Spatio-temporal evolution characteristics and spatial spillover effects of forest carbon sink efficiency in China

This study developed a super efficiency Slacks-Based Measure model to quantitatively measure the forest carbon sink efficiency (FCSE) of 30 provinces (cities) in China from 2005 to 2020, analyzed its spatio-temporal evolution characteristics, and used a spatial Durbin model to examine the spatial spillover effects of FCSE. The results indicate that: ① The overall FCSE exhibits a fluctuating upward trend in China. From the perspective of forest regions, the FCSE values in the southwest and northeast forest regions are higher than the national average, whereas those in the north and northwest forest regions are lower. From the perspective of spatial distribution, China's FCSE showed distinct characteristics of agglomeration and continuity, with high efficiency zone gradually expanding and low efficiency zone shrinking. ② China's FCSE has significant spatial spillover effect, shifting from "high-high" and "low-high" agglomerations to "high-high" and "low-low" agglomerations. In summary, economic development level, forest harvesting volume, urbanization rate, and land use structure have significant positive spillover effects on the FCSE of neighboring provinces.