Research in the International Journal of Shipping and Transport Logistics has looked at the environmental sustainability of the Yangtze River Economic Belt (YREB) and raises important points about the region’s ability to balance rapid economic growth with ecological preservation. Zhimei Lei, Shanshan Cai and Shaoxin Zhuo of Kunming University of Science and Technology, Yui-yip Lau of The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, and Ming Kim Lim of the University of Glasgow, UK, explain that the YREB encompasses eleven provinces and cities. The region thus plays a pivotal role in the national economy of China. However, its development has often been marred by significant environmental challenges, such as pollution, resource depletion, and ecological degradation.
The team examined almost two decades of data on sustainability levels across the YREB, using an innovative evaluation framework and a “pressure-state-response” (PSR) model. This latter tool allowed the team to link environmental pressures to the condition of the environment and the responses to the problems set in motion by policymakers. As such, the work integrates both qualitative indicators, such as government policies and key speeches, and quantitative data, making it particularly well-suited for the complex realities of the YREB.
Improving environmental sustainability over the study period could be seen in the data with the middle and upper regions of the YREB showing the most progress. However, the research also showed that there are persistent regional disparities. The lower regions of the YREB, in particular, lag behind in terms of environmental sustainability, which could have long-term implications for the overall ecological health of the area. Moreover, despite some obvious progress, there is no clear improvement in sustainability levels even between neighbouring provinces.
This, the researchers suggest, implies that effective collaboration across the YREB is not occurring. The team explains the disparities as perhaps being due to a combination of intra-regional and inter-regional factors: levels of industrialization, policy implementation approaches, and investment in green technologies. The implication is that there is a pressing need for more coordinated action between the YREB’s provinces and cities. The team adds that the creation of a platform for sharing environmental data and research could be used to improve governance and decision-making across the whole region.
Lei, Z., Cai, S., Zhuo, S., Lau, Y-y. and Lim, M.K. (2024) ‘Analysis of the differences and spatial-temporal dynamic evolution of the environmental sustainability of the Yangtze River Economic Belt in China’, Int. J. Shipping and Transport Logistics, Vol. 19, No. 5, pp.1–41.