Can environmental policies improve marine ecological efficiency? Examining China's Ecological Civilization Pilot Zones.

Terrestrial ecosystems can benefit from environmental protection policies; however, their impact on marine ecological efficiency deserves further exploration. This study uses China's Ecological Civilization Pilot Zone (ECZ) policy as an example of a quasi-natural experimental study, with data from 11 coastal provinces in China from 2006 to 2019 as the initial sample. First, a Super-SBM model considers undesired outputs to measure marine eco-efficiency, while a synthetic control method (SCM) investigates the effect of environmental regulations on marine eco-efficiency. The results show that ECZ policies can promote marine eco-efficiency and the effect mechanisms of these policies are discussed from national and regional perspectives. This study contributes to the current literature by theoretically evaluating the impact of ECZ policies on the marine environment in coastal areas, enriching the mechanism of integrated environmental policies on marine ecological protection, and providing references for formulating and implementing environmental policies.

A study on the marine ecological security assessment of Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Great Bay Area.

The construction of world-class Bay makes the marine ecology in Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Great Bay Area in risk. Based on the DPSIR index framework, Lotka-Volterra symbiosis model is applied to calculate symbiosis degree between coastal socio-economic system and marine ecosystem in 9 coastal cities. It is found that the marine ecological pressure in this area have not been reversed in recent 20 years. Most cities are in the stage that socio-economic development and marine ecological damage coexist. In Shenzhen, Guangzhou, Dongguan and Zhongshan, the damaged marine ecology has begun to restrain the further expansion of economy and society. The massive population agglomeration in Hong Kong, Macao and other places has caused serious marine ecological stress. It is urgent to improve the marine ecological security by cultivating ecological industrial system and industrial clusters, establishing a land-sea ecological restoration, promoting joint-protection and co-governance across different administrative regions.