade process at the urban scale, ignoring the trade footprint generated by domestic trade and indirect trade in various products. This paper adopts the urban-scale ecological footprint model based on the macro-trade adjustment method to calculate the trade adjustment coefficient of biological products and the energy trade adjustment coefficient respectively to correct the trade footprint. The results showed that the per capita ecological deficit showed a straight upward trend, from 0.07351 hm2 in 2013 to 0.15472 hm2 in 2018. From 2013 to 2018, the per capita ecological footprint of Guangdong Province was greater than the per capita ecological carrying capacity, and the ecological economic system of Guangdong Province was in an unsustainable state. According to the trade ecological footprint, Guangdong Province was a completely foreign resource and service exporting city, which was consistent with Guangdong Province's own economic development direction; the analysis results of the ecological product trade footprint were more consistent with the current city positioning of biological resource products of each city, and the energy indirect trade footprint. The improved ecological footprint model could more accurately assess the true status of ecological vitality above the urban scale. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Facing the problem of energy shortage and the responsibility of carbon reduction, to achieve sustainable regional economic development, renewable energy must be vigorously developed. Technology can not only boost the development of renewable energy but be a new driving force for the economy. However, the development of the economy, technology, and renewable energy are interrelated, and the coupling and coordination among them lack sufficient evaluation and analysis. Therefore, an evaluation index system is constructed for the economy–technology–renewable energy ternary group. The evaluation model is applied to measure the coupling coordination degree, and a geographically weighted regression model is used to analyze the influence of key factors and their spatial differences. 30 provinces in China are used as examples for the study, and the results show that the coupling coordination degree is low in most regions, except for Guangdong, which has been maintained at an extremely coordinated level, and most provinces are in a fluctuating upward trend during the decade. Additionally, the results of the geographically weighted regression report that the influence of factors has spatial heterogeneity. The study provides a basis for relevant policy formulation in China, and the evaluation and analysis ideas can provide a reference for other countries or regions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Wind power is potentially a key energy option that can assist China in meeting its sustainability goals but at present plays only a limited role in the country's energy system. Wind resource assessment (WRA) has been identified as a key impediment to the further development of this energy source. This paper examines whether collaborative governance can help to improve WRA in China, and if so through what mechanisms. Collaborative initiatives involving WRA in two Chinese provinces, Xinjiang and Guangdong, are reviewed. This suggests that, while the central government has an important role to play, there are many opportunities for locally based collaborative initiatives to function as an alternative, complementary approach to facilitate WRA. Contextual elements such as local resources (including leadership and local knowledge) and governance structures (such as social networks) are identified as key conditions facilitating collaboration. The paper concludes that a broader perspective placing more emphasis beyond the central government in capacity building for WRA is required to enhance the prospects for the transition to a more sustainable energy system in China. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd and ERP Environment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With the increase of economic strength and technological advancement, financial and technical issues are becoming less and less constraining for the construction of water conservancy and hydropower projects, and the resettlement of reservoir resettlers has become the most critical factor in determining the success or failure of the construction. This study constructs a risk analysis framework for reservoir resettlers' livelihood strategy transformation from the perspective of "resilient livelihoods", characterizing their risk exposure with a comprehensive risk index and testing the effectiveness of the framework through robustness analysis. The framework was used to analyze the risk of reservoir resettlers in Guangdong Province, from which we found that the degree of risk and the type of vulnerability faced by resettlers with different livelihood strategies differed significantly, and we discussed each of them to help resettlers minimize the possible harm that they might suffer from. Thus, this framework can help reservoir resettlers to achieve sustainable development to a certain extent and also provide useful suggestions for policy makers to ensure the smooth construction of water conservancy and hydropower projects. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• From the perspective of spatial cross-sectional data, this study explores causal inference in the ecological environment. • Two primary causal pathways are identified. • The study unveils the intricate mechanisms among diverse factors within the ecological environment system. The ecological environment is closely related to natural conditions, climate change, and human activities. However, existing research predominantly concentrates on evaluating the direct impacts of various factors on the ecological environment, yet lacks an in-depth exploration of their causal relationships and pathways. This paper introduces a new perspective to research in this field by incorporating spatial cross-sectional data analysis methods. The study utilized the 2020 China's High-resolution Eco-Environmental Quality (CHEQ) dataset to evaluate the spatial differentiation characteristics of Ecological Environmental Quality (EEQ) within the western urban agglomeration of Guangdong Province. A framework of "terrain-urbanization-climate" influencing factors was constructed, and the Geographical convergent cross mapping (GCCM) method was employed to infer the causal relationship between EEQ and influencing factors. Additionally, the spatial distribution characteristics of influencing factors on ecological environment quality were studied using the Multiscale Geographically Weighted Regression Model (MGWR). The results indicate that seven influencing factors including Elevation, Population, Precipitation, TEMP, TMMX, TMMN, and Slope have clear causal relationships with EEQ and exhibit bidirectional coupling relationships. There exist complex causal relationships among influencing factors, revealing the interaction mechanisms and causal pathways among multiple factors in the ecological environment system. These analyses enrich our understanding of the intricate and complex relationships between the ecological environment and influencing factors, providing a valuable reference for ecological protection and sustainable development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Energy consumption is an important indicator for measuring economic development and is closely related to the atmospheric environment. As a demonstration zone for China's high-quality development, the Guangdong–Hong Kong–Macao Greater Bay Area imposes higher requirements on ecological environment and sustainable development. Therefore, accurate data on energy consumption is crucial for high-quality green development. However, the statistical data on local energy consumption in China is insufficient, and the lack of data is severe, which hinders the analysis of energy consumption at the metropolitan level and the precise implementation of energy policies. Nighttime light data have been widely used in the inversion of energy consumption, but they can only reflect socio-economic activities at night with certain limitations. In this study, a random forest model was developed to estimate metropolitan-level energy consumption in the Guangdong–Hong Kong–Macao Greater Bay Area from 2000 to 2020 based on nighttime light data, population data, and urban impervious surface data. The estimation results show that our model shows good performance with an R2 greater than 0.9783 and MAPE less than 9%. A long time series dataset from 2000 to 2020 on energy consumption distribution at a resolution of 500 m in the Guangdong–Hong Kong–Macao Greater Bay Area was built using our model with a top-down weight allocation method. The spatial and temporal dynamics of energy consumption in the Greater Bay Area were assessed at both the metropolitan and grid levels. The results show a significant increase in energy consumption in the Greater Bay Area with a clear clustering, and approximately 90% of energy consumption is concentrated in 22% of the area. This study established an energy consumption estimation model that comprehensively considers population, urban distribution, and nighttime light data, which effectively solves the problem of missing statistical data and accurately reflects the spatial distribution of energy consumption of the whole Bay Area. This study provides a reference for spatial pattern analysis and refined urban management and energy allocation for regions lacking statistical data on energy consumption. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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Environmental degradation and climate change are two important issues that threaten human survival and sustainable social development. Based on the characteristics of the same source of sulfur dioxide and greenhouse gases, we analyze the collaborative governance mechanism of carbon emission trading on sulfur dioxide. The results show that carbon emission reduction trading may not necessarily deliver sulfur dioxide reduction co-benefits. Then, we conduct an empirical using data of 30 regions in China from 1998 to 2017. The results show that the co-benefits of carbon emission trading in terms of the reduction of sulfur dioxide are regionally heterogeneous. The carbon emission trading policies implemented in Beijing, Chongqing, Hubei, and Guangdong have realized collaborative governance on sulfur dioxide. However, the carbon emission trading policies implemented in Tianjin and Shanghai have not realized collaborative governance on sulfur dioxide. Moreover, Chongqing has the highest average annual sulfur dioxide reduction co-benefits, followed by Guangdong. The gap of sulfur dioxide reduction co-benefits between Beijing and Hubei's synergistic emission reduction effect is small. Moreover, the sulfur dioxide reduction co-benefits of carbon emission trading are mainly achieved by reducing fossil energy consumption. Meanwhile, the carbon emission trading implemented in Beijing also delivers sulfur dioxide reduction co-benefits by improving pollution reduction technology. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To meet the challenge of sustainable development, sustainability must be made. Ecological network analysis (ENA) was introduced in this paper as an approach to quantitatively measure the growth, development, and sustainability of an economic system. The Guangdong economic networks from 1987 to 2010 were analyzed by applying the ENA approach. Firstly, a currency flow network among economic sectors was constructed to represent the Guangdong economic system by adapting the input-output (I-O) table data. Then, the network indicators from the ENA framework involving the total system throughput (TST), average mutual information (AMI), ascendency (A), redundancy (R) and development capacity (C) were calculated. Lastly, the network indicators were analyzed to acquire the overall features of Guangdong’s economic operations during 1987-2010. The results are as follows: the trends of the network indicators show that the size of the Guangdong economic network grows exponentially at a high rate during 1987-2010, whereas its efficiency does not present a clear trend over its whole period. The growth is the main characteristic of the Guangdong economy during 1987-2010, with no clear evidence regarding its development. The quantitative results of the network also confirmed that the growth contributed to a great majority of the Guangdong economy during1987-2010, whereas the development’s contribution was tiny during the same period. The average value of the sustainability indicator (α) of the Guangdong economic network was 0.222 during 1987-2010, which is less than the theoretically optimal value of 0.37 for a sustainable human-influenced system. The results suggest that the Guangdong economic system needs a further autocatalysis to improve its efficiency to support the system maintaining a sustainable evolvement. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The routine water quality monitoring data from 2010 to 2015 were collected, and 24 routine water quality monitoring items were analyzed by single factor standard index method. The results show that the proportion of inferior V-type monitoring sections in the basin has reached 77.78%, which is generally severe pollution, and the main pollution factors are chemical oxygen demand, NH4 +-N and total phosphorus. After investigation, it was found that the basin was affected by some heavy pollution tributaries, and the upstream to downstream of the main stream showed a trend of gradual pollution, especially when flowing through densely populated urban areas. Through the monitoring of various indicators, according to its concentration, change law and on-site analysis, the main reasons for the occurrence of black and odor in the basin are lagging construction of sewage pipe networks and sewage treatment plants, many heavily polluting enterprises, direct discharge of domestic sewage, random disposal of garbage, and low bottom mud release and management ability. Aiming at the current situation and causes of the black and odorous water bodies in this basin, combined with the research of other scholars, this paper compared the removal effects of various methods on pollutants. Aeration and magnetic flocculation technology can be adopted as emergency treatment measures in the river basin, and the treatment effect of each pollution factor is estimated to reach 80%. At the same time, in the long-term improvement stage of water quality, corresponding rectification measures are proposed, and the comprehensive water environment improvement project system is scientifically planned. The environmental quality is conducive to the sustainable development of urban economy and society, which is of great significance for promoting the coordinated development of economy, society and environmental protection in Eastern Guangdong. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The rehabilitation of degraded forests is widely recognized, with a consensus that technical, economic, environmental and social factors must all be considered in practice. Rehabilitating degraded forests has been being one of the Guangdong Provincial Government's most important priorities. Several successful efforts and a holistic approach have been made to rehabilitate the degraded forest landscape and increase forest cover. This paper assesses the characteristics of eight rehabilitation initiatives identified in Guangdong Province, their outcomes and influencing factors, and sustainability of technical, social-economic, long-term management and financing factors using a literature search and 22 case studies obtained by means of questionnaires and interviews. The case studies help to elucidate implementation activities and outcomes on the ground. The objective of this paper is to draw strategic lessons for sustaining and guiding current and future efforts both within China and elsewhere in the world. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Wen, M.; Liu, C.; Galina, P.; Tao, C.; Hou, X.; Bai, F., and Zhao, H., 2020. Efficiency analysis of the marine economy in the Guangdong–Hong Kong–Macao Greater Bay Area based on a DEA model. In: Gong, D.; Zhang, M., and Liu, R. (eds.), Advances in Coastal Research: Engineering, Industry, Economy, and Sustainable Development. Journal of Coastal Research, Special Issue No. 106, pp. 225–228. Coconut Creek (Florida), ISSN 0749-0208. This paper aims to study the marine economic efficiency based on a data envelopment analysis (DEA) model. The Guangdong–Hong Kong–Macao Greater Bay Area (GBA) was taken as the research object, and an input-output index system was established. The research results show that the GBA is developing rapidly, and the spatial layout of the marine economy continues to optimize. In the established input-output index system, the input indicators include the three aspects of marine resources, human resources, and scientific and technological inputs, while the output indicators include marine economic output and environmental output. The marine economic efficiency of the GBA was not high, and the average efficiency values of all regions were less than 1; the average value of Guangdong's marine economic efficiency was the highest, and that of Hong Kong's was the lowest, indicating that they are in an inefficient state. Finally, countermeasures and suggestions are put forward for improving the marine economic investment and enhancing the efficiency of marine economic development. The research findings provide useful reference for the sustainable development of the marine economy in the GBA and throughout the country. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Industry is widely valued as an important contributor to carbon emissions. Therefore, it is of great significance to analyze the industrial carbon emissions (ICE) in Guangdong, the strongest industrial province in China. We have adopted the carbon emission accounting model and standard deviational ellipse analysis model to analyze the temporal and spatial characteristics and evolution trends of the industry carbon emission amount and intensity in Guangdong from 1998 to 2013. The study results include: (1) Due to the rapid development of industry, Guangdong's ICE showed a steady growth trend; (2) The distribution characteristics of ICE were characterized by the trend of taking the Pearl River Delta (PRD) region as the center and gradually spreading to the surrounding areas. From the perspective of industrial sectors, it can be divided into steady growth type, fluctuant growth type, basically stable type, and decrease type; (3) The spatial pattern of the ICE in Guangdong is basically the same as that of the total industrial output value, that is, the southwest-northeast pattern. This work is helpful for China's carbon peak, especially for the formulation of industrial carbon peak policy and the sustainable development of the environment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The GDP of Guangdong Province exceeded 10 trillion RMB in 2019. The province has the largest economy in China and also the greatest consumption of electrical energy, the most important driving force for its economic development. However, Guangdong Province has a high degree of external dependence and large internal differences, and consequently, its distribution of electrical energy demand is uneven and its regional growth is unbalanced. Exploration of Guangdong's electrical energy supply and demand structure and elucidation of the rules governing spatial and temporal changes in its electrical energy systems are highly important. This paper collects data on the electrical energy supply and demand in Guangdong Province from 2000 to 2018, employs ArcGIS spatial analysis and Moran Index and β-convergence test. The main results were as follows. Self-sufficiency for electricity in Guangdong dropped from 100% in 2000 to 69% in 2018. The remainder of electricity was imported. Guangdong mainly relies on thermal electric generation, while other import provinces with the exception of Guizhou mainly rely on hydropower. The proportion of renewable energy fell from 11.6% in 2000 to 5.0% in 2018. The demand for electrical energy in Guangdong is very large, more than half of this demand is from secondary industry. Other modern industries had the highest growth rate in electricity consumption. Electrical energy mainly flows to the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area, and the increased demand is also mainly concentrated there. The absolute differences in electrical consumption among cities has increased, showing a distinct polarization phenomenon. This paper provides a reference for solving electrical energy supply-demand problems, ensuring the sustainable development of the economy and promoting the green economic transformation of Guangdong. • The spatiotemporal variation of Guangdong electric energy supply-demand was explored. • The spatial flow chart of electrical energy in Guangdong was drawn. • The source and direction of electrical energy in Guangdong are clearly analyzed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• An assessment of conservation priorities for KBAs in highly urbanized regions was conducted. • Ecosystem conditions remain stable in most of KBAs over the past two decades. • Ecosystem conditions showed spatially significant negative correlations with anthropogenic threats. • Shenzhen Wutongshan is the highest priority KBA that needs to strengthen ecosystem conservation. The rapid and intense development in highly urbanized regions presents huge challenges to the conservation of biodiversity and ecosystem services. Progress on incorporating ecosystem conditions and anthropogenic threats into conservation assessments for key biodiversity areas (KBAs) in highly urbanized regions is still insufficient. To address this, this paper conducted an assessment of conservation priorities for key biodiversity areas in highly urbanized regions by integrating anthropogenic threats with ecosystem conditions. Taking 8 KBAs in the Guangdong - Hong Kong - Macao Greater Bay Area of China (GBA) as an example, this study found that the ecosystem condition of most of KBAs remains stable from 2000 to 2020. We found that the ecosystem conditions in most KBAs have not been negatively affected by anthropogenic threats. It is worth noting that Shenzhen Wutongshan (SZW) is the only KBA that faces a significant increase in anthropogenic threats with a significant decline in ecosystem condition during the past two decades. Overall, SZW is the highest priority KBA that needs to reduce the negative effects of anthropogenic threats and strengthen ecosystem conservation in the future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Farmers are the most important stakeholders in the sustainable development of rural areas. Studying farmers' satisfaction with sustainable rural development (SRD) practices can help us to understand how to mobilize farmers' enthusiasm and initiative, such that they can play a major role in SRD. This study aimed to identify the factors influencing farmers' satisfaction with SRD practices. Based on the survey data of 599 farmers in 57 villages in the Guangdong Province, Hierarchical Linear Modelling (HLM) was used to identify the influencing factors of farmers' satisfaction with SRD practices in Guangdong Province at the individual and village levels. This study found that there was spatial heterogeneity in farmers' satisfaction with SRD practices in the Guangdong Province, and factors at the individual level and village level jointly affected the farmers' satisfaction. At the individual level, farmers' college education, identity of Chinese Communist Party (CCP), and participation have positive predictive effects on farmers' satisfaction. At the village level, the improvement of public services, village infrastructure, and grassroots governance has a positive predictive effect on farmers' satisfaction. However, the improvement of the village living environment and the income of the village's collective economy were not significant determinants of farmers' satisfaction. The results provide practical implications for policymakers to guide farmers to actively participate in SRD practices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Accurately grasping the structural characteristics and influencing factors of green development spatial association are significant for green coordinated development and ecological civilization construction in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area (GBA). This study evaluates the GBA's green development performance from 2015 to 2019 based on duality theory, and uses social network analysis to explore the structural characteristics and evolution of the green development spatial association network, and then uses the exponential random graph model to reveal the influencing factors of network formation. we find that: (1) the GBA's green development is steady. Its spatial association network became increasingly complex, and tends to be tight. (2) As important hubs, Guangzhou, Shenzhen, and Hong Kong have the dominant positions in the GBA's green development spatial association network. Huizhou, Jiangmen, Zhaoqing, and Macao are at the edge of the network, and their interoperability with other cities is relatively weak. (3) Four subgroups exist in the GBA during different periods, with obvious gradient characteristics between them, and the multilevel transmission mechanism of the green development network gradually forms. (4) Economic development and urbanization level, ecological environment endowment, and geographical, institutional, and industrial proximity all have significant impacts on the formation of the GBA's green development spatial association network. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the context of aggravating environmental problems, the concept of green economy, advocated by policies introduced to solve such problems, is being increasingly recognized and emphasized. In addition, digital technologies, represented by the Internet, big data, and artificial intelligence, are constantly integrating with economic and social fields, gradually becoming an important driving force for economic and social development, and also bringing certain positive environmental effects. This study investigated the spatiotemporal evolution characteristics of the green economy of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area (GBA) in the past three decades (1987-2018) under the background of administrative division adjustment and artificial intelligence development. First, the overall green economic development level of the GBA from 1987 to 2018 was analyzed using the superefficiency slack-based measure model. Then, the spatial pattern evolution characteristics and regional differences of green economy in the GBA in this period were assessed by the exploratory spatial data analysis model. According to the results of this study, (1) the green economic development levels of Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Foshan, Zhaoqing, and Hong Kong in the GBA always followed an increasing trend from 1987 to 2018. To be specific, Foshan, Zhongshan, Hong Kong, and Macao ranked among the top areas in the GBA in terms of average green economic development level; moreover, a strong positive correlation was found between economic strength and green economic development. (2) The overall green economic development level of the GBA roughly followed a trend of first decreasing and then increasing, fluctuating around 0.45 on average. (3) Clearly, the green economy of various cities in the GBA showed certain correlations in 1987-2005, but with great fluctuations. However, no spatial correlation was observed after 2006. On the whole, in the GBA, the spatial agglomeration of green economy was weak. (4) There was a general lack of obvious spatial agglomeration in the overall green economic development of the GBA, especially in western Guangdong. In contrast, spatial agglomeration was obvious in eastern Guangdong. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Due to insufficient understanding of human-water interaction, many water-related problems arise in watersheds, posing severe threats to the sustainability of watershed development. Although water environmental carrying capacity (WECC) is a powerful tool to support sustainable development of watersheds, few studies considered aquatic ecological factors and uncertainty in indicator values, leading to losses of sample information in the evaluation of WECC. This paper developed a systematic framework for comprehensive WECC assessment that included the indicator system and a novel variable fuzzy pattern recognition (VFPR) approach. The WECC index system incorporated aquatic ecological factors, and addressed uncertainties associated with the indicator values. The proposed VFPR-based assessment model could realize successive evaluation to retain more original information of the sample and distinguish similar result values by treating the sample as having a continuous degree of membership instead of the traditional point form. In addition, it could be more adaptable to various circumstances including extreme cases, and closely reflect the impacts of indicator changes on the results. The established evaluation framework has been applied to Dongjiang River Basin in Guangdong Province. The spatial differences and main influencing factors of WECC in the study area were analyzed. Results show that 50% and 16.7% of the sub-regions in the study area would be subject to a poor level of WECC under pessimistic and optimistic circumstances, respectively. WECCs in the upper and lower reaches are the best and worst, respectively, which is in line with the levels of economic development in the Dongjiang River Basin. The proposed method can also be applicable to many other problems involving numerous indicators. • Traditional VFPR model was improved from both model structure and model parameters. • A systematic framework was proposed for continuous and comprehensive evaluation of WECC. • Water ecology and the uncertainty in indicator values were considered in the index system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

[Display omitted] • Patch complexity and urban compactness indexes were developed to assess urban form. • The impact of urban form on PM 2.5 was explored in GBA by spatial panel models. • The complexity of urban patches had a negative effect on PM 2.5 concentrations. • The impact of urban compactness on PM 2.5 concentrations was positive. • A more complex and less compact urban form was adoptable in terms of reducing PM 2.5. Given the serious threat of PM 2.5 pollution to the environment and public health in China, reducing PM 2.5 concentrations through urban planning practices has become a common interest of urban planners and policymakers. In this regard, identifying the relationship between urban form and PM 2.5 concentrations has been a matter of much concern. This paper seeks to investigate how urban form influences PM 2.5 concentrations by taking the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area (GBA) as a case study. First, the urban form was assessed by two indicators, i.e., the patch complexity index (PCI) and urban compactness index (UCI), which were developed based on multiple landscape metrics and the principal component analysis. Then, the relationship between PM 2.5 concentrations and the two urban form indicators was revealed by spatial panel models. Our results mainly showed that PCI and UCI were negatively and positively associated with PM 2.5 concentrations, respectively, indicating that less compact urban forms with high patch complexity had advantages in reducing the PM 2.5 concentrations. According to these empirical results, the mixed-use urban development with high green coverage, which is conducive to constructing a more complex and less compact urban form, would be adoptable in terms of mitigating PM 2.5 concentrations in the GBA urban agglomeration. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: The enactment and implementation of the 2003 EIA Law in China institutionalised the role of plan environmental impact assessment (PEIA). While the philosophy, methodology and mechanisms of PEIA have gradually permeated through the various levels of government with a positive effect on the process and outcome of urban planning, only a few cities in China have so far carried out PEIA as a Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA)-type procedure. One such case is the southern city of Shenzhen. During the past three decades, Shenzhen has grown from a small town to a large and booming city as China has successfully and rapidly developed its economy by adopting the “reform and open door” policy. In response to the challenges arising from the generally divergent processes of rapid urbanisation, economic transformation and environment protection, Shenzhen has incrementally adopted the SEA concept in developing the city''s Master Urban Plan. As such, this paper reviews the effectiveness of PEIA in three ways: [•] as a tool and process for achieving more sustainable and strategic planning; [•] to determine the level of integration of SEA within the planning system; and, [•] its effectiveness vis-à-vis implementation. The implementation of PEIA within Shenzhen''s Master Urban Plan offers important insights into the emergence of innovative practices in undertaking PEIA as well as theoretical contributions to the field, especially in exploring the relationship between PEIA and SEA and highlighting the central role of local governing institutions in SEA development. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

An efficient recognition and extraction of the estuarine turbidity maximum zone (TMZ) is important for studying terrestrial hydrological processes. Although many studies relevant to the TMZ have been conducted worldwide, the extraction methods and criteria used to describe the TMZ vary significantly both spatially and temporally. To improve the applicability of the methods adopted in previous studies and to develop a novel model to accurately extract the TMZ in multiple estuaries and different seasons from remote-sensing imageries, this study estimated the total suspended solid (TSS) and chlorophyll a (Chl a) concentrations in three estuaries. These were the Pearl River estuary (PRE), the Hanjiang River estuary (HRE), and the Moyangjiang River estuary (MRE) of Guangdong Province, China. The spatial distribution characteristics of the TSS and Chl a concentrations were analyzed. A nearly opposite association was found between the TSS and Chl a concentrations in the three estuaries, particularly in the PRE. The regions with high (low) TSS concentrations had relatively low (high) Chl a concentrations and, therefore, a turbidity maximum zone index (TMZI), defined as the ratio of the difference and sum of the logarithmic transformation of the TSS and Chl a concentrations, was firstly proposed. By calculating the TMZI values in the PRE on 20 November 2004 (low-flow season), it was found that the criterion TMZI>0.2 could be used to identify the TMZs of the PRE effectively. The TMZ extraction results were generally consistent with the visual-interpretation results. The area-based accuracy measures showed that the quality (Q) of the extraction reached 0.8429. The same criterion was applied in the PRE on 18 October 2015 (high-flow season), and high accuracy and consistency across seasons were observed (Q=0.8171). The western shoal of the PRE was the main distribution area of TMZs. Extracting TMZs by the newly proposed index performed well in different estuaries and on different dates (HRE on 13 August 2008 in the high-flow season and MRE on 6 December 2013 in the low-flow season). Compared to the previous fixed threshold of TSS or turbidity methods, extracting the TMZ using the TMZI had higher accuracy and better applicability (Q : 0.1046–0.4770 vs. 0.8171–0.8429). Evidently, this unified TMZI is potentially an optimized method for the global monitoring and extraction of TMZs of estuaries from different satellite remote-sensing imageries. It can be used to help the understanding of the spatial and temporal variation in TMZs and estuarine processes at regional and global scales as well as improve the management and sustainable development of regional society and the natural environment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With the advancement of industrialization and urbanization, the natural landscape has been destroyed to varying degrees, presenting the trend of landscape fragmentation and ecosystem degradation. Taking Dinghu Mountain National Nature Reserve as an example, a three-dimension measurement system of separation degree, fractal dimension and interference intensity for landscape fragmentation is established and verified by collecting survey data through questionnaires. The research results will provide a theoretical reference for landscape conservation and sustainable development of national nature reserves. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Achieving energy conservation and emission reduction in the industry is an inevitable way to promote harmony between society and nature and achieve sustainable human development. China's infrastructure construction industry is developing rapidly. Still, there is a lack of a well-established industry standard for evaluating the potential and level of energy reduction in infrastructure construction. A severe lack of quantitative research on energy-saving and CO2 outflow decreases the benefits of green development advances. This study takes the energy conservation and outflow decrease of construction waste slurry treatment in Guangdong Province, China, as the background, establishes an evaluation system with three rule levels: social, economic, and environmental, and adopts rough set theory to determine the weights of each index to ensure the objectivity of each index. According to the recommendations of the carbon emission calculation guidelines, select the relevant data to evaluate the energy-saving and emission reduction benefits of the new green construction technology of grouted piles in a road project in Guangdong Province. The results show that the development level and potential of energy saving and emission reduction technology in the construction sector in Guangdong Province are increasing year by year. It's potential changes with the increase or decrease of highway mileage, and it is an urgent need to increase investment in pollution control. The research results can evaluate the benefits of energy-saving and carbon dioxide emission reduction in the construction industry, also be used as a reference to assess energy-saving and emission reduction in the construction industry in other countries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With continuous growth of economy and population in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area (GBA), pressure of resources and environment is increasing. Therefore, sustainable green development of the GBA has attracted more and more attention from society. What is relationship among economy, resource and environment in the GBA? How to balance and analyze relationship between Green Economy and carrying capacity of resource and environment in the GBA? It is an important scientific question facing sustainable development of the GBA. This paper constructs a comprehensive ECC index system for economy - resources – environment with data from statistics yearbooks, calculates weights of indicators by entropy weight method and Ecological Carrying Capacity by TOPSIS model later using C++ programming language. It also carries out exponential smoothing for ECC prediction by SPSS software and coupling coordination of economy - resources - environment system in this area. The results show that the comprehensive ECC of the GBA has an upward trend from 2000 to 2017. In the next five years, Comprehensive Ecological Carrying Capacity of GBA will continue to increase linearly. In the process of GE development in the GBA, the environmental carrying capacity has steadily increased. There is a negative correlation between resource carrying capacity and GE but a positive correlation between environmental carrying capacity and GE. The coordination of economy - resource - environment system in the GBA has been continuously strengthened, and development of economy is advancing towards direction of high resource carrying capacity and high environmental carrying capacity. From perspective of comprehensive ecological carrying capacity to explore the world's two kinds of different political and economic system under comparative analysis of the urban Green Economy development. We found that the Macao and nine cities of the GBA are basically stable but Hong Kong is experiencing tortuous growth with dramatic changes. This research would provide theoretical reference for subsequent development direction of GBA and other bay areas. The future research can carry out deep simulation on the economy - resource - environment dynamics system model and formulate specific development plans. Government departments concerned with development of China's GBA should be committed to reducing pressure on resources, developing new energy and clean energy, while continuing to maintain even increase investment in environmental protection • An Eco-Carrying Capacity evaluation index system of the GBA was constructed to economy-resources-environment. • The comprehensive Eco-Carrying Capacity of the GBA were analyzed. • Coupling analysis of green economy and carrying capacity of resource and environment in the GBA was explored. • Provide comparative analysis under two different political and economic systems of the urban green economic development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Land use land cover (LULC) of Guangdong, Hong Kong, and Macao (GHKM), south china, has undergone significant changes in the last few decades. This study analyze the spatio-temporal LULC changes and urban expansion during 2010–2017 using Landsat TM, ETM+, and OLI. The Landsat images were classified using support vector machine (SVM) into seven classes as forest, grassland, water, fishponds, built-up, bareland, and farmland. Several socioeconomic factors were also obtained to determine their impact on LULC. The result shows that during the studied period, massive economic development and urbanization has increased the built-up area from 8.26% (16,209.61 km2) to 10.31% (20241.77 km2) and substantial reduction in both farmland from 37.64% (73,897.77 km2) to 33.05% (64932.19 km2) and fishponds from 1.25% (2451.12 km2) 0.85% (1674.71 km2). The most dominant conversion were from farmland to built-up and to forest. Furthermore, forest cover increased to 45.02 % (88384.97 km2) in 2017 from 42.38% (83215.59 km2) in 2010 as a result of different afforestation scheme and policies in order to make Greener study area. The analysis of socioeconomic factors shows that increase in gross domestic product (GDP), total investment in fixed assets, and industrialization has led to urbanization growth on a large scale and reduction of farmland. Therefore, there is pressing need for sustainable development and protection of farmlands. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Impervious surface (IS) is a key indicator to measure the urbanization process and ecological environment. Many studies have observed an urbanization process based on IS at the city scale. Understanding the changes in the IS over a period at a regional level offers an alternative and effective approach to characterize and quantify the spatial process of urban agglomeration. This study focuses on the urban agglomeration of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area (GBA) by utilizing the sensor-based Landsat data during 1987-2017 and investigates the spatiotemporal distribution of IS expansion at both regional and city scales. The modified linear spectral mixture analysis (MLSMA) method is used to extract the IS of the GBA. Then, the IS mapping accuracies were assessed after comparison with high-resolution historical data. The spatiotemporal and directional changes of IS surfaces for GBA are analyzed by using Gravity Center (GC) and Standard Deviational Ellipse (SDE). Finally, Shannon's Diversity Index (SHDI) is used to analyze the overall characteristics of landscape level, and the Patch Density (PD) and Landscape Shape Index (LSI) are used to describe the characteristics of different classes of the IS. The results show that the IS of the whole region experienced rapid and massive expansion during the past 30 years and exhibited a distinct characteristic along the Pearl River Delta (PRD) and the coastline. Furthermore, the IS area increased rapidly in the PRD, while it is relatively stable in Hong Kong and Macao. We believe that the findings of this study can help policy makers to better understand and maintain the sustainable development of the GBA. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The ways cities grow and evolve spatially are crucial factors which affect urban aerosol pollution. Understanding the spatial distribution of air pollutants and their correlations with urban form is of great significance to the improvement of urban atmospheric environment and regional sustainable development of urbanization. In this study, we firstly examined the spatial variations of satellite-derived PM2.5 and NO2 and urban form metrics in Guangdong, and also explored their relationships. The results indicated that the highest and lowest values of PM2.5 and NO2 mainly occur over the Pearl River Delta (PRD) region, and over the eastern Guangdong, respectively. For the size and shape of urban patches, urban form had significant effects on air pollutants in Guangdong. PM2.5 was positively correlated with AREA_AM, CA and SHAPE_AM, and NO2 was positively correlated with LPI, PLAND and AREA_AM, while both of them were negatively related to PARA _AM and ENN_AM. It is inferred that polycentric urban form was associated with low PM2.5 and NO2 concentration, and reasonable urban planning would help mitigate the fine particle pollution. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article applies a three-stage Slacks-Based Measure-Data Envelopment Analysis (SBM-DEA) pattern to examine the relationship between energy consumption and unfavorable CO2 emissions on green sustainable development, for the 11 cities of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area (GBA) during 2010–2016, by going through various violated factors and stochastic disturbance. Labor, capital and energy resource are chosen as input variables, while GDP and CO2 emission as output variables. During the three phases consisting of the SBM-DEA model (first stage and third stage) and SFA analysis (second stage), CO2 emission is considered as an unfavorable outcome, while stochastic statistical disturbances and external environmental influences are identified. The results show that the average efficiency of the GBA cities is 0.708, with only Shenzhen, Macao SAR and Hong Kong SAR having an efficiency of 1 during the whole study period. Based on the findings, suggestions are made for the GBA cities' sustainable development aspects. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The economic valuation of ecosystem services is an effective way to understand the multiple benefits provided. Effluent and other environmental problems must be properly managed if shrimp aquaculture is to achieve sustainability. Evaluation of shrimp ecosystems can facilitate voluntary improvements in the environmental performance of shrimp farms. This study evaluated shrimp ecosystem services in Leizhou City, Guangdong Province, using the market method (MM), carbon tax rate method (CRM), reforestation cost method (RCM) and contingent valuation method (CVM), based on results of input-output analysis and water quality of shrimp ponds. We examined both direct and indirect value of shrimp ecosystem services at large and small spatial scales. This study has quantified the multiple benefits and costs of shrimp ecosystems, suggests a more feasible basis for coastal environmental management and sustainability of shrimp aquaculture. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Zhan, Y.Z., 2020. Mechanism and spatial spillover effect of co-aggregation of Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macau greater bay area marine industry. In: Bai, X. and Zhou, H. (eds.), Advances in Water Resources, Environmental Protection, and Sustainable Development. Journal of Coastal Research, Special Issue No. 115, pp. 256-258. Coconut Creek (Florida), ISSN 0749-0208. In the industrial research system of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area, on the one hand, industrial agglomeration affects the economy through scale effects and knowledge spillovers. On the other hand, an increase in the level of agglomeration will also lead to an increase in industrial agglomeration. The discharge of pollutants is spatially related to environmental pollution. Therefore, for the marine industry, whether the degree of agglomeration will also have an impact on the marine environmental pollution; whether this effect is also spatially relevant. The spatial spillover effect of marine industrial agglomeration in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area on marine environmental pollution is analyzed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]