Decoupling of industrial water consumption and economic expansion in the Yangtze River Economic Belt: a comparative analysis across three Five-Year plans
Abstract As the Yangtze River Economic Belt (YREB) continues its rapid economic expansion, the mismatch between the supply and demand of industrial water resources has become increasingly pronounced. While existing research has largely overlooked the decoupling dynamics between industrial water cons...
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Nature Portfolio
2025-07-01
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| author | Xiujuan Gong Shu Liu Wei Ye Liang Liu |
| author_facet | Xiujuan Gong Shu Liu Wei Ye Liang Liu |
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| description | Abstract As the Yangtze River Economic Belt (YREB) continues its rapid economic expansion, the mismatch between the supply and demand of industrial water resources has become increasingly pronounced. While existing research has largely overlooked the decoupling dynamics between industrial water consumption and economic expansion in this region, this study provides a comprehensive analysis of its decoupling relationship, the stability, and the underlying driving forces. Drawing on data from 11 provinces and municipalities in the YREB spanning the 11th to 13th Five-Year Plan (FYP) periods, this study employs the Tapio decoupling model and the logarithmic mean divisia index (LMDI) model as its primary analytical tools. Through comparative analysis, the results reveal that the YREB’s overall decoupling status evolved from weak decoupling in the 11th FYP period to strong decoupling in the 12th and 13th periods, though marked regional disparities persist. Notably, all provinces exhibited some degree of decoupling reversal, primarily during plan transitions, the mid-term of the 12th FYP, or around 2019. This underscores the non-linear and dynamic nature of the decoupling process. In terms of driving factors, during the 11th and 12th FYP periods, the technological effect was the dominant force curbing industrial water consumption, while the output effect was the main contributor to its increase. The interplay between these opposing forces led to fluctuations in the total water consumption effect. However, by the 13th FYP period, structural effect emerged as a significant new restraining force. This study contributes empirical evidence and policy-oriented insights to improve sustainable industrial water management in major river basin economies. |
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| language | English |
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| spelling | doaj-art-742e6eb627f349aa97278b07b5b232db2025-08-20T03:03:40ZengNature PortfolioScientific Reports2045-23222025-07-0115111410.1038/s41598-025-06042-5Decoupling of industrial water consumption and economic expansion in the Yangtze River Economic Belt: a comparative analysis across three Five-Year plansXiujuan Gong0Shu Liu1Wei Ye2Liang Liu3School of Environment and Resource, Southwest University of Science and TechnologySchool of Economics and Management, Southwest University of Science and TechnologySchool of Economics and Management, Southwest University of Science and TechnologySchool of Economics and Management, Southwest University of Science and TechnologyAbstract As the Yangtze River Economic Belt (YREB) continues its rapid economic expansion, the mismatch between the supply and demand of industrial water resources has become increasingly pronounced. While existing research has largely overlooked the decoupling dynamics between industrial water consumption and economic expansion in this region, this study provides a comprehensive analysis of its decoupling relationship, the stability, and the underlying driving forces. Drawing on data from 11 provinces and municipalities in the YREB spanning the 11th to 13th Five-Year Plan (FYP) periods, this study employs the Tapio decoupling model and the logarithmic mean divisia index (LMDI) model as its primary analytical tools. Through comparative analysis, the results reveal that the YREB’s overall decoupling status evolved from weak decoupling in the 11th FYP period to strong decoupling in the 12th and 13th periods, though marked regional disparities persist. Notably, all provinces exhibited some degree of decoupling reversal, primarily during plan transitions, the mid-term of the 12th FYP, or around 2019. This underscores the non-linear and dynamic nature of the decoupling process. In terms of driving factors, during the 11th and 12th FYP periods, the technological effect was the dominant force curbing industrial water consumption, while the output effect was the main contributor to its increase. The interplay between these opposing forces led to fluctuations in the total water consumption effect. However, by the 13th FYP period, structural effect emerged as a significant new restraining force. This study contributes empirical evidence and policy-oriented insights to improve sustainable industrial water management in major river basin economies.https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-025-06042-5Yangtze River Economic BeltIndustrial water consumptionEconomic expansionTapioLogarithmic mean divisia index |
| spellingShingle | Xiujuan Gong Shu Liu Wei Ye Liang Liu Decoupling of industrial water consumption and economic expansion in the Yangtze River Economic Belt: a comparative analysis across three Five-Year plans Scientific Reports Yangtze River Economic Belt Industrial water consumption Economic expansion Tapio Logarithmic mean divisia index |
| title | Decoupling of industrial water consumption and economic expansion in the Yangtze River Economic Belt: a comparative analysis across three Five-Year plans |
| title_full | Decoupling of industrial water consumption and economic expansion in the Yangtze River Economic Belt: a comparative analysis across three Five-Year plans |
| title_fullStr | Decoupling of industrial water consumption and economic expansion in the Yangtze River Economic Belt: a comparative analysis across three Five-Year plans |
| title_full_unstemmed | Decoupling of industrial water consumption and economic expansion in the Yangtze River Economic Belt: a comparative analysis across three Five-Year plans |
| title_short | Decoupling of industrial water consumption and economic expansion in the Yangtze River Economic Belt: a comparative analysis across three Five-Year plans |
| title_sort | decoupling of industrial water consumption and economic expansion in the yangtze river economic belt a comparative analysis across three five year plans |
| topic | Yangtze River Economic Belt Industrial water consumption Economic expansion Tapio Logarithmic mean divisia index |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-025-06042-5 |
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