Measurement and driving mechanisms of water use efficiency in the three major urban agglomerations in China from the perspective of green and sustainable development

作者：Xiaodi Xu, Yanhu He, Qian Tan, Xiaohong Chen · 发表于：Ecological Indicators · 年份：2025 · DOI：10.1016/j.ecolind.2025.114094 · 被引用次数：3 · 研究领域：Water resources management and optimization、Land Use and Ecosystem Services、Water Resources and Sustainability

• An innovative multi-dimensional indicator system was developed for comprehensive water use efficiency (WUE) evaluation. • Systematic comparison and targeted improvement strategies for WUE among urban agglomerations were conducted and proposed. • The key driving factor for PRDUA is the investment in fixed assets for urban municipal public facilities construction. • The key driving factors for BTHUA are the number of employees at the end of urban non-private units and total water supply. • The three major urban agglomerations experienced an upward WUE trend, despite significant spatiotemporal heterogeneity. Sustainable water use is crucial for economic and social progress. Given the increasing water and energy pressures faced by urban agglomerations, improving water use efficiency (WUE) is essential for achieving regional low-carbon sustainable development. This study uses the Super-SBM model to measure WUE in the Yangtze River Delta Urban Agglomeration (YRDUA), Pearl River Delta Urban Agglomeration (PRDUA), and Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei Urban Agglomeration (BTHUA) from 2009 to 2022, by establishing a multi-dimensional indicator system that encompasses water resources, energy, and industrial structure. Local spatial autocorrelation and systematic clustering methods were employed to analyze their spatial–temporal evolution. The driving mechanisms were identified by the BP-DEMATEL model. Results show: (1) The overall trend of WUE shows an upward trajectory. The average annual growt...