Abstract
In recent years, the construction of eco-civilization in China has unprecedentedly attracted the attention of stakeholder authorities. One of the important issues of the construction of eco-civilization is the evaluation of regional resource environment pressure. Because of the variety and complexity of resources and environmental problems, it is not so easy to evaluate resource environment pressure. The Footprint Family method takes into account factors such as land and water resource carrying capacity, carbon emissions, forestry carbon sequestration and sustainable development. It therefore covers the basic connotation of eco-civilization construction. However, less domestic research has been reported on resource environment pressure in relation to Footprint Family. In this study, an evaluation system was constructed for resource environment pressure evaluation based on Footprint Family. The system was tested in the evaluation of resource environment pressure in Sichuan Province, where lies in the Silk Road Economic Belt, in order to promote the construction of eco-civilization and development of eco-civilization legislation and systematical construction. The results showed that per capita ecological footprint increased by 109.57% whereas per capita biocapacity had no obvious change from 1990 to 2013. Therefore, ecological pressure index increased from below-average (Ⅲa) to very high level (Ⅲb) in the period. In the same period, forestry carbon sequestration increased by 32.01%, greenhouse gases (GHGs) emissions remained at low grade (Ⅰb), while GHG emission index sharply increased by 234.97%. As the growth of water footprint was very small, water resource pressure was very small too (Ⅰa). However, decrease in available water resource was not negligible. Pressure on provincial resources and environment increased from very low (Ⅰa) to below-average (Ⅱa) grade. Spatially, ecological pressure was at very low grade (Ⅰa) in Ganzi and Aba, at above-average grade (Ⅱb) in Guangyuan, and at very high grade (Ⅲb) in other regions. GHG emission index was very high (Ⅲb) in Panzhihua, high (Ⅲa) in Neijiang, above-average (Ⅱb) in Leshan, below-average (Ⅱa) in Meishan, with carbon sequestration at Ⅰa (very low) grade in Ganzi, Ya’an and Aba, and?Ⅰb (very low) grade in other regions. Water resource pressure was at very high grade (Ⅲb) in Zigong, Suining, Meishan, Neijiang and Ziyang. It was at high grade (Ⅲa) in Chengdu, above-average (Ⅱb) in Luzhou and Dazhou, below-average grade (Ⅱa) in Deyang, low grade (Ⅰb) in Yibin and Panzhihua , and was at very low grade (Ⅰa) in other regions. Resource environment pressure was at very low grade (Ⅰa) in Aba, Ganzi, Ya’an and Guangyuan, low grade (Ⅰb) in Liangshan City and Mianyang, below-average (Ⅱa) in Guang’an, Bazhong and Nanchong, above-average (Ⅲb) in Yibin, Deyang, Leshan and Dazhou, high grade (Ⅲa) in Luzhou, Ziyang and Chengdu, and very high grade (Ⅲb) in Suining, Panzhihua, Meishan, Zigong and Neijiang. Therefore resource environment pressure was due mainly to high ecological pressure driven by the large population with relatively little cultivated land per capita in Sichuan Province. The construction of future eco-civilization should strictly be adapted to cultivated land policies that were in turn based on ecological red-lines to ensure productive cultivation. In addition, the optimization of energy consumption structure by vigorously developing hydropower and strengthening forest conservation to improve forest carbon sink capability was an indispensable option in Sichuan Province.
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