Ecological risk assessment and management for riverfront development along the Yangtze River in Jiangsu Province, China

•Ecological problems and risks at different spatial scales were identified.•An ecological risk assessment index system for riverfront development was established.•Ecological risk hot spots and cluster zones were identified.•Corresponding risk management and resource protection measures for the Yangtze River in Jiangsu Province were formulated. The riverfront along large rivers, representing the water–land and human–nature interaction zone, is of great importance for economic and social development and eco-environmental protection. Human activities, such as urbanization and industrialization, together with inadequate urban planning and disorderly development, can result in serious ecological risks to riverfront ecosystems. The focus of this study was the riverfront along the Yangtze River in Jiangsu province, an area experiencing conflicting demands in terms of ecological protection and economic development. We identified the ecological problems and risks at different spatial scales (micro, meso, and macro) and, based on PSR model, construct an ecological risk assessment index system for any further development along the Yangtze River. Ecological hot spots and cluster zones were identified based on Getis-Ord Gi* hot spot analysis and Ward’s hierarchical clustering. The results showed that the ecological risk index at micro scale of the study area presented spatially positive correlation, with hot spots mainly concentrated in municipal districts. The hot spots of ecological risk assessment at the meso-scale are distributed in the estuary around the Yangtze River, and the cold spots are distributed on the Yang-Tai plain. According to the assessment indices of social economy, ecological function, and planning response at the macro scale, the study area could be divided into four clusters. Lastly, a spatial division of ecological risk posed by riverfront development along the Yangtze River in Jiangsu Province was constructed. On the basis of this analysis, we propose suitable risk management and resource protection measures.