Accelerating urbanization and industrialization have had substantial impacts on economic and social activities, changed the surface environment of the earth, and affected global climate change and biodiversity. If reasonable and effective management measures are not implemented in time, unchecked urbanization and industrialization will damage the structure and function of the ecosystem, endanger human and biological habitats, and ultimately lead to difficulties in achieving sustainable development. This study investigates the habitat quality effect of land use transition and analyzes the cause and mechanism of such changes from an economic–social–ecological complex system perspective in the Henan Water Source (HWS) area of the Middle Route of the South-to-North Water Transfer Project (MRP). The study comprehensively examines the characteristics of land use transition from 2000 to 2020. The results indicate that the habitat quality of the HWS area of the MRP decreased slowly over the past 20 years, with a more obvious decrease in the past 10 years. Specifically, the proportion of high quality habitat areas is relatively large and stable, and the medium and low quality habitat areas increase significantly. Analyzing the change degree of the proportion of different levels of habitat quality area in each county, revealed that Dengzhou City had the most dramatic change, followed by the Xichuan and Neixiang counties; other counties did not undergo obvious change. The results of habitat quality factor detection by GeoDetector showed that land use transition plays a decisive role in the change of habitat quality. The types of land use with high habitat suitability compared to those with low habitat suitability will inevitably lead to a decrease in habitat quality. Additionally, elevation, slope, landform type, and annual precipitation are important factors affecting the habitat quality in the HWS area of the MRP, indicating that ecological factors determine the background conditions of habitat quality. The gross domestic product (GDP) per capita, the proportion of agricultural output value, grain yield per unit area in economic factors, population density, and urbanization rate in social factors affect the spatial differentiation of habitat quality to a certain extent. Soil type, annual mean temperature, vegetation type, and NDVI index have weak effects on habitat quality, while road network density and slope aspect have no significant effect on habitat quality. The results of this study provide a basis for the improvement of habitat quality, ecosystem protection and restoration, land resource management, and related policies in the HWS area of the MRP. They also provide references for the research and practice of the habitat quality effects of land use transition in other regions.

Green and low-carbon strategies represent governance orientations for resource-based cities to respond to global changes and achieve sustainable development. Designating the Yellow River Basin (YRB), an important ecological functional area and an ecologically fragile area, as the research area, this study used the super-efficiency SBM model while considering undesirable outputs, including carbon emissions, to analyze green land use efficiency (GLUE) and its temporal and spatial differentiation, then used the Tobit regression model to analyze the influencing factors. The results were as follows: (1) The GLUE of the YRB presented a spatial pattern of “high in the west and low in the east”. (2) Overall, the efficiency values of all areas and types increased annually, but differences occurred in various areas and types of resource-based cities. (3) Overall, the efficiency values of the Yellow River Basin showed a “high-low” polarization. (4) Economic development and population growth factors substantially impacted the GLUE of resource-based cities in this region. It is concluded that increasing the efficiency improvement of low-efficiency regions or cities can improve regional GLUE. To ensure regional green and low-carbon transformation and development, it is essential to enhance urban economic vitality, promote an orderly population flow, and strive to improve social and public services.