高原生态脆弱区生活垃圾治理效能非均衡性及空间优化

[Objective] Domestic waste management remains a critical weakness in enhancing the livability of territorial space in ecologically fragile areas. Investigating the causes of multiscale disequilibrium in domestic waste management effectiveness and corresponding optimization schemes under uncertain geographic contexts is of great significance for alleviating resource and environmental pressures and for consolidating the ecological security pattern of territorial space in ecologically fragile areas. [Methods] Taking the Huangshui Valley on the Qinghai-Xizang Plateau as a case study, and based on a multi-source heterogeneous dataset of 980 village and town settlements, this study conducted a multi-scale analysis of the disequilibrium in domestic waste management effectiveness in the Huangshui Valley in 2020. Spatial autoregressive and geographically weighted regression models were used to measure the influencing factors of the disequilibrium and their spatial heterogeneity. An integer programming model was constructed to explore the optimized spatial layout of domestic waste management modes. [Results] (1) The effectiveness of domestic waste management in plateau ecologically fragile areas was generally low, with prominent disequilibrium. The management effectiveness of herder settlements was only 53.8% and 42.9% of that of rural and urban settlements, respectively. (2) High altitude, steep terrain, and low transportation accessibility were the decisive factors for the low effectiveness of domestic waste management in plateau ecologically fragile areas. Insufficient increasing returns to scale of the resident population and village-level economy were important internal causes of the disequilibrium in management effectiveness. The number and education level of grassroots management personnel were positive factors for improving the management effectiveness in remote settlements. (3) The optimized spatial layout of domestic waste management modes that fully considered the geographical location and pollution generation characteristics of settlements helped save total collection and transportation costs by 17.9%. [Conclusion] The disequilibrium pattern of domestic waste management effectiveness in plateau ecologically fragile areas is jointly driven by terrain and location constraints, disparities in population and economic scales, and grassroots governance capacity. Promoting a spatially configured, diversified domestic waste management mode based on local conditions helps reduce governance costs and enhance the accessibility of domestic waste management services.