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As an important incentive and constraint system to coordinate the contradiction between ecological resource protection and regional economic development, the ecological and environmental protection effect after its implementation deserves special attention, especially for China, which involves the widest scope of payment and the largest transfer and has become the largest governmental ecological compensation program in China and even in the world. Starting from the evolution of China's eco-financial transfer system, this study conducts an empirical investigation of the ecological and environmental protection effect of the eco-financial transfer system. Such an undertaking is based on the theoretical exploration of the impact mechanism of the eco-financial transfer system to improve the ecological environment quality and based on the panel data of 40 counties in Hubei Province from 2010 to 2020. Results of the study show that the ecological financial transfer system can promote the improvement of regional ecological environment quality, but the promotion effect is insignificant. The financial funds reflect more of a financial compensation effect than a system incentive effect. The increase in the scale of ecological transfer payments is conducive to strengthening the incentive function of the system, promoting local governments to increase environmental protection expenditures and environmental regulation efforts to improve the quality of the ecological environment. Therefore, in the process of implementing ecological financial transfers from the province to the counties, the concept of ecological value contribution should be incorporated into the fund allocation process. In addition, the current ecological transfer payment fund allocation method should be reconstructed on the basis of the ecological value contribution to enhance the guiding role of "high quality and high price, more work and more gain." The goal is to effectively stimulate the enthusiasm of local governments for ecological environmental protection. Findings have significant guidance for developing countries that are currently seeking to formulate and implement such policies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sustainable spatial planning increasingly emphasizes the protection and restoration provided by nature to human welfare, yet scientifically assessing and managing the societal utilization status of natural ecological assets (EAs) remains a challenge. This study introduces a novel classification of EAs based on the degree of dependency of human societies, and establishes an assessment framework for the spatial utilization status of EAs, incorporating indicators related to "pattern-quality-supply-demand- risk". These indicators are integrated into the construction of ecological security patterns to optimize the management of EAs. Validated in Changxing County, Zhejiang Province, China, key findings include: (1) In 2020, the EAs of Changxing provided a value of CNY 77.936 billion, with livable climate assets dominating and carbon assets least prevalent. (2) Urban development has led to EA loss, with the most significant losses in high-supply areas and the highest loss risks in areas with scarce EAs, yet maintaining an overall balance of supply and demand. (3) In 2020, the total area of EA sources in Changxing was 487.34 km2, accounting for 34% of the total land area, with 42.34% classified as high-security zones and 11.21% as high-alert zones. This study proposes an approach to ecological spatial optimization management that integrates the spatial utilization status of EAs, providing planners with practical tools and illustrative cases for seamlessly incorporating localized ecological elements into spatial planning. Our research applies to regions facing challenges related to EA loss and striving for sustainable development, offering strategies for ecological restoration, compensation, and optimization management. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]