Coupling Coordination Development of the Ecological–Economic System in Hangzhou, China

Abstract

The contradiction between China’s urban economic development and the ecological environment has become increasingly prominent. Promoting the coordinated development of the ecological–economic system is an effective way to achieve sustainable development. Based on the analysis of the coupling mechanism of the ecological environment and economic development, the county unit is taken as the research unit to evaluate the coupling coordination degree (CCD) of Hangzhou’s ecological–economic system and analyze the evolution of coupling coordination characteristics and landscape ecological patterns in Hangzhou from 2010 to 2020. The results show that (1) the ecological protection and economic development status of Hangzhou is generally good, but the ecological environment index cannot maintain stable growth; (2) the coupling coordination degree of ecological–economic systems in various regions shows an overall upward trend, and ecological protection and economic development show positive interaction characteristics; (3) the development of CCD between regions is uneven, and the development level of a single subsystem in each region hinders coupling coordination between the two parties; and (4) changes in morphological spatial patterns further prove the coupling relationship between the two systems. Although the regional ecological connectivity has been optimized, the increase in perforations is crowding out the core area, and the regional ecological carrying capacity is facing challenges.