Evaluating Sustainable Development of Land Resources in the Yangtze River Economic Belt of China

Abstract

The Yangtze River Economic Belt (YREB) is one of the most economically active regions in China, where an imbalance between the demand for land and the non-renewable is increasingly prominent. We present the patterns of land use in the YREB, then construct an evaluation index based on the Pressure-State-Response model. The TOPSIS model is used to evaluate sustainable land development in the YREB, and the spatial deductive characteristics of sustainable development levels are analyzed using three aspects: global spatial correlation, local spatial correlation, and regional difference. The results about the YREB show that: (1) The comprehensive sustainable land development score is average, indicating moderate sustainability with a fluctuating upward trend and good prospects. (2) The sustainable development levels of land have strong positive spatial correlation and agglomeration; the agglomeration characteristics follow a pattern similar to that of the status of economic development. (3) Sustainable development levels of land in the provinces and cities show great spatial differences.