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In order to evaluate the sustainable utilization level of water resources in the nine provinces (autonomous regions) of the Yellow River Basin, improve the status of water resources and realize the sustainable utilization of regional water resources, this paper proposed a comprehensive evaluation index of sustainable utilization of water resources suitable for the nine provinces (autonomous regions) of the Yellow River Basin based on the water footprint model. Spearman correlation analysis and multiple linear regression analysis were used to analyze the driving factors of sustainable water resources utilization in the nine provinces of the Yellow River Basin. The results show that the water resources footprint of the nine provinces (autonomous regions) in the Yellow River Basin from 2010 to 2020 increases first and then decreases in a small amplitude, and the water environment footprint shows a decreasing trend, and the spatial distribution of water resources footprint and water environment footprint is very uneven. In the nine provinces (autonomous regions) of the Yellow River Basin, the level of sustainable utilization of water resources has increased to different degrees. The level of sustainable utilization of water resources in the upstream provinces (autonomous regions) is higher, while the level of sustainable utilization in the middle and downstream provinces (autonomous regions) is lower. The main driving factors of sustainable water resources use are population density, wastewater treatment rate and the proportion of secondary industry, followed by per capita water consumption and fertilizer application intensity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The interaction between water resources utilization and urban development in urban agglomerations in the Yellow River Basin is the key to the high-quality development of urban agglomerations in the basin. There is an urgent need to explore the coupling and coordination relationship between the two under the sustainable development goals, and provide new ideas for exploring the collaborative mechanism of ecological protection and high-quality development of urban agglomerations in the Yellow River Basin. Taking 72 cities and five urban agglomerations in the Yellow River Basin as examples, this paper established an analysis framework for the coupling of water footprint and city development index in 2010-2019 according to the sustainable development goal proposed by the United Nations and the difference of water resources utilization. The Theil variation index method was used to evaluate the spatial differences in coupling coordination results. The results show that the water footprint is decreasing year by year and the city development index is increasing year by year. The coupling relationship between water footprint and city development index is in an unstable state of “rising-falling-rising”. The difference in the level of urban water resources utilization within the urban agglomeration is the main reason for the difference in the level of development, and there are significant differences in the coordination relationship between water resources utilization and urban development in different urban agglomeration development stages. It suggested to build a trans-regional water resources co-governance system, give full play to the regulatory role of public water resources policies in urban agglomerations, and systematically plan the safety pattern of aquatic environment protection and water resources development and utilization among urban agglomerations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]