Characteristics of rural domestic sewage discharge and their driving mechanisms: evidence from the Northern Region, China

doi:10.1007/s11783-024-1843-0

2024, Vol. 18

Issue (7) : 83 https://doi.org/10.1007/s11783-024-1843-0

Characteristics of rural domestic sewage discharge and their driving mechanisms: evidence from the Northern Region, China

Jianguo Liu¹, Ziyu Zhou^1,², Pengyu Li^2,³, Zixuan Wang^1,², Ying Yan^1,², Xuezheng Yu^1,², Wenkai Li⁴, Tianlong Zheng^2,³(

), Yingnan Cao^1,²(

), Wenjun Wu⁵, Wenqian Cai⁶(

), Zhining Shi⁷, Junxin Liu^2,³

¹. Key Laboratory of Environmental Pollution Control and Remediation at Universities of Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, College of Resources and Environmental Engineering, Inner Mongolia University of Technology, Hohhot 010051, China
². State Key Laboratory of Environmental Aquatic Chemistry, Research Center for Eco-Environmental Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100085, China
³. University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China
⁴. SCEGC No. 12 Construction Engineering Group Co., Ltd., Ankang 725000, China
⁵. State Environmental Protection Key Laboratory of Environmental Planning and Policy Simulation, Chinese Academy of Environmental Planning, Beijing 100041, China
⁶. Technical Centre for Soil, Agriculture and Rural Ecology and Environment, Ministry of Ecology and Environment, Beijing 100012, China
⁷. Sustainable Infrastructure and Resource Management (SIRM), UniSA STEM, University of South Australia, South Australia, Mawson Lakes, SA 5095, Australia

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Abstract

● First to apply spatial autocorrelation analysis to rural domestic sewage discharge.

● In peri-urban areas, rural sewage discharge tends to exhibit high-high clustering.

● Social development is the most influential factor of rural sewage discharge level.

● Urbanization rate, education, and population age structure are influencing factors.

● The county level rural domestic sewage data set has been scientifically established.

The traits of rural domestic sewage emission are unclear, negatively affecting rural domestic sewage treatment and sewage management. This study used data from the Second National Pollution Source Census Bulletin to establish a data set. The spatial distribution characteristics and main factors influencing rural sewage discharge in the Northern Region were studied using spatial autocorrelation analysis and structural equations. The findings demonstrated that (1) a significant Spearman correlation between drainage water volume (DWV), chemical oxygen demand (COD), ammonia nitrogen (NH₃-N), total nitrogen (TN), and total phosphorus (TP) and that the correlation coefficients between DWV and COD, NH₃–N, TN and TP were 0.87**, 1.0**, 0.99**, 0.99**, respectively; (2) rural sewage discharge showed spatial autocorrelation, and rural domestic sewage discharge in the districts and counties with an administration was significantly higher than in the surrounding areas; and (3) social development was the main driver rural domestic sewage changes (path coefficient was 0.407**), and the main factors influencing rural domestic sewage discharge were the urbanization rate, years of education, and population age structure. This study obtained the spatial variation law and clarified the main influencing factors of rural domestic sewage to provide data support and a theoretical basis for subsequent rural sewage collection and treatment. Use of the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region in northern China as a typical case, provides a theoretical foundation for scientific decision-making on rural domestic sewage treatment at the national and regional levels and offers new perspectives for managing pollutants.

Keywords Rural domestic sewage Emission characteristics Spatial autocorrelation analysis Influencing factors

Corresponding Author(s): Tianlong Zheng,Yingnan Cao,Wenqian Cai

Issue Date: 08 April 2024

Cite this article:

Jianguo Liu,Ziyu Zhou,Pengyu Li, et al. Characteristics of rural domestic sewage discharge and their driving mechanisms: evidence from the Northern Region, China[J]. Front. Environ. Sci. Eng., 2024, 18(7): 83.

URL:

https://academic.hep.com.cn/fese/EN/10.1007/s11783-024-1843-0
https://academic.hep.com.cn/fese/EN/Y2024/V18/I7/83

Tab.1 Data sources of rural domestic sewage discharge characteristics

Fig.1 Spearman correlation analysis of rural domestic sewage discharge characteristics. DWV, drainage water volume; COD, chemical oxygen demand; NH₃-N, ammonia nitrogen; TN, total nitrogen; TP, total phosphorus; RPCDI, rural per capita disposable income.

Fig.2 Coefficient of variation in rural domestic sewage discharge index. DWV, drainage water volume; COD, chemical oxygen demand; NH₃–N, ammonia nitrogen; TN, total nitrogen; TP, total phosphorus.

Tab.2 Provincial spatial autocorrelation report results

Fig.3 Provincial local Moran’s index diagram. Provincial spatial characteristics of DWV and COD, NH₃–N, TN, and TP. DWV, drainage water volume; COD, chemical oxygen demand; NH₃–N, ammonia nitrogen; TN, total nitrogen; TP, total phosphorus.

Tab.3 County spatial autocorrelation report results

Fig.4 County local Moran’s index diagram. (a) spatial characteristics of DWV; (b) spatial characteristics of COD; (c) spatial characteristics of NH₃–N; (d) spatial characteristics of TN; (e) spatial characteristics of TP.

Tab.4 Index hierarchy of influencing factors of emission characteristics

Fig.5 Results of the modified structural equation model. This model aims to elucidate the intricate mechanisms and interactions between a wide range of factors. In this conceptual framework, latent variables are represented by circles, observed variables by squares, and goodness-of-fit by R². The numerical values on the arrows connecting the latent variables represent the path coefficients; the numerical values on the arrows linking the observed variables to latent variables denote the weights. For path coefficients, the “*” and “**” demonstrate the level of significance, denoting p values of less than 0.05 and 0.01, respectively.

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