Investigation of the Coupling and Coordination Relationship of Water–Energy–Food–Ecology and the Driving Mechanism in Dalad Banner

Abstract

Aiming at the complex problems of water resources, energy, food, and ecology in ten parallel tributaries directly joining the Yellow River in Ordos City, Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region (the Ten Kongduis), the coordination of the water–energy–food–ecology (WEFE) system in Dalad Banner and its townships was studied from the perspective of system coupling in time and space. First, the evaluation index system of WEFE coupling coordination is constructed, and then the coupling coordination degree model, grey relationship degree model, and geographical detector are used to quantitatively evaluate the development level and spatio-temporal evolution characteristics of WEFE coordination in Dalad Banner and its townships and explore its driving mechanism. The results suggest that (1) the WEFE comprehensive evaluation index of Dalad Banner and its townships showed a slowly rising trend on the whole. The growth trends for the WEFE subsystems and integrated assessment are 0.65%, 21.02%, 17.01%, 1.17%, and 9.96%, respectively. This shows that the energy subsystem occupies the main position. (2) The coupling degree of WEFE in Dalad Banner and its townships is high; the mean value is 0.967, which is in the high-level coupling stage. But the coordination degree is low; the mean value is 0.668, which is in the elementary coordination stage. The spatial development is unbalanced and uncoordinated in Dalad Banner; this phenomenon mainly exists in the eastern part of Dalad Banner, with a gradual change from the west to the center of the area with higher harmonization. (3) The coordination of the WEFE system of Dalad Banner and its townships shows a good trend. The average coupling coordination degree in Wangaizhao town has the largest increasing trend, which is 12.69%. Fengshuiliang Town has the smallest growth trend, which is −10.37%. The region is gradually developing to the stage of well coordination, and each township has basically entered the middle-rank coordination stage. (4) In general, in the degree of system impact, the ecological impact is the largest and the grain is the weakest. In terms of spatial differences, energy has the greatest impact, while water has the least explanatory power. In terms of interaction, the interaction among water resources, grain, and ecology has the greatest explanatory power. The influence of WEFE in Dalad Banner coupling coordination changes obviously with time, and the driving mechanism and stability are relatively weak. The results of this study can provide a decision basis for the coordinated development of WEFE and the high-quality and sustainable development of Dalad Banner and its townships.