Quantitative assessment of the water use balance between economic society and ecology (EEWB) is the basis for coordinating the competitive relationship of water use between human activity and ecological requirements and. It is of great significance for optimizing the water resources carrying capacity and achieving a healthy regional water balance. Based on the concept of harmonious balance, this paper puts forward the definition and connotation of EEWB regarding the competition in water use between economic society and ecology. And, a novel framework for assessing the EEWB is proposed. It has four aspects relating to water resources, economic society, ecology, and human-water relationship. Linked to these aspects the Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) technique, Water Ecological Footprint (WEF) model, InVEST model and indicators system of human-water relationship are used to establish a water resources efficiency index (I_EEWB-W), economic society high-quality development index (I_EEWB-ES), ecology health index (I_EEWB-E), harmony index of human-water relationship (I_EEWB-H). The four indices were then integrated into the water use balance between economic society and ecology index (I_EEWB) with Euclidean distance, thus forming the EEWB quantification method system. Finally, the temporal and spatial characteristics of EEWB during 2010–2022 was diagnosed in Henan Province and cities of China. Results reveal that: (1) The water resources utilization efficiency exhibit a changing trend of initial decrease followed by subsequent increase; (2) Southern cities in Henan Province have a higher economic society development level compared to northern cities; (3) I_EEWB-E in Henan Province is below 0.60, indicating that the regional ecology health remains consistently vulnerable; (4) I_EEWB-H in Henan Province shows an increasing trend, indicating that a gradual improvement and overall upward development in the human-water relationship; (5) I_EEWB multi-year average was within [0.53, 0.65] in Henan Province, indicating a state of Proximity imbalance. The low level of ecological health is the primary influencing factor. These findings will contribute to a better understanding of the water use balance between economic society and ecology and provide scientific reference for achieving a healthy regional water balance.

Green and high-efficiency water resource utilization patterns hold paramount importance in promoting sustainable economic and social development, as well as in attaining the goal of carbon neutrality. Most research on water utilization efficiency have taken a general perspective to quantify it, neglecting independent relationships and green effects among water use sectors. This study proposed an integrated measurement model of green water resource utilization efficiency (GWRUE), combined with the carbon dioxide emission equivalent analysis method of water resource behaviors, and constructed an input–output indicator system of GWRUE from four dimensions: domestic, industrial, agricultural, and ecological water. The aim is to achieve the measurement of GWRUE towards carbon neutrality. In this paper, 18 cities in Henan Province were used as instances to carry out the study. The results show that (1) The CO₂ emission equivalent from multiple water use sectors in Henan Province showed a tendency of fluctuating reduction during the study period, from a peak of 21,090,100 tons in 2012 to a low of 12,351,900 tons in 2021, with large spatial variations, and the CO₂ emission effect existed in most cities, with Zhengzhou being the highest. (2) The GWRUE of domestic, industrial, and agricultural water in Henan Province and 18 cities exhibited an overall upward trend, while that of ecological water presented a downward trend and was at the lowest level among the four sectors. (3) Consolidated GWRUE in Henan Province tended to decrease and then increase; its value was 0.512 in 2011, 0.448 in 2017, and 0.586 in 2021, and most of its cities were at a Medium level. The findings of this study can serve as a theoretical and practical basis for improving the level of green and efficient utilization of water resources, as well as offer references for relevant water use sectors to formulate CO₂ emission reduction policies.

To study the spatial variability of water surface fluxes, turbulence measurements on a moving platform are useful. However, such measurements have only been carried out with large research vessels over the ocean. We tested the feasibility of flux measurements with a small excursion ship over Lake Kasumigaura, the second largest lake in Japan. After the formal application of coordinate rotations to account for the ship’s movements, we derived mean wind velocities as well as latent and sensible heat fluxes. They were compared with spatially interpolated wind velocities from meteorological stations and with fluxes estimated from the bulk method. Equally good agreements were found with those reported in previous studies over the ocean, indicating the feasibility of ship measurements in a lake. Possible error sources were identified for the improvement of the accuracy of flux estimation.