Ecological-economic assessment of Chinese territories’ environmental quality on the nature’s total economic value conceptual basis

Abstract

Environmental quality (EQ), its adequate ecological-economic assessment forms the foundation for increasing the sustainability, first of all, ecological, of socio-economic development trends of modern spatial-economic systems. The purpose of the study is to develop a conceptual model of ecological-economic assessment of environmental quality of China’s territories on the theoretical basis of the Total Economic Value of Nature (TEV) and to justify its applicability in the development of public policy measures aimed at achieving the goals of sustainable development 2030. The focus of the research methodology is bibliometric methods, in particular meta-analysis and bibliometric mapping, which allow a comprehensive and critical analysis of the advantages and disadvantages of current methodological tools, as well as a detailed analysis of actual problems hindering the environmentally sustainable development of China’s territorial systems. The scientific novelty of the research results consists in revealing the limitations / one-sidedness of the methods of ecological-economic assessment of EQ used in Chinese practice, as well as in creating a conceptual model based on TEV and integrated with the concept of sustainable development, allowing for a comprehensive assessment of environmental values in various aspects. The significance of the results of the study lies in the development of specific methodologies for assessing the multifaceted values of EQ in the substantiation of directions for improving the methodological tools used in environmental-economic assessment. The study aims to develop a comprehensive understanding of the environmental-economic value of environmental quality, to identify tools that can effectively assess TEV, and provide theoretical support for the formation of sustainable environmental policies in China using the proposed conceptual model.