Spatial Correlation Network Characteristics and Driving Mechanisms of Non-Grain Land Use in the Yangtze River Economic Belt, China

Bingyi Wang, Qiong Ye, Long Li (), Wangbing Liu, Yuchun Wang and Ming Ma
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Bingyi Wang: School of Public Policy and Management, Anhui Jianzhu University, Hefei 230601, China
Qiong Ye: School of Public Policy and Management, Anhui Jianzhu University, Hefei 230601, China
Long Li: School of Advanced Technology, Algonquin College, Ottawa, ON K2G 1V8, Canada
Wangbing Liu: Key Laboratory of Jiang Huai Arable Land Resources Protection and Eco-Restoration, Hefei 230601, China
Yuchun Wang: School of Public Policy and Management, Anhui Jianzhu University, Hefei 230601, China
Ming Ma: School of Architecture and Urban Planning, Anhui Jianzhu University, Hefei 230009, China

Land, 2025, vol. 14, issue 11, 1-32

Abstract: The rational utilization of cultivated land resources is central to ensuring both ecological and food security in the Yangtze River Economic Belt (YREB), holding strategic significance for regional sustainable development. Using panel data from 2010 to 2023 for 130 cities in the YREB, this study examines a spatial correlation network (SCN) for non-grain land use (NGLU) and its driving forces via a modified gravity model, social network analysis (SNA), and quadratic assignment procedure regression. The results show the following: (1) The risk of NGLU continues to increase, with the spatial pattern evolving from a “single-peak right deviation” pattern to a “multi-peak coexistence” pattern featuring three-level polarization and gradient transmission, primarily driven by economic potential disparities. (2) The SCN has increased in density, but its pathways are relatively singular. Node functions exhibit significant differentiation, with high-degree nodes forming “control poles”, high-intermediate nodes dominating cross-regional risk transmission, and low-proximity nodes experiencing “protective marginalization”. Node centrality distribution is highly connected with the regional development gradient. (3) The formation of the spatial network is jointly driven by multiple factors. Geographical proximity, economic potential differences, comparative benefit differences, non-agricultural employment differences, and factor mobility all positively contribute to the spillover effect. Conversely, implementing cultivated land protection policies and the regional imbalance in local industrial development path dependence significantly inhibit the non-grain trend. This study further reveals that a synergistic governance system characterized by “axial management, node classification, and edge support” should be recommended to prevent the gradient risk transmission induced by economic disparities, providing a scientific basis for achieving sustainable use of regional cultivated land resources and coordinated governance of food security.

Keywords: non-grain land use; spatial correlation network; driving mechanism; gravity model; land protection; Yangtze River Economic Belt (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q15 Q2 Q24 Q28 Q5 R14 R52 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
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