Water ecological security assessment and spatial autocorrelation analysis of prefectural regions involved in the Yellow River Basin

To have a more comprehensive understanding of the water ecological security status of the Yellow River Basin, this paper constructs a water ecological security evaluation index system founded on the Pressure-State-Response (PSR) model. The indicators are selected by considering factors such as meteorological conditions, population, economy, water resources, water environment, water ecology, land ecology, ecological service functions, pollution control, and capital investment. Then, the single index quantification-multiple indices syntheses-poly-criteria integration (SMI-P) method was used to determine the water ecological security index (WESI) of 62 cities in the Yellow River Basin, to classify the safety levels, and combined with the spatial autocorrelation analysis to study the regional characteristics. The results prove that: (a) The overall water ecological security of the Yellow River Basin is relatively poor. Half of the 62 cities have reached the second-level warning level, and most of them are concentrated in the upper and middle reaches of the basin. (b) Wetland area is a long-term key factor in the construction of water ecological safety, and the greening rate of built-up areas has an increasing impact on water ecological safety. (c) The overall water ecological security index shows a slow upward trend, with the annual average growth rate was 0.59%. (d) The water ecological security of 62 cities in the Yellow River Basin shows significant spatial autocorrelation. The findings can offer a practical basis for the water ecological management to promote the high-quality development of the Yellow River Basin.

Automated summary

This paper constructs a water ecological security evaluation index system based on the Pressure-State-Response (PSR) model to comprehensively understand the water ecological security status of the Yellow River Basin. The study evaluates the water ecological security index (WESI) of 62 cities in the Yellow River Basin using the single index quantification-multiple indices syntheses-poly-criteria integration (SMI-P) method, and analyzes the regional characteristics through spatial autocorrelation analysis. The findings reveal that the overall water ecological security of the Yellow River Basin is relatively poor, with significant spatial autocorrelation and a slow upward trend in the security index. Wetland area and the greening rate of built-up areas are important factors influencing water ecological safety.