Synergy of water use in water-energy-food nexus from a symbiosis perspective: A case study in China

The water-energy-food nexus tackles water, energy, and food security from an integrated management perspective of elemental synergy, system control, and cross-sector collaboration. Along with inter-regional differentiation in natural resource endowments and economic development, water, energy, and food systems exhibit dynamic, sensitive, and uncertain interactions. Owing to the complexity and diversity of the nexus, its synergistic mechanisms and regulation techniques still require more in-depth research. This paper constructs an integrative analytical framework based on symbiosis theory to evaluate the synergistic type, driver, and effect of water use for energy and food production in the Chinese mainland during 1997–2016 with multiple indicators. The results showed that Gansu and Hebei were in the water-energy synergy scenario in 2016, Beijing, Tianjin, Shanxi, Inner Mongolia, and Shandong were in the water-food synergy scenario, and 21 provinces were in the water-energy-food synergy scenario. The energy and food security indices of the production base were highly adaptable. When grey water footprint was included in the water security index, the main grain producing areas & coal bases decreased by 88.6%. This research provides an extensive examination of symbiosis theory, which has research value for the multidisciplinary assessment of resource security and sustainability of the water-energy-food nexus. [Display omitted] •An integrative analytical framework is proposed to evaluate synergy.•The mechanism analysis is quantified by synergistic type, driver, and effect.•Four synergy scenarios illustrate water use status and resources security.•Proposing key measures to address resource security based on symbiosis theory.