Research on the Interactive Coupling Relationship between Land Space Development and Eco-Environment from the Perspective of Symbiosis: A Practical Analysis of Henan, China

Abstract

As a key issue in China’s sustainable development, land space development (LSD) creates increasing pressure on the environment. Thus, a better understanding of the relationship between LSD and the eco-environment is necessary for Chinese policymakers to realize sustainable high-quality development. LSD and the eco-environment are closely related and mutually dependent, and the coupling coordination pattern between LSD and the eco-environment has great significance to promoting high-quality development and ecological civilization construction in the region. This study highlights the equilibrium between LSD and ecological protection and introduces symbiosis theory to measure the degree of coordinated and symbiotic development in the Henan province, using data from 2000–2018. The coupling coordination degree model was used to evaluate the coupling coordination relationship of spatial–temporal patterns and development type characteristics. The evaluated results show that there are regional gradient differences in the level of LSD and the eco-environment, and the coupling coordination degree of LSD and the eco-environment in the Henan province are in the bare coordination stage and on the verge of imbalance at present. In addition, the spatial correlation pattern between LSD and the eco-environment was discussed. It is proposed that there is a positive correlation between the coupling coordination degree of LSD and the eco-environment. Moreover, this study suggested implementing a scientific and high-quality development path of land space, reasonably coordinating the social, economic, and eco-environment of the Henan province, then promoting regional sustainable development.

1. Introduction

The land spatial pattern is a comprehensive manifestation of the interaction between natural ecosystems and social systems [1]. Since the reform and opening-up, China’s urbanization rate has increased from 17.92% in 1978 to 59.58% in 2018. Especially since 2000, urbanization has entered a stage of rapid development. Meanwhile, the scale of China’s built-up area has rapidly expanded from 7000 km² in 1981 to 58,000 km² in 2018 [2]. In addition, industrial land has always played an important role in the spatial pattern of China’s land and its proportion of construction land has been more than 20% for a long time. A large amount of industrial land, the lack of living land, and the insufficient supply of ecological land have gradually affected the spatial structure of China. In 2017, the 19th National Congress of the Communist Party of China put forward “high-quality development” for the first time, proposing to “establish and improve the economic system of green carbon reduction and circular development”. Therefore, in the context of the gradual imbalance of the land space structure, how to coordinate the use of land space and eco-environment protection and scientifically guide the orderly development of land space has become the key to achieving comprehensive, coordinated, and sustainable regional development.

There is objectively an interactive coercive relationship between land space development (LSD) and eco-environment. On the one hand, the rational development of the land space pattern can promote the rational flow and efficient agglomeration of various elements in the land space, thereby promoting the intensive use of urban land and improving the eco-environment. The good development of the eco-environment will reduce the environmental and resource consumption caused by economic growth, improve the eco-environment quality, and arouse the attention of government departments on environmental protection [3]. On the other hand, the over-exploitation of land space will cause frequent problems, such as environmental pollution, waste of resources, and forest destruction. The decline in the quality of the eco-environment means that the resource—environmental carrying capacity and the land intensive use level weakened, which in turn restricts the development of high-quality spatial patterns [4]. At present, researchers have tried to discuss LSD with different scales and different purposes [5,6,7]. Most previous research addressing the relationship between LSD and the eco-environment has focused on the “Environmental Kuznets Curves (EKC)”, a nonlinear relationship that can be used to describe the urbanization and environmental system [8]. The Environmental Kuznets hypothesis was first proposed by Grossman and Kreuger [9] to describe the relationship between development and environmental quality. The EKC revealed that the environmental quality will initially degrade as the development process accelerates, and when the economy reaches a certain level, it will improve as the degree of development deepens [10]. Therefore, analyzing the interactive relationship between LSD and the eco-environment is crucial for human survival and social development.

In China, many scholars tried to reveal the complex interactions between the urbanization and eco-environment [11,12], such as discussing the stress of urbanization on the eco-environment from the aspects of population, space, economy, and society, and analyzing the restraint effect of eco-environment on urbanization from the aspects of ecological resources, ecological pressure, and ecological response [13,14,15,16,17]. In the process of rapid urban development, problems, such as ecological destruction and environmental pollution, have frequently appeared [18,19]. Therefore, research on ecological environmental protection and governance in the process of urban development has gradually increased, mainly involving land use [20,21], water resource utilization [22,23], environmental assessment [24,25], etc. For instance, Qin [26] constructed a water resource constraint model for the urbanization process to measure the intensity of water resource constraints in the urbanization process of the Yangtze River Economic Belt. Zhao [27] used the comprehensive evaluation model of ecological environmental effects to explore the ecological environmental effects of long-term urban land expansion in the Songhua River Basin. According to different research fields, foreign scholars have carried out a series of studies on the interaction mechanism and stress relationship of the symbiotic coupling between urbanization and eco-environment [28,29]. For example, Kijima [30] used the EKC to confirm the nonlinear relationship between urbanization and eco-environment. Veziroglu [31] used the system dynamics model to evaluate the efficiency of water resources utilization in the context of rapid urbanization.

Meanwhile, LSD must be based on whether the development and eco-environment can be coordinated. Optimizing the pattern of land space is an important means to promote regional sustainable development. Land space optimization has specific planning goals and can use certain technical methods to optimize the land use structure and direction on the time scale and space scale. Early spatial optimization methods at home and abroad include linear programming [32], gray linear programming [33], multi-objective linear programming [34], and system dynamics models [35], which are mainly used in the optimization of land use structures. With the development of 3S technology, the optimization of land use has risen from a single structural optimization to a spatial optimization. Genetic algorithm [36], neural network [37], cellular automata (CA) model [38], small-scale land use change and effect model (CLUE-S), and other technologies [39] have become an important research direction for spatial pattern optimization. In China, land space optimization is an important measure to ensure regional sustainable development. The basic means for local governments to achieve land space optimization is to reasonably determine the intensity of regional development and implement total construction land control [40].

Clearly, scholars have carried out various pieces of research in different aspects [41,42,43], but there are still some shortcomings. Firstly, there are currently few studies on the coordination of LSD and the eco-environment, and the interaction is mostly focused on the temporal order of the coupling coordination of the two systems, and there is insufficient research on dynamization. Then, the relationship between LSD and the eco-environment is subject to the regional economic development stage and the regional differentiation law and has certain spatial correlation characteristics. However, previous studies focused on measuring the type of coupling coordination between the LSD and the eco-environment, as well as spatial pattern optimization, etc., and lack of comprehensive research on the spatial correlation.

In the process of social development in China, the disorderly expansion of construction land and the large-scale occupation of ecological land have seriously hindered the sustainable development of land space. As one of the core theories of racial ecology, symbiosis theory mainly studied material communication, information transmission, energy transmission, and symbiosis among symbiotic units [44,45]. Symbiosis theory can be applied to the relationship between LSD and the eco-environment, thereby reducing the negative effects of LSD on the eco-environment, enhancing the ecological support capacity of LSD, and promoting coordinated and symbiotic development. Facing the high-quality development needs of land space, this paper takes the city unit of the Henan province as an example. Through the construction of an index system for LSD and the eco-environment, this paper identifies the temporal evolution characteristics of LSD and the eco-environment and uses the coupling coordination model to discuss the coupling coordination characteristics and spatial pattern of LSD and the eco-environment. The main objectives of this study are as follows: (a) establish an evaluation index system to identify and quantify LSD and the eco-environment at the municipal level; (b) analyze the temporal evolution characteristics of LSD subsystem and the eco-environment subsystem; (c) evaluate the spatial pattern and development type characteristics of coupling coordination degree between LSD and the eco-environment; and (d) exploring the spatial correlation pattern between LSD and the eco-environment.

2. Analytical Framework

2.1. Symbiotic Relationship between LSD and Eco-Environment

As a symbiotic system, the development of land space is often accompanied by the destruction and instability of the corresponding eco-environment. Therefore, to realize the symbiotic development of land space, it is necessary to coordinate the symbiotic relationship between LSD and the eco-environment, providing the basis for the integrated development of the internal functional structure of land space. The early LSD was guided by the growth effect and took economic growth and urban expansion as the primary goal. Therefore, to a certain extent, it buried hidden dangers for the regional eco-environment, resulting in the gradual imbalance between LSD and the eco-environment. The problems of ecological degradation and environmental degradation have increasingly become an important obstacle to the healthy development of the social economy.

Symbiosis theory refers to the fact that different species live together and have extended material relationships [45]. It was originally mostly used in biological system relationships and believed that the willingness to survive between organisms must be interdependent and coexist in a certain way, thereby forming a coordinated coexistence symbiosis relation [45]. Symbiosis theory can be applied to the relationship between LSD and the eco-environment to reduce the negative effects of LSD on the eco-environment and enhance the ecological support capacity of land space.

2.2. Coupling Symbiosis Mechanism of LSD and Eco-Environment

Based on the symbiosis theory, aiming at the symbiosis coupling relationship between LSD and the eco-environment, the symbiosis mechanism is constructed from the perspective of “stress mechanism-driving mechanism-coupling coordination mechanism”. In addition, from the perspective of “parasitic mode-partial interest symbiosis mode-asymmetrical mutualism symbiosis mode-symmetrical mutualism symbiosis mode”, the symbiosis model between the LSD and the eco-environment is constructed (Figure 1). Among them, the stress mechanism includes natural elements and eco-environment elements, which are the basic factors forming the symbiosis mechanism. The driving mechanism includes economic activities, talent drainage, innovation and development, industrial agglomeration, etc., which are the key factors forming the symbiosis mechanism. The coupling coordination mechanism includes information flow, spatial flow, traffic flow, and other fluid elements, which is an important guarantee for the formation of a symbiosis mechanism. The combined effect of the three types of mechanisms is the key to promoting the symbiotic coupling of LSD and the eco-environment.

The symbiosis mode of LSD and the eco-environment can be divided into parasitic mode, partial interest symbiosis mode, asymmetrical mutualism mode and symmetry mutualism mode. The evolution of symbiosis mode also reflects the transition of LSD and the eco-environment from maladjusted recession and coordination transition to coupling coordination. As a multilateral and multi-directional communication model, the symmetrical mutualism symbiosis mode is a harmonious state of space development, and it is also an ideal symbiosis model for LSD and the eco-environment at present.

3. Materials and Methods

3.1. Study Area

Henan province is situated in the middle of China and the middle and lower reaches of the Yellow River (Figure 2). It has an area of 167,000 km² and a total population of 109.06 million, with rich resources and comparatively high levels of socio-economic development. Henan province is composed of plains, basins, mountains, and hills, accounting for 55.7%, 26.6%, and 17.7% of the total area, respectively. In 2018, the GDP (gross domestic product) of the Henan province was 4.81 trillion Yuan. Meanwhile, the urbanization level was 51.71%. Henan province has achieved rapid progress in urbanization and industrialization in recent years. However, with the rapid economic development, the natural resource constraints of Henan province have become tighter, the pressure on the eco-environment brought by economic development has increased, and the spatial structure of land space has gradually become unbalanced. Therefore, it is urgent to optimize the land spatial pattern by reasonably judging the interactive coupling relationship between LSD and the eco-environment.

By the end of 2018, Henan province included 18 cities, and the population and area of different cities are shown in

Table 1. Population and area of 18 cities in Henan province.

Number	City	Population (10,000 Persons)	Total Area (sq.km)
1	Zhengzhou	787	7567
2	Kaifeng	526	6240
3	Luoyang	714	15,236
4	Pingdingshan	553	7910
5	Anyang	592	7352
6	Hebi	166	2140
7	Xinxiang	617	8291
8	Jiaozuo	377	3973
9	Puyang	399	4271
10	Xuchang	498	4979
11	Luohe	284	2692
12	Sanmenxia	231	9936
13	Nanyang	1198	26,511
14	Shangqiu	926	10,704
15	Xinyang	885	18,916
16	Zhoukou	1162	11,961
17	Zhumadian	920	15,086
18	Jiyuan	71	1899

. Research on the symbiotic coupling relationship between LSD and eco-environment among 18 cities in Henan province is very important for the interconnection and collaborative development between cities.

3.2. Data Source and Processing

This study takes the cities of Henan province as the research unit and uses data from 2000–2018. Specifically, the land use data come from the Henan Land Use Survey (2000–2018). The social and economic data were obtained from the Henan statistical yearbook (2001–2019) and the other cities’ statistical yearbooks (2001–2019), as well as the statistical bulletin of the national economy and social development of Henan and cities in 2000–2018. The environmental data were obtained from the environmental status bulletin and water resources bulletins of Henan province and cities (2000–2018). The missing data of individual years in some cities are based on the data of adjacent years, supplemented by moving average and trend extrapolation methods.

Considering the differences that exist in both the dimension and magnitude of each of the selected indicators, the data need to be normalized before an analysis can be undertaken. This article uses a dimensionless method to standardize the positive and negative indicator data [46], and the formulas were as follows:

$$X_{ij}=\left\{\begin{array}{l}{x}_{ij}-\min (x_{ij})/\max (x_{ij})-\min (x_{ij})\\ \max (x_{ij})-x_{ij}/\max (x_{ij})-\min (x_{ij})\end{array}\right\}$$

(1)

where i is the indicator, j is the year, X_ij is the standardized value, x_ij is the original value, and max (x_ij) and min (x_ij) represent the maximum and minimum value of the indicator i in all of the years studied.

3.3. The Indexes for Evaluation of LSD and Eco-Environment

In view of the symbiotic relationship and mechanism between LSD and eco-environment, this paper generally discusses the coercive effect of LSD on eco-environment from the aspects of population, space, economy, and society, and analyzes the restrictive effect of eco-environment on urbanization from the aspects of ecological resources, ecological pressure, and ecological response.

In order to accurately reflect the interactive symbiosis mechanism of LSD and eco-environment, taking into account the availability of data indicators and the actual situation of Henan province, 26 indicators are constructed from the two system levels of LSD and eco-environment [3,11,47]. The LSD system is made up of 3 sub-systems and 15 indicators (

Table 2. The index system of land space development (LSD).

Target Level	Sub-System	Indicators (Unit)	Serial Number	Weight	Attribute
Land space development	Land space carrying capacity	Urban land proportion (%)	L1	0.0814	+
		Rural land proportion (%)	L2	0.0298	+
		Traffic land density (%)	L3	0.0605	+
		Built-up area per 10,000 people (km2/person)	L4	0.0783	−
	Socio-economic development level	Economic density (yuan/km2)	L5	0.0791	+
		Gross industrial production per area (yuan/km2)	L6	0.0724	+
		Proportion of secondary and tertiary industries (%)	L7	0.0440	+
		Per capita retail sales (yuan/person)	L8	0.0994	+
		Per capita disposable income ratio in urban and rural areas (%)	L9	0.0543	+
		Number of college students per 10,000 people (person)	L10	0.1643	+
		Number of hospital beds per 10,000 people (unit)	L11	0.0559	+
	Population size level	Population density (person/km2)	L12	0.0325	+
		Population urbanization rate (%)	L13	0.0602	+
		Natural population growth rate (%)	L14	0.0325	−
		Proportion of employees in secondary and tertiary industries (%)	L15	0.0554	+

Note: “+” means a positive index, “−”means a negative index.

). The LSD system selects indicators from the land space carrying capacity, the socio-economic development level, and the population size, which mainly reflect the current status of LSD and the degree of socio-economic development. The eco-environment system is made up of 3 sub-systems and 11 indicators (

Table 3. The index system of eco-environment.

Target Level	Sub-System	Indicators (Unit)	Serial Number	Weight	Attribute
Eco-environment	Eco-environment pressure	Per capita industrial wastewater discharge (t/person)	E1	0.0366	−
		Per capita industrial sulfur dioxide emission (t/person)	E2	0.0312	−
		Per capita comprehensive water (t/person)	E3	0.0510	−
		Input intensity of chemical fertilizer (kg/hm2)	E4	0.0578	−
	Eco-environment status	Forest coverage (%)	E5	0.1659	+
		Per capita total water resources (m3/person)	E6	0.1521	+
		Per capita ecological land area (km2/person)	E7	0.1855	+
		Habitat abundance index (−)	E8	0.1170	+
	Eco-environment response	Harmless treatment rate of domestic waste (%)	E9	0.0322	+
		Comprehensive utilization rate of industrial solid waste (%)	E10	0.0315	+
		Proportion of total environmental investment (%)	E11	0.1393	+

Note: “+” means a positive index, “−”means a negative index.

). The eco-environment system selects indicators from the eco-environment pressure, eco-environment status, and eco-environment response, which mainly reflect the carrying capacity of resources ecological status.

3.4. Comprehensive Index Evaluation Model of LSD and Eco-Environment

This article involves multi-regional and multi-year, taking into account the interrelationship of indicators, and to eliminate the interference of subjective factors on the evaluation results, this article adopts the entropy method to calculate the index weights [48,49]. As an objective weighting method, the entropy method determines the index weight by calculating the index information entropy and the relative change degree of the index. The calculation equation is as follows:

$$e_i=-k{\displaystyle \sum _{i=1}^n{P}_{ij}}\ln P_{ij},k=\frac{1}{\ln n},P_{ij}=\frac{X_{ij}}{{\displaystyle \sum X_{ij}}}$$

(2)

$$h_i=1-e_i$$

(3)

$$W_i=h_i/{\displaystyle \sum _{i=1}^n{h}_i}$$

(4)

where i is the indicator, j is the year, n is the number of research units, e_j is the information entropy of the i evaluation index, h_i is the information utility value of the i evaluation index, W_i is the weight of the i evaluation index. The results of index weight are displayed in Table 2 and Table 3, respectively.

Furthermore, the linear weighting method is used to calculate the evaluation value of the LSD system and the eco-environment system, respectively [47]. The calculation method as follows:

$$F(x)={\displaystyle \sum _{i=1}^n{W}_i}\times X_i,G(y)={\displaystyle \sum _{j=1}^m{W}_j}\times Y_j$$

(5)

where F(x) represents the comprehensive evaluation value of LSD, G(y) represents the comprehensive evaluation value of eco-environment, X_i represents the standardized value of LSD, Y_j represents the standardized value of eco-environment, W_i represents the evaluation index weight of LSD, W_j represents evaluation index weight of eco-environment.

3.5. Coupling Coordination Degree Model of LSD and Eco-Environment

3.5.1. Coupling Degree Model

Coupling degree is a physical concept, which mainly refers to the measurement of the degree of closeness between various modules in a certain system [4]. Studying the coupling degree between LSD and eco-environment can quantitatively reflect the interaction and stress relationship. Refer to existing related research to construct a coupling degree model between LSD and eco-environment [49,50]. The calculation method as follows:

$$C={\left\{\frac{F\left(x\right)\times G\left(y\right)}{{\left[F\left(x\right)+G\left(y\right)/2\right]}^2}\right\}}^{1/k}$$

(6)

where C represents the coupling degree between LSD and eco-environment, C ∈ [0, 1], the larger the value of C, the higher the coupling degree and the stronger the interaction relationship. k represents the adjustment coefficient. Since this article mainly measured the coupling degree of the LSD system and eco-environment system, k = 2.

3.5.2. Coordination Degree Model

Although the coupling degree model can measure the strength of the interaction between different systems, it cannot reflect the level of coordinated development between different systems. Therefore, this article constructs the coordination degree model between LSD and eco-environment [10,51], the calculation method is as follows:

$$D=\sqrt{C\times T}$$

(7)

$$T=\alpha \times F\left(x\right)+\beta \times G\left(y\right)$$

(8)

where D is the coordination degree between LSD and eco-environment, T is the index value of LSD and eco-environment, α and β are the undetermined coefficients of LSD and eco-environment, respectively, α + β = 1. Considering that LSD and eco-environment protection are equally important in the process of regional economic development, the undetermined coefficients of α and β are both assigned a value of 0.5.

3.5.3. Classification of Coupling Coordination Degree

By referring to the standards of some scholars for the classification of coupling coordination degree [11], this paper divides the coupling coordination degree into 3 categories and 10 sub-categories according to the value of D. Meanwhile, combining the evaluation values of F(x) and G(y), the coupling coordination degree is further subdivided into 9 basic types to determine the coupling coordination degree and development types between LSD and eco-environment (

Table 4. Classification of coupling coordination types between LSD and eco-environment.

Category	Interval	Sub-Category	F(x) and G(y)	Development Type Characteristics
Coupling coordination stage	0.9 < D ≤ 1	Advanced coordination	F(x) − G(y) > 0.1 |F(x) − G(y)| < 0.1 F(x) − G(y) < −0.1	Coupling coordination—Eco-environment lagging Coupling coordination—Balanced development Coupling coordination—Development lagging
	0.8 < D ≤ 0.9	Well coordination
	0.7 < D ≤ 0.8	Intermediate coordination
	0.6 < D ≤ 0.7	Primary coordination
Coordination transition stage	0.5 < D ≤ 0.6	Barely coordination	F(x) − G(y) > 0.1 |F(x) − G(y)| < 0.1 F(x) − G(y) < −0.1	Coordination transition—Eco-environment lagging Coordination transition—Balanced development Coordination transition—Development lagging
	0.4 < D ≤ 0.5	Verge of imbalance
Maladjusted recession stage	0.3 < D ≤ 0.4	Mild imbalance	F(x) − G(y) > 0.1 |F(x) − G(y)| ≤ 0.1 F(x) − G(y) ≤ −0.1	Maladjusted recession—Eco-environment lagging Maladjusted recession—Balanced development Maladjusted recession—Development lagging
	0.2 < D ≤ 0.3	Moderate imbalance
	0.1 < D ≤ 0.2	Serious imbalance
	0 < D ≤ 0.1	Extreme imbalance

).

3.6. Spatial Correlation Analysis Model between LSD and Eco-Environment

The spatial correlation model is the main method to study spatial correlation. Spatial correlation analysis can reflect a certain geographical phenomenon on a regional unit or the correlation degree between an attribute value and the attribute value of adjacent regional units. The spatial autocorrelation model generally used includes two aspects, one is the global spatial autocorrelation, and the other is the local spatial autocorrelation. The Global Moran’s I index can reflect the similarity of attribute values of adjacent units in space. The Local Moran’s I index can reflect the degree of difference between regions and adjacent regions. The calculation method is as follows:

$$GMI=\frac{n{\displaystyle \sum _i{\displaystyle \sum _j{w}_{ij}\left(Y_i-\overline{Y}\right)\left(Y_j-\overline{Y}\right)}}}{\left({\displaystyle {\sum }_{i\ne j}{w}_{ij}}\right){\displaystyle \sum _i{\left(Y_i-\overline{Y}\right)}^2}}$$

(9)

$$LM{I}_i=\frac{Y_i-\overline{Y}}{S^2}{\displaystyle \sum _{j\ne 1}^n{w}_{ij}\left(Y_j-\overline{Y}\right)}$$

(10)

$$S^2=\frac{1}{n}{{\displaystyle \sum \left(Y_i-\overline{Y}\right)}}^2$$

(11)

where GMI and LMI_i are the Global Moran’s I index andLocal Moran’s I index, respectively, Y_i and Y_j are the values of variables in adjacent paired space units, W_ij is the spatial weight matrix. The value range of GMI is [−1, 1], the larger the value, the stronger the positive correlation; the smaller the value, the stronger the negative correlation. When it is equal to 0, it means that there is no spatial correlation. n is the total number of evaluation units in the study area; S² is the variance of statistics. When the LMI_i value is greater than 0, it indicates that there is “high-high” (“low-low”) aggregation in space; when the LMI_i value is less than 0, it indicates that there is “high-low” (“low-high”) aggregation in space; When LMI_i = 0, it is an insignificant area.

4. Results

4.1. Temporal Evolution Characteristics of LSD and Eco-Environment

4.1.1. Evolution Trends of LSD and Eco-Environment

According to Formulas (2)–(5), the index evaluation values of LSD and the eco-environment system of 18 cities during 2000–2018 are calculated. Figure 3a shows the evolution trends of LSD. Figure 3b shows the evolution trends of the eco-environment. The results are as follows.

As is shown in Figure 3a, the level of LSD in various cities developed steadily without significant fluctuations during 2000–2010. After 2012, except in Zhengzhou city, Jiaozuo city, Luohe city, and Pingdingshan city, the level of LSD in most cities has risen slightly and has subsequently developed steadily. In terms of space, Zhengzhou city as the economic center of Henan province, has a significantly higher level of LSD than other cities, with obvious differences in regional gradients. The low-level areas are mostly located in the southern and southeastern Henan province, which are distributed in clusters. The reason is mainly due to the low social and economic production efficiency, weak non-agricultural production capacity, and lack of power points to enhance the capacity of regional economic development.

As is shown in Figure 3b, the overall eco-environment level is slowly shrinking and then increasing, and the speed of change is relatively stable, but the characteristics of periodic fluctuations are obvious. From 2000 to 2018, the eco-environment level of southwestern and northwestern has been significantly higher than other regions, while the eco-environment level of the central and eastern regions, represented by Zhengzhou city, Zhumadian city, and Zhoukou city, was relatively low. In terms of space, the high-value areas of the eco-environment are mostly closed to mountains and rivers, and the low-value areas are mostly concentrated in Zhengzhou city, Luoyang city, Xuchang city, etc. This type of area has a relatively high degree of economic development and serious environmental pollution, resulting in a low level of eco-environment.

4.1.2. Evolution Trends of Subsystem between LSD and Eco-Environment

Figure 4a–c reflects the evolution trend of the LSD subsystem. From 2000 to 2018, the land space carrying capacity and the socio-economic development in Henan province showed a downward trend. The population scales of Zhengzhou, Kaifeng, Luoyang, Xuchang, and other cities are gradually decreasing, while other cities are slowly increasing. Spatially, high-value areas of land space carrying capacity are mainly located in the central and northern plains, while low-value areas are mostly located in northwest mountain basins. Due to natural and socio-economic conditions, most low-value areas have relatively weak spatial carrying capacity and economic levels. The distribution pattern of the socio-economic development level is similar to the land space carrying capacity. High-value areas are concentrated in the central and northern regions, such as Zhengzhou city, Luoyang city, and Xinxiang city, while low-value areas are concentrated in the western and northern regions. The population size level shows a pattern of “high in the middle east and low in the southwest”, which has a greater relationship with the natural conditions of the Henan province, especially the topography.

Figure 4d–f reflects the evolution trend of the eco-environment subsystem. From 2000 to 2018, the eco-environment pressure, the eco-environment status, and the eco-environment response showed a fluctuating development status. The subsystem of some cities, including Zhengzhou city, Luoyang city, and Luohe city, increased slowly, while the subsystem of other cities weakened sporadically. Spatially, the distribution pattern of eco-environment pressure is balanced, and the difference in the level of eco-environment pressure between different cities is relatively small. This is mainly due to the existence of different degrees of environmental problems in various cities. The eco-environment status mainly presents a distribution pattern of “high in the southwest and low in the middle”, which depends on the difference in natural resource endowments in the region. The pattern of the eco-environment response is in a dispersed state. Among them, Zhengzhou city and the radiation zone centered on Zhengzhou city have strong eco-environment response capabilities, while other cities need to be further strengthened.

4.2. Spatiotemporal Pattern of Coupling Coordination Degree between LSD and Eco-Environment

The coupling coordination degree of LSD and the eco-environment is measured by Formulas (6)–(8), and the results are shown in Figure 5 and Figure 6.

Figure 5 reflects the time change of coupling coordination degree between LSD and the eco-environment during 2000–2018 in the Henan province. In terms of time series, from 2000 to 2018, the average value of the coupling coordination degree between LSD and the eco-environment is between 0.53–0.71, and the coupling coordination degree is mainly in the bare coordination and primary coordination stages. Specifically, the coupling coordination degree of various cities in the Henan province rose significantly in 2001, and some cities were in a state of advanced coordination. After 2001, the coupling coordination degree of various cities in the Henan province dropped sharply and then maintained a steady and rising trend (Figure 5). This is due to the unrestricted development of land space that has caused local governments to pay more attention to the regional eco-environment.

According to Figure 6, the coupling coordination degrees between LSD and the eco-environment show obvious spatial heterogeneity during 2000–2018. (1) In 2000, the coupling coordination degree was between 0.45–0.67. The eastern Henan plain and the northern Henan plain are on the verge of imbalance, while the south Henan and the central parts of Henan are in a state of barely coordination. In addition, Zhengzhou City, Luoyang City, Jiyuan City, Sanmenxia City, and Pingdingshan City are in a primary coordination state. (2) In 2006, the coupling coordination degree was between 0.47–0.71. Compared with 2000, the intermediate coordination type increased, and the verge of imbalance type decreased. The intermediate coordination and primary coordination areas are Zhengzhou City, Jiyuan City, Luoyang City, Sanmenxia City, and Jiaozuo City. The barely coordination and the verge of imbalance areas are mainly concentrated in the central and eastern regions of Henan. (3) In 2012, the coupling coordination degree was between 0.44–0.76. The spatial distribution pattern of the intermediate coordination type and the primary coordination type was relatively stable, and the intermediate coordination type added Sanmenxia City. Compared with 2006, the verge of imbalance type has increased. Intermediate coordination and primary coordination areas are still concentrated in central and western Henan. (4) In 2018, the degree of coupling coordination is between 0.43–0.75. Among them, Jiyuan City, Luoyang City, and Zhengzhou City are in the primary and intermediate coordination state. The barely coordination type and the verge of imbalance type are mainly concentrated in the eastern Henan plain, the Huanghuaihai plain, and the northern Henan plain. In summary, from 2000 to 2018, the overall spatial pattern of the coupling coordination degree in the Henan province was similar, with some changes in local types.

4.3. Development Type Characteristics of LSD and Eco-Environment

According to the classification criteria determined in Table 4, if the absolute value of the difference between F(x) and G(y) is less than 0.1, it is regarded as a balanced development type. If the difference between F(x) and G(y) is less than −0.1, it is regarded as a development lagging type; if the difference between F(x) and G(y) is greater than 0.1, it is regarded as eco-environment lagging type. Figure 7 plots the contrast of the development types of coupling coordination degree from 2000 to 2018 in the Henan province. Figure 7 shows that during the period 2000–2018, the number of development lagging types in 18 cities was more than the number of balanced development types and eco-environment lagging types. Luoyang City, Sanmenxia City, Nanyang City, Xinyang City, and Zhumadian City have been development lagging type from 2000 to 2018, indicating that the development speed and comprehensive quality of the land space in the Henan province still need to be focused on. However, the number of regions with eco-environment lagging type is the least. Only Zhengzhou City and Jiaozuo City have always belonged to the eco-environment lagging type, and the contradiction between LSD and the eco-environment development is less acute. Finally, the number of balanced development types is in the middle. Among them, Kaifeng City, Pingdingshan City, and Anyang City belonged to the balanced development type for a long time from 2000 to 2018, indicating that the Henan province has a good foundation for the coupling coordination between LSD and the eco-environment.

4.4. Spatiotemporal Pattern of Spatial Correlation between LSD and Eco-Environment

To further clarify the spatial correlation pattern of the coupling coordination degree between LSD and the eco-environment, the global autocorrelation is used for analysis, and the Moran scatter diagram is drawn (Figure 8). The scatter diagram is divided into four quadrants with the average value as the center. From the statistical results of each quadrant, the horizontal points of the coupling coordination degree are mainly distributed in the first quadrant and the third quadrant. The analysis shows that the Global Moran’s I index of the coupling coordination degree is significantly positive at the level of p = 0.05, and the Global Moran’s I index values in 2000, 2006, 2012, and 2018 are 0.381, 0.527, 0.439, and 0.287, respectively.

Furthermore, Geoda software is used to analyze the local spatial autocorrelation of coupling coordination degree between LSD and the eco-environment, and then the spatial heterogeneity of the local region is discussed (Figure 9). In terms of the time sequence, the number of H–H units remained unchanged from 2000 to 2018, but the spatial location changed. The position of the high–high area moves from west to northwest. From 2008 to 2018, the location of L–L units shifted from Anyang City to Hebi City and Zhoukou City, with a trend of “decentralized layout”. In 2000 and 2018, there was an L–H type in the research unit, but the spatial pattern of not significant type areas was relatively stable over time. In terms of spatial distribution, H–H units are mainly distributed in the northwest, and L–L units are mainly located in the east and north. In general, the coupling coordination degree of LSD and the eco-environment has certain spatial agglomeration characteristics. Among them, H–H units are in the form of “clusters”, L–L units are in the form of “dispersion”, and L–H units are randomly distributed around the H–H area.

5. Discussion

5.1. Rationality of the Interactive Coupling between LSD and Eco-Environment

Eco-environmental protection and governance in the process of urban development have always been issues that require urgent attention [52,53]. A series of environmental issues not only restrict the process of urban development but also affect the increase in economic aggregates. Therefore, in view of the interactive coupling relationship and the mechanism of LSD and the eco-environment, the stress effect of LSD on the eco-environment is generally discussed from the aspects of population, space, economy, and society. Meanwhile, from the aspects of ecological resources, ecological pressure, and ecological response to analyzing the restraint effect of the eco-environment on urbanization [3]. It can be seen that the LSD and the eco-environment both interact and restrict each other, and there is a symbiotic relationship between LSD and the eco-environment. To achieve comprehensive, coordinated, and sustainable regional development, it is necessary to coordinate the relationship between LSD and the eco-environment, and scientifically guide the orderly development of land space [54].

Current related researches mostly focus on the coupling level of urbanization and eco-environment [17,47,55,56]. For example, Sun [57] comprehensively used the coupling coordination degree model, spatial autocorrelation, geographic detectors, and other methods to analyze the spatial characteristics and driving mechanism of coupling coordination degree between urbanization and eco-environment in the Pan Yangtze River Delta from 2002 to 2014. Zhao [54] constructed the coupling coordination model of new urbanization and eco-environment, and then quantitatively measured the spatiotemporal differentiation and synchronous development state of coupling coordination in the Yellow River Basin from 2005 to 2016. However, the urbanization research mostly discusses the demographic, economic, and social levels, and fails to take into account the level of land space carrying capacity. The difference between this study and other studies is that the coupling symbiosis between LSD and the eco-environment is discussed from the perspectives of carrying capacity, economic level, and population, which can provide a basis for exploring the high-quality development path of land space in the Henan province to a certain extent.

5.2. Insights into the Relative Relationship between LSD and Eco-Environment

This paper analyzes the temporal evolution law of the LSD and the eco-environment in the Henan province, the temporal and spatial differentiation characteristics of the coupling coordination degree, as well as the development type, which can provide a basis for rational planning in Henan province. According to the results of the research, there are two patterns in the changing trend of the coupling coordination degree of the LSD and the eco-environment in the Henan province. On the one hand, as the degree of space development continues to increase, the eco-environment continues to be destroyed, and the coupling correlation between LSD and the eco-environment is gradually dispersed [8,57]. This is similar to the study about the optimization of urban land development spatial allocation [41], which believes that how to balance coordination of the layout of ecological spaces with urban land development to maximize the profit of developed land without affecting ecological protection, has become a key issue for urban planners to promote sustainable development. The other is that the increase in the land development degree is often accompanied by the increase in the economic development level, which in turn leads to the research area being more capable of environmental protection investment [58,59]. At the same time, the pressure on the eco-environment can be alleviated, and the relationship between LSD and the eco-environment can be more coordinated [60,61]. For example, the Henan province gradually increased its investment in ecological environmental protection in 2010. Especially in 2018, the Henan Province prepared the “ecological protection and restoration plan of mountains, rivers, forests, fields, lakes and grasses in Henan Province”, trying to build a solid ecological security pattern to improve the level of ecological security and ecological supply capacity. Therefore, with the comprehensive implementation of ecological protection projects, the quality of eco-environment in the Henan province has been significantly improved, which has promoted the healthy development of land space [62]. The two patterns can provide different references for urban construction and regional sustainable development.

5.3. Policy Implications and Limitations

Under the realistic background of the continuous spread of global urban space and the gradual imbalance of China’s land spatial structure in the process of urbanization, guiding the orderly development of land space has become an urgent need to achieve regional comprehensive, coordinated, and sustainable development.

Therefore, how to coordinate the relationship between LSD and the eco-environment is a problem that needs to be solved urgently. Firstly, guide the industrial development direction of different regions according to the current situation of LSD and resource constraints. At the same time, it is necessary to increase investment in industries and funds in areas with development lagging space, establish a diversified investment incentive mechanism, and guide private capital to participate in land development, protection, and renovation. For areas with eco-environment lagging type, it is necessary to encourage efficient development and green development, guide the development of high-tech industries, and strictly control the conversion of the ecological space in the region. Regarding the balanced development area, it is necessary to rationally utilize natural resources and deeply grasp the integrity, system, and internal laws of the ecosystem, so as to coordinate the land space.

In addition, it is necessary to carry out overall planning based on the spatial difference of the coupling coordination degree of various cities in the Henan province. At the same time, we should strengthen the awareness of the eco-environment crisis, actively create safeguard measures, and put an end to major ecological damage, environmental pollution, and other events. Finally, a regional coupling and coordinated development platform should be established, and a coupled linkage mechanism should be constructed from the aspects of technology, information, infrastructure, natural resources, etc., so as to achieve information sharing, policy exchange, and stimulate regional linkage effects and symbiotic development.

Although the established coupling coordination system and evaluation perspective have good applicability and a scientific basis, there are still some improvements to be made. Firstly, due to the availability of data and the limitations of quantitative methods, the indicators for LSD and the eco-environment system measurement need to be further optimized. Secondly, this article only studies the characteristics of the spatiotemporal pattern of coupling coordination between the LSD and the eco-environment system, and the interaction between them is not yet clear. In addition, a single-scale analysis may not be enough to reveal the true interaction between LSD and the eco-environment. More detailed small-scale research may produce some changes, and multi-scale comprehensive research is still necessary.

6. Conclusions

Taking 18 cities in Henan province as the study area and using 2000–2018 as the research period, the evaluation index system of LSD and the eco-environment was constructed. The entropy method and linear weighting method were employed to evaluate the evolution trend of LSD and the eco-environment. The coupling coordination model was established to illustrate the spatiotemporal differentiation characteristics and development types of the coupling coordination degree of LSD and the eco-environment. Then, the idea of symbiosis integration of LSD and the eco-environment was discussed.

The main research conclusions we got are as follows: (1) From 2000 to 2018, the overall level of LSD was steady and progressing, and the level of the eco-environment showed a slow decline. From a spatial perspective, there are regional gradient differences in the level of LSD, and there are obvious laws of regional dependence on the level of the eco-environment. (2) The overall coupling coordination degree of the Henan province is in the barely coordination stage and on the verge of imbalance. The degree of coordination varies with the local types over time. (3) The lagging problem of LSD in the Henan province has always existed, indicating that the relationship between LSD and the eco-environment has not yet reached the ideal state of coupling coordination. It is necessary to improve the level of coupling coordination to achieve symbiotic development. (4) The agglomeration pattern of the coupling coordination degree of LSD and the eco-environment fluctuates slightly over time, while the spatial correlation pattern of the coupling coordination degree is basically consistent with the spatial distribution of development.