The new wave of reform of collective forestland tenure (NRCFT) in China is considered an important policy for achieving sustainable management of forest resources. The purpose of this study is to investigate the influence of NRCFT on forest fragmentation in the Beijing–Tianjin–Hebei region of China based on a fixed-effects model. The forest fragmentation was analyzed based on the remote sensing images of Landsat and landscape pattern indices in the Beijing–Tianjin–Hebei region from 2000 to 2018. The results showed that (1) The NRCFT has significantly contributed to reducing forest fragmentation. (2) The effect of economic growth on forest fragmentation showed an inverted U-shape. (3) The implementation of the Grain for Green Program (GGP) and the transformation of rural energy consumption significantly reduce the degree of forest fragmentation. This study has crucial implications for formulating policies, achieving good forest governance, and reducing forest fragmentation.

Although irrigation systems are critical to the long-term viability of agriculture, they also contribute a significant amount of carbon dioxide emissions. This creates a conflict between reducing greenhouse gas emissions and promoting agricultural growth. Researchers may be able to gain a better understanding of the subject by looking at the connection between irrigation water efficiency (IWE) and agricultural carbon emissions (ACE). With data from 30 Chinese provinces collected between 2002 and 2019, this study examines the dynamic effect of IWE on ACE. According to the results, IWE has the potential to significantly raise ACE. The positive effects of IWE become more pronounced as ACE increases, according to the heterogeneity analysis. ACE in northern China is also more vulnerable to IWE than other ACE regions. Irrigation scales appear to be a significant channel through which IWE positively affects ACE, according to an investigation of possible mechanisms. However, the increased IWE causes the planting structure adjustments, which aids in the reduction of ACE. The results of this study have significant ramifications for public policy.

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Concerns regarding food security and sustainable development have been highlighted as a result of water scarcity and growing urbanization. It is imperative to look into their relationship. This study examines the impact of urbanization on agricultural water efficiency (AWE) in China utilizing China province-level panel data from 2002 to 2019. The findings indicate that urbanization has a U-shaped relationship with AWE, meaning that urbanization first had a detrimental effect on AWE before reversing course. These findings are robust to the inclusion of three measures of urbanization and the estimation of the instrumental variable method. Structural equation modeling of the underlying mechanisms demonstrates that, at higher levels of urbanization, planting structure and irrigation facilities partially mediate the urbanization-AWE relationship; the mediate effects account for between 27.3% and 100% of total effects, depending on the urbanization measurement used. China should continue investing in rural irrigation infrastructure as it urbanizes, as this would improve water efficiency.

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