Study on the Structure, Efficiency, and Driving Factors of an Eco-Agricultural Park Based on Emergy: A Case Study of Jinchuan Eco-Agricultural Park
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1. Introduction
The eco-agricultural park is a social–economic–natural complex ecosystem with the attributes of being “close to nature, multifunctional, high efficiency, and sustainable” based on the principles of ecology, focusing on ecological agriculture, and using a complex agricultural production system to construct a green ecology [1]. Eco-agricultural parks generally include agriculture, forestry, animal husbandry, and fishery subsystems. The ecosystem’s material circulation, energy flow, and information transmission functions make the subsystems closely integrated into an organic whole [2]. Each subsystem is interconnected and develops collaboratively, so it has energy flow, material flow, information flow, and value flow. There are various interdependencies between these flows. Evaluation and research on them will help to grasp the laws of the ecological economic system and establish a virtuous cycle and sustainable development of the ecological economic system. There are various types of energy in the ecological economic system. Traditional ecological methods cannot evaluate value flows, and financial methods cannot evaluate essential functions and fundamental values. The only solution is to combine ecology and economics. Emergy is considered to be the bridge connecting ecology and economics. The emergy theory and analysis method is an environmental–economic value and system-analysis method that can measure and analyze the value and relationship between natural environmental resources and economic activities. Therefore, the emergy method helps to explore the value and interrelationship between humans and nature, environmental resources, and social economy in the ecosystem.
Rationally understanding and evaluating the contribution of environmental resources is one of the important topics in the sustainable development strategy of agriculture. From the perspective of research objects, emergy analysis research on agricultural ecosystems is a hot area of emergy research. According to the results of the literature review, it can be seen that the current research objects of domestic and foreign experts and scholars are mostly concentrated on typical agricultural products and agricultural production systems: integrated poultry farming systems [3], cereal-based systems [4], different types of pig farming systems [5], pasture systems [6], dairy production systems [7], mulberry fishpond systems [8], integrated agricultural systems [9], rice, rice–fish, and rice–duck integrated farming systems [10], coffee cultivation systems [11], banana-based systems [12], etc. From the perspective of research questions, current research content is mostly focused on the assessment and improvement of ecosystem sustainable development capabilities in the following ways:
(1) Concerning the current status of sustainable development capacity of composite ecosystems, Patrizi et al. conducted an emergy evaluation of monoculture systems and composite agroforestry systems, and the results showed that composite agroforestry systems can effectively save energy and generate more benefits on the same piece of land, thus having higher sustainability [13]. Zheng et al. conducted an emergy comparison analysis of the “wheat–corn rotation–pig farming” system, the “tea–pig farming” system, and the “citrus–lucerne intercropping–pig farming” system [14]. The results showed that agro–pastoral composite systems could promote greenhouse gas reduction and improve ecological and economic benefits. Tongliang Li et al. evaluated the emergy of traditional and new crop planting models in the hilly areas of southwest China. The new triple planting system has high production intensity and stability and a higher sustainable production capacity than the traditional crop system [6]. Rodríguez-Ortega et al. conducted an emergy analysis of three different planting systems for sheep farming in Spain [15]. Although the economic benefits of the composite system were lower than the other systems, the overall capacity (sustainability, pollution level, and economic benefits) achieved a balance among the three systems. Lin et al. used emergy analysis to analyze monoculture systems and composite systems [16]. The “grape–lingzhi” composite system had better economic vitality and environmental sustainability. Luo et al. evaluated the ecological and economic benefits of the ecological grassing model and the clean tillage model in Fujian honey pomelo orchards using emergy evaluation methods [17]. Consistent with the previous researchers, the ecological grassing composite model achieved increased pomelo production and income for pomelo farmers, making it an important path to achieve coordinated green development and improve the sustainability of the orchard.
(2) Concerning the analysis and improvement of influencing factors, industrial auxiliary emergy is the main factor affecting the sustainable development capability of the system. Zhang et al. conducted an emergy assessment of the economic benefits, environmental pressures, and sustainability of China’s crop production system from 2000 to 2010 [18]. The study showed that industrial auxiliary emergy inputs such as fertilizers and agricultural machinery contributed the most to the overall system inputs, weakening system sustainability. Yao et al. analyzed the emergy input and output dynamics of the planting industry system in Gansu Province [19]. By comparing the emergy indicators of Gansu Province with the national planting industry, it was determined that the planting industry system in Gansu Province lacks vitality, and reducing the input of non-renewable industrial auxiliary emergy is an effective way to promote the sustainable development of the planting industry in Gansu Province. Similarly, Chu et al. analyzed the emergy input and output dynamics of the planting and breeding industry in the Heilongjiang reclamation area. They concluded that the research area depends more on industrial product inputs [20]. Optimizing the input of diesel and nitrogen fertilizer is beneficial for developing a regional characteristic circular agricultural development model. Wang et al. conducted an emergy assessment of the sustainability of the agricultural system in Northwest China before and after the implementation of the Green Growth Plan [5]. The study showed that an increase in the input of non-renewable external resources reduces the system’s sustainability and diminishes the effectiveness of green forest protection. According to the literature survey, research on the emergy analysis of agricultural ecosystems is mainly concentrated in South China, East China, and Central China. The research focuses mainly on single or multiple agricultural production systems. There is a lack of research on eco-agricultural parks in the Northeast region with eco-agricultural economic attributes.
Therefore, this study takes Jinchuan Eco-Agricultural Park as the research object and introduces emergy into the park to analyze its system structure with the aim of deeply understanding the current problems in the park, accurately determining its stage of development, and the construction of the research area to find the critical constraints and provide solutions to promote the sustainable development of the eco-agricultural park. The study will also provide support for park environmental management, project decision-making, and formulation of policies and regulations, thereby improving the utilization efficiency of the eco-agricultural park. It provides a practical basis for regional green and sustainable development and is conducive to replicating and promoting the eco-agricultural park model. At the same time, studying the same type of research objects in different regions is helpful for researchers, enabling them to be analyzed and compared from various perspectives.
4. Discussion
4.1. Analysis of Influencing Factors
The park is a consumption-driven economic system currently in the labor-intensive industrial stage. The agricultural production in the park puts pressure on the ecosystem, and the level of sustainable development could be higher.
From the perspective of park emergy input, park labor input, power input, and topsoil loss rank at the forefront. Excessive labor input indicates that the park is in a labor-intensive industry, while excessive labor emergy investment will lead to low utilization efficiency of environmental resources in the park, which will affect the sustainable development of the park. High power loss means high energy consumption, highlighting the contradiction between economic growth and the energy environment, thereby affecting the sustainable development of the economy and society. Topsoil loss is one of the most significant losses of non-renewable resources in the eco-agricultural park production process, except for electric energy value. According to previous research [29,30,31], excessive topsoil loss in the study area directly affects the sustainable development capability of the system. The growth of crop products in the study area consumes a lot of water, and the large water consumption of crop products will further aggravate the soil loss in the park, that is, the loss of topsoil. At the same time, wind energy accounts for the most significant proportion of renewable natural resources in the park, and wind speed is responsible for soil erosion and water and soil loss. This is the main reason for the loss, which can further explain the phenomenon of significant loss of emergy of topsoil in the study area. Although the calculation result of industrial auxiliary emergy input is smaller than other inputs, according to the calculation result of the emergy source index, it can be seen that the purchased emergy ratio is higher, indicating that the study area is highly dependent on external resources. At the same time, combined with the ratio of input emergy to self-owned emergy, which can be used to measure the ratio of external resources to internal resources of the system, and the emergy calculation results of the eco-agricultural park, further analysis shows that the park relies on the input of industrial auxiliary energy, and the significant investment in industrial auxiliary energy. It will also significantly affect the sustainability of the park.
From the perspective of the emergy output of the park, the economic output of the forest plays an important role, and fishery is a weak link. The low fishery output results in low system production advantage calculation results, and the uneven emergy output reflects the unequal distribution of resources in the park, which will affect the development of the park’s sustainable capabilities. The EISD calculation result is 13.26, indicating that the system structure needs to be adjusted. Therefore, the park should optimize resource allocation and adjust the allocation and use of fishery resources to increase fishery value output. Although the park’s output is uneven, the system has high stability and strong self-control, adjustment, and feedback effects. The calculation results of emergy density, emergy exchange rate and emergy investment rate in the study area are high, which shows that the regional emergy utilization intensity is high, production efficiency is high and economic development is rapid. At the same time, the calculation results of emergy-labor productivity further show that the production level of Jinchuan Eco-agricultural Park is relatively high. Although a higher economic growth model can promote regional economic development and is worthy of promotion, the park is in a state of low sustainable development capacity.
Therefore, high labor input, energy loss, soil erosion, high dependence on external resources, and uneven distribution of park output leads to high agricultural production pressure and low sustainable development levels in the park. Xie Hualian [32] and Wang Xinya [33], who have the same research conclusions as this study, proposed an increase in the input of production factors through soil testing and formula fertilization and improvements in the traditional agricultural production system method to optimize the planting structure to achieve sustainable and balanced development of the system. Yang Xiaolei [34] and Yanfeng Lyu [35] stated that reducing the input of industrial auxiliary emergy such as nitrogen fertilizers can significantly improve the system’s sustainability. Therefore, in view of the problems in this study area, the following solutions are proposed based on previous research: Combined with land nutrient management strategies, clean raw materials could be used to reduce high-emergy external input. Reduce the loss of non-renewable natural resources such as soil by minimizing the depth and speed of park slope runoff and other ecological engineering measures, thereby enhancing the park’s soil sustainability. Combining modern resource-based production technology and environmentally sound management methods, taking science and technology as the guide, entirely using natural resources, and promoting material transformation and energy circulation. Continuously optimize and improve the production process, adopt advanced process technology and equipment, reduce energy losses such as electricity, and achieve the goal of efficient energy utilization.
Therefore, the emergy analysis method can comprehensively evaluate the overall performance of the system from the perspective of the system view and quantify the system while paying attention to the efficiency of system resource utilization. The emergy method focuses on energy orientation (focusing on the energy efficiency and resource utilization efficiency of the system, emphasizing the optimization of energy conversion and utilization efficiency), physical constraint consideration (focusing on the physical constraints of energy in the system, focusing on the physical nature and limitations of energy, considering the relationship between energy input and output), and energy efficiency assessment (quantitative evaluation of energy flow, calculating the ratio between energy input and energy output, and evaluating the energy conversion efficiency of the system and the overall energy efficiency). The environmental cost–benefit analysis, ecosystem service assessment, natural capital accounting, and environmental value assessment in the ecological economics method pay more attention to the value of the ecosystem and ecological capital, and can evaluate and analyze the contribution of the ecosystem to human society. The ecological economics method focuses on economic orientation (focusing on the analysis of economic systems and the assessment of economic interests, focusing on the consideration of economic benefits and feasibility), market mechanisms (solving environmental problems through economic incentives and market means), social cost–benefit analysis (using social cost–benefit analysis to evaluate environmental policies and projects). The two methods have different focuses and analytical aspects when solving environmental and sustainable development problems. The appropriate method can be selected or combined according to the needs and specific issues to obtain more comprehensive and accurate evaluation results.
4.2. The Limitation of This Study
Although the emergy analysis method is a scientific measure of real wealth value and a substantial reflection of product value, different classifications of resources invested in different studies lead to varying calculations of system resource inputs and inconsistent definitions of system boundaries. Different handling methods of details will increase the uncertainty of the results. Uncertainty reduces the comparability between indicators. At the same time, during the data processing, the emergy calculation results are based on statistical data of the natural environment and social economy. Differences in data collection and processing methods will lead to data instability. These problems will be affected by the researcher’s subjective understanding and thus jeopardize the emergy analysis results. Therefore, in future research, improvements can be made in the following areas: in terms of data collection, the system boundaries should be reasonably defined based on the “four-dimensional boundary”, and sensitivity analysis of ecological environment accounting data should be used to improve the accuracy and scientificity of the research emergy calculation results.
5. Conclusions
Based on the emergy theory, this study defines the boundaries of the eco-agricultural park system through the “four-dimensional space–time scale”; it discusses the input and output emergy of material and energy in the park from the perspectives of ecology and economics, and analyzes the emergy of the park based on emergy indicators. Structure, efficiency, and drivers are assessed. The study area is currently in the labor-intensive industry stage, with a high intensity of emergy utilization, which promotes the regional economy but faces the problem of pressure from agricultural production on the ecosystem. The current sustainable development capability of the study area needs to be stronger, and the main influencing factors are the park’s energy loss, water and soil erosion, and reliance on external industrial auxiliary emergy input. Based on this, suggestions are put forward to promote the transformation of the park into a technology-based industrial area and improve the park’s sustainable development capabilities in the following ways: use clean raw materials, reduce the loss of non-renewable natural environmental resources such as soil, combine resource-based modern production technology and harmless management methods, rationally utilize natural resources, promote material transformation and energy circulation, and reduce high energy losses. This study explores a new perspective for adjusting the organizational structure and configuration of the eco-agricultural park system and improving operational efficiency. It also provides a practical basis for the implementation of regional sustainable development strategies.
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