IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/gam/jsusta/v17y2025i19p8774-d1761673.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

The Impact of Urbanization Level on Urban Ecological Resilience and Its Role Mechanisms: A Case Study of Resource-Based Cities in China

Author

Listed:
  • Lei Suo

    (Beibu Gulf Ocean Development Research Center, Beibu Gulf University, Qinzhou 535011, China
    The School of Economics and Management, Beibu Gulf University, Qinzhou 535011, China)

  • Linsen Zhu

    (Beibu Gulf Ocean Development Research Center, Beibu Gulf University, Qinzhou 535011, China
    The School of Economics and Management, Beibu Gulf University, Qinzhou 535011, China)

  • Haiying Feng

    (Beibu Gulf Ocean Development Research Center, Beibu Gulf University, Qinzhou 535011, China)

  • Wei Li

    (Beibu Gulf Research Institute of the New Land-Sea Corridor, Qinzhou 535011, China)

Abstract

Against the backdrop of accelerating global urbanization and intensifying ecological pressures, investigating the relationship between urbanization levels and ecological resilience in resource-based cities has become crucial for nations striving to achieve both sustainable development and ecological conservation. Utilizing panel data from 114 resource-based cities in China between 2010 and 2023, this study innovatively employs a composite nighttime light index to measure urbanization levels and constructs a comprehensive ecological resilience index using the entropy method. By applying a double machine learning model, this study thoroughly examines the impact, mechanisms, and heterogeneity of urbanization on ecological resilience in these cities. The findings reveal a gradual increase in ecological resilience among China’s resource-based cities, with the majority reaching high resilience levels by 2023. Spatial aggregation centers are identified in eastern China, the Yangtze River Delta, and the Pearl River Delta. Moreover, urbanization demonstrates a significant positive correlation with ecological resilience, a conclusion reinforced through robustness tests. Mechanism analysis reveals that industrial structure upgrading, green technology innovation, and energy efficiency improvement serve as key transmission channels. Heterogeneity analysis indicates that urbanization exerts a more pronounced effect on enhancing ecological resilience in regenerative resource-based cities as well as those located in eastern and central regions, while its impact is relatively weaker in declining resource-based cities and those in western and northeastern regions. Finally, this study proposes policy recommendations focusing on advancing industrial structure sophistication, constructing a green technology innovation ecosystem, implementing an energy efficiency enhancement initiative, deepening region-specific governance, and adopting targeted policy interventions. These findings provide theoretical support for precise policy formulation in resource-based cities and contribute to advancing academic understanding of the relationship between sustainable development and ecological resilience in such regions.

Suggested Citation

  • Lei Suo & Linsen Zhu & Haiying Feng & Wei Li, 2025. "The Impact of Urbanization Level on Urban Ecological Resilience and Its Role Mechanisms: A Case Study of Resource-Based Cities in China," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 17(19), pages 1-28, September.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:17:y:2025:i:19:p:8774-:d:1761673
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/17/19/8774/pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/17/19/8774/
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Glaeser, Edward L. & Kahn, Matthew E., 2010. "The greenness of cities: Carbon dioxide emissions and urban development," Journal of Urban Economics, Elsevier, vol. 67(3), pages 404-418, May.
    2. Victor Chernozhukov & Denis Chetverikov & Mert Demirer & Esther Duflo & Christian Hansen & Whitney Newey & James Robins, 2018. "Double/debiased machine learning for treatment and structural parameters," Econometrics Journal, Royal Economic Society, vol. 21(1), pages 1-68, February.
    3. Moomaw, Ronald L. & Shatter, Ali M., 1996. "Urbanization and Economic Development: A Bias toward Large Cities?," Journal of Urban Economics, Elsevier, vol. 40(1), pages 13-37, July.
    4. Daxue Kan & Lianjv Lv, 2024. "The impact of new urbanization on water ecological resilience: An empirical study from central China," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 19(12), pages 1-25, December.
    5. Andreoni, James & Levinson, Arik, 2001. "The simple analytics of the environmental Kuznets curve," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 80(2), pages 269-286, May.
    6. Xu, Bin & Lin, Boqiang, 2015. "How industrialization and urbanization process impacts on CO2 emissions in China: Evidence from nonparametric additive regression models," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 48(C), pages 188-202.
    7. András Szeberényi & Tomasz Rokicki & Árpád Papp-Váry, 2022. "Examining the Relationship between Renewable Energy and Environmental Awareness," Energies, MDPI, vol. 15(19), pages 1-25, September.
    8. Blundell, Richard & Bond, Stephen, 1998. "Initial conditions and moment restrictions in dynamic panel data models," Journal of Econometrics, Elsevier, vol. 87(1), pages 115-143, August.
    9. Yang, Jui-Chung & Chuang, Hui-Ching & Kuan, Chung-Ming, 2020. "Double machine learning with gradient boosting and its application to the Big N audit quality effect," Journal of Econometrics, Elsevier, vol. 216(1), pages 268-283.
    10. Sadorsky, Perry, 2014. "The effect of urbanization on CO2 emissions in emerging economies," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 41(C), pages 147-153.
    11. Xiaolin Xun & Yongbo Yuan, 2020. "Research on the urban resilience evaluation with hybrid multiple attribute TOPSIS method: an example in China," Natural Hazards: Journal of the International Society for the Prevention and Mitigation of Natural Hazards, Springer;International Society for the Prevention and Mitigation of Natural Hazards, vol. 103(1), pages 557-577, August.
    12. Xuefei Ma & Xiaohong Chen & Yue Du & Xuan Zhu & Yue Dai & Xin Li & Rui Zhang & Ying Wang, 2022. "Evaluation of Urban Spatial Resilience and Its Influencing Factors: Case Study of the Harbin–Changchun Urban Agglomeration in China," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(5), pages 1-17, March.
    13. Manuel Arellano & Stephen Bond, 1991. "Some Tests of Specification for Panel Data: Monte Carlo Evidence and an Application to Employment Equations," The Review of Economic Studies, Review of Economic Studies Ltd, vol. 58(2), pages 277-297.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Zhonghua Cheng & Xiaowen Hu, 2023. "The effects of urbanization and urban sprawl on CO2 emissions in China," Environment, Development and Sustainability: A Multidisciplinary Approach to the Theory and Practice of Sustainable Development, Springer, vol. 25(2), pages 1792-1808, February.
    2. Nguyen Phuc Canh & Su Dinh Thanh & Christophe Schinckus & Jo Bensemann & Lai Trung Thanh, 2019. "Global Emissions: A New Contribution from the Shadow Economy," International Journal of Energy Economics and Policy, Econjournals, vol. 9(3), pages 320-337.
    3. Kangyin Dong & Yalin Han & Yue Dou & Muhammad Shahbaz, 2022. "Moving toward carbon neutrality: Assessing natural gas import security and its impact on CO2 emissions," Sustainable Development, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 30(4), pages 751-770, August.
    4. Arminen, Heli & Menegaki, Angeliki N., 2019. "Corruption, climate and the energy-environment-growth nexus," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 80(C), pages 621-634.
    5. Castells-Quintana, David & Dienesch, Elisa & Krause, Melanie, 2021. "Air pollution in an urban world: A global view on density, cities and emissions," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 189(C).
    6. Poelhekke, Steven, 2011. "Urban growth and uninsured rural risk: Booming towns in bust times," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 96(2), pages 461-475, November.
    7. Mohamed Boly, 2018. "CO 2 mitigation in developing countries: the role of foreign aid," Working Papers halshs-01740881, HAL.
    8. Victor Chernozhukov & Ivan Fernandez-Val & Chen Huang & Weining Wang, 2024. "Arellano-bond lasso estimator for dynamic linear panel models," CeMMAP working papers 09/24, Institute for Fiscal Studies.
    9. Yusen Luo & Qinglin Wang & Xingle Long & Zheming Yan & Muhammad Salman & Chao Wu, 2023. "Green innovation and SO2 emissions: Dynamic threshold effect of human capital," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 32(1), pages 499-515, January.
    10. Oyekola, Olayinka & Emediegwu, Lotanna E. & Animashaun, Jubril O., 2024. "Commodity windfalls, political regimes, and environmental quality," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 138(C).
    11. Dmitry Arkhangelsky & Guido Imbens, 2023. "Causal Models for Longitudinal and Panel Data: A Survey," Papers 2311.15458, arXiv.org, revised Jun 2024.
    12. Arne Henningsen & Guy Low & David Wuepper & Tobias Dalhaus & Hugo Storm & Dagim Belay & Stefan Hirsch, 2024. "Estimating Causal Effects with Observational Data: Guidelines for Agricultural and Applied Economists," IFRO Working Paper 2024/03, University of Copenhagen, Department of Food and Resource Economics.
    13. Huynh, Cong Minh & Le, Quoc Nha & Lam, Thi Huong Tra, 2023. "Is air pollution a government failure or a market failure? Global evidence from a multi-dimensional analysis," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 173(C).
    14. Wu, Haitao & Hao, Yu & Weng, Jia-Hsi, 2019. "How does energy consumption affect China's urbanization? New evidence from dynamic threshold panel models," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 127(C), pages 24-38.
    15. Mohamed Abdouli & Olfa Kamoun & Besma Hamdi, 2018. "The impact of economic growth, population density, and FDI inflows on $$\hbox {CO}_{2}$$ CO 2 emissions in BRICTS countries: Does the Kuznets curve exist?," Empirical Economics, Springer, vol. 54(4), pages 1717-1742, June.
    16. Martínez-Zarzoso, Inmaculada & Maruotti, Antonello, 2011. "The impact of urbanization on CO2 emissions: Evidence from developing countries," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 70(7), pages 1344-1353, May.
    17. George Marbuah & Ing-Marie Gren, 2015. "Carbon Emissions and Social Capital in Sweden," Working Papers 2015.14, FAERE - French Association of Environmental and Resource Economists.
    18. Managi, Shunsuke & Kaneko, Shinji, 2009. "Environmental performance and returns to pollution abatement in China," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 68(6), pages 1643-1651, April.
    19. Yassin, Jain & Aralas, Sarma, 2020. "The Service Sector and Carbon Emission Nexus: Revisiting Environmental Kuznets Curve," Jurnal Ekonomi Malaysia, Faculty of Economics and Business, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, vol. 54(2), pages 113-124.
    20. Canh, Nguyen Phuc & Schinckus, Christophe & Thanh, Su Dinh & Chong, Felicia Hui Ling, 2021. "The determinants of the energy consumption: A shadow economy-based perspective," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 225(C).

    More about this item

    Keywords

    ;
    ;
    ;
    ;
    ;

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:17:y:2025:i:19:p:8774-:d:1761673. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: MDPI Indexing Manager (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.mdpi.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.