Research on the spatial evolution process and reconfiguration pathway of mountainous cities based on the human-water relationship in river basins—A case study of Yichang City, Hubei Province, China

Abstract

As the earliest geographical unit of human activities, river basins have nurtured civilizations with distinct local characteristics. The "human-water relationship" is a key aspect of "human-environment interaction," driving the evolution of urban and rural systems through human adaptation to water. Using Yichang as a case, this paper analyzes population and land use changes to explore the evolution of its "mountain-water-city" spatial pattern. Yichang grows incrementally along the river, forming a compact multi-cluster layout. At the same time, influenced by the significant and special event of the Three GorgesProject construction, the city has undergone rapid "leapfrog" development. Amid population mobility and river basin management needs, Yichang should use its "water" feature to integrate function, scale, and structure, focusing on water protection and utilization to ensure national and energy security. Secondly, amidst the general trend of declining total population and slowing growth, it is necessary to reasonably guide the aggregation and distribution of population within urban spaces based on the resource carrying capacity of each river basin. Finally, Yichang should break linear development inertia, focus on dual city centers, and redirect leading industries from rivers/roads to the eastern industrial city.

Keywords

River basins / Human-water relationship / Spatial evolution process / Reconfiguration pathway / Mountainous cities

References

[1] Bettis III, E.A. , Benn, D.W. , Hajic, E.R. , 2008. Landscape evolution, alluvial architecture, environmental history, and the archaeological record of the Upper Mississippi River Valley. Geomorphol. 101 (1-2), 362- 377.

[2] Chen, Y.L. , 2009. Exploration of historic-cultural environment protection and development methods based on the concept of mountain-water-city. City Plan. Rev. 33 (11), 58- 64.

[3] Di Baldassarre, G. , Kooy, M. , Kemerink, J.S. , Brandimarte, L. , 2013. Towards understanding the dynamic behaviour of floodplains as human-water systems. Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci. 17 (8), 3235- 3244.

[4] Fan, J. , 2024. Frontier approach of the sustainable process and pattern of human-environment system. Acta Geograph. Sin. 69 (8), 1060- 1068.

[5] Gu, Y.S. , Li, K.J. , Qin, Y.M. , Qi, S.H. , Ge, J.W. , Li, W. , 2013. Lmpact of human activity on the evolution of the ecological environment of Jianghan Lake Group in the Historical Period, Central China. Earth Sci. 38 (s1), 133- 144.

[6] Huang, T.,T. , Wei, X. , Chen, T. , 2022. Research on spatial division and control of the Yangtze river basin: taking the Hubei Yangtze River Economic Belt as an example. Planner 38 (11), 5- 12.

[7] Jia, J. , 2016. A technical review of hydro-project development in China. Eng. 2 (3), 302- 312.

[8] Lan, Y. , 2015. Historical Atlas of the Three Gorges of the Yangtze River. Star Map Press, Beijing.

[9] Liu, K.M. , Li, F.G. , 2005. Yichang History Outline[M]. Hubei People's Publishing House.

[10] Liu, Y. , Yu, M. , 2020. Lessons from the experience of development and governance of river basins in foreign countries. China Land(4), 50- 52.

[11] Nõges, T. , Laugaste, R. , Loigu, E. , Nedogarko, I. , Skakalski, B. , Nõges, P. , 2005. Ls the destabilisation of Lake Peipsi ecosystem caused by increased phosphorus loading or decreased nitrogen loading. Water Sci. Technol. 51(3-4), 267- 274.

[12] Poli, G. , Cuntò S. , Muccio, E. , Cerreta, M. , 2024. A spatial decision support system for multi-dimensional sustainability assessment of river basin districts: the case study of Sarno river, Italy. Land Use Pol. 141, 107123.

[13] Qin, Y. , Mueller, N.D. , Siebert, S. , Jackson, R.B. , AghaKouchak, A. , Zimmerman, J.B. , et al., 2019. Flexibility and intensity of global water use. Nat. Sustain. 2 (6), 515- 523.

[14] Sahana, M. , Hong, H. , Sajjad, H. , 2018. Analyzing urban spatial patterns and trend of urban growth using urban sprawl matrix: a study on Kolkata urban agglomeration, India. Sci. Total Environ. 628-629 (7), 1557- 1566.

[15] Van Pelt, S.C. , Swart, R.J. , 2011. Climate change risk management in transnational river basins: the Rhine. Water Resour. Manag. 25, 3837- 3861.

[16] Voss, K.A. , Famiglietti, J.S. , Lo, M. , De Linage, C. , Rodell, M. , Swenson, S.C. , 2013. Groundwater depletion in the Middle East from GRACE with implications for transboundary water management in the Tigris-Euphrates-Western Lran Region. Water Resour. Res. 49 (2), 904- 914.

[17] Voulvoulis, N. , Arpon, K.D. , Giakoumis, T. , 2017. The EU Water Framework Directive: from great expectations to problems with implementation. Sci. Total Environ. 575, 358- 366.

[18] Wang, F. , Fang, Q. , Yuan, G. , 2023. River basin civilization and high-quality development of livable urban and rural areas. Geogr. Res. 42 (4), 895- 916.

[19] Wang, F. , Liu, Y. , He, J.S. , Hu, X. , Qin, Y. , Wang, L.Y. , 2024. River basin habitats science: framework and prospects. J. Nat. Resour. 39 (5), 997- 1007.

[20] Wang, H. , Niu, C.W. , Zhao, Y. , 2023. Natural-artificial dualistic water cycle in river basins and water resources research. Acta Geograph. Sin. 78 (7), 1599- 1607.

[21] Wang, H. , Zhao, W. , Zhou, G. , 2023. Research on the evolution process and dynamic mechanism of urban spatial growth in the Three Gorges Reservoir Area. Geogr. Res. 42 (3), 660- 681.

[22] Wang, H. , Fang, G.C. , Zhao, W.M. , Zhou, G.H. , 2024. The growth model and formation mechanism of "mountain-watercity" spatial pattern in the Three Gorges Reservoir Area: take Wanzhou as an example. J. Nat. Resour. 39 (7), 1698- 1719.

[23] Wang, S.S. , Gao, Y. , Li, X.L. , 2019. A study on the spatial structure of Chinese landscaping and cultural cities. Urban Plann. For.(1), 27- 32.

[24] Wang, S. , 2016. The "Gene" of China's urban landscape and its inheritance in modern times: taking the ancient capital Xi'an as an example. Urban Dev. Stu.23 (12), 1- 4,28.

[25] Willett, S.D. , McCoy, S.W. , Perron, J.T. , Goren, L. , Chen, C.Y. , 2014. Dynamic reorganization of river basins. Science 343 (6175), 1248765.

[26] Wu, L.Y. , 1988. The urban model and protected objects of Guilin. City Planning Rev.(5), 3- 8.

[27] Xiao, R. , Yu, X.Y. , Xiang, T. , Zhang, Z. , Wang, X. , Wu, J. , 2021. Exploring the coordination between physical space expansion and social space growth of China's urban agglomerations based on hierarchical analysis. Land Use Pol. 109.

[28] Yoffee, N. , 2004. Myths of the Archaic State: Evolution of the Earliest Cities, States, and Civilizations.Cambridge University Press, pp. 209-214.

[29] Yu, X. , Wang, G. , Hu, X. , Liu, Y. , Bao, Y. , 2023. Land subsidence in tianjin, China: before and after the south-to-North water diversion. Rem. Sens. 15 (6), 1647.

[30] Zhang, D. , Liu, X. , Lin, Z. , Zhang, X. , Zhang, H. , 2020. The delineation of urban growth boundaries in complex ecological environment areas by using cellular automata and a dual-environmental evaluation. J. Clean. Prod. 256.

[31] Zhang, Y. , Li, C. , Chiew, F.H. , Post, D.A. , Zhang, X. , Ma, N. , et al., 2023. Southern Hemisphere dominates recent decline in global water availability. Science 382 (6670), 579- 584.

[32] Zhang, L. , Lu, C.X. , Wu, Y.M. , Li, J.S. , Huang, Y.X. , Cheng, X.L. , 2014. An overall development of water resources for China's rivers. J. Nat. Resour. 29 (2), 295- 303.

[33] Zhao, W.M. , 2014. Research on the Construction and Development of Human Settlement Environment in the Three Gorges Reservoir Area: Theory and Practice. China Architecture & Building Press, Beijing, 2015.

[34] Zhao, W.M. , 2015. Theories of Human Settlements in Mountainous Regions. China Architecture & Building Press, Beijing.

[35] Zheng, X.L. , Chang, C.F. , 1979. A preliminary note on the tectonic features of the lower Yalu-Tsangpo River region. Chinese J. Geol. 14(2), 116- 126, 191-193.

RIGHTS & PERMISSIONS

The Author(s). Publishing services by Elsevier B.V. on behalf of Higher Education Press and KeAi.