China has lost about 50% of its mangrove forests from 1950 to 2001. Since 2001, mangrove forest area has increased by 1.8% per year due to strict protection of the remaining mangrove forests and large-scale restoration. By 2019, 67% of the mangrove forests in China had been enclosed within protected areas (PAs). In terms of the proportion of PAs of mangrove forests, China has achieved the conservation target of “Nature Needs Half”. The ongoing degradation of mangrove forests was assessed at the species, population, community and ecosystem levels. The results show that despite the strict protection, the remaining mangrove forests are suffering extensive degradation due to widespread anthropogenic disturbance. Of the 26 mangrove species, 50% are threatened with extinction, a proportion higher than the average for all higher plants in China (10.8%). Local extinction of some common species like Bruguiera gymnorhiza is widespread. About 53% of the existing mangrove areas were dominated by low-intertidal pioneer species. Consequently, the carbon stock in vegetation has decreased by 53.1%, from 21.8 Tg C in the 1950s to 10.2 Tg C in 2019. Meanwhile, there is an estimated 10.8% concomitant decrease in the carbon sequestration rate. The root cause for this degradation in China is seawall construction because most mangroves are outside seawalls in China. Without fundamental changes in protection and restoration strategies, mangrove forests in China will continue to degrade in spite of strict protection and large-scale restoration. Future mangrove conservation effort should aim to preserve the diversity of both the biota and the ecological processes sustaining the mangrove ecosystem. A few suggestions to raise the effectiveness of mangrove conservation actions were provided.

Understanding the coordinated development of production, living, and ecological (P–L–E) functions is critical for sustainable watershed governance in rapidly transforming regions. Using the Chaohu Lake Basin, China, as a case study, this study developed a process–pattern–potential–driver framework for watershed-scale P–L–E coordination analysis from 2000 to 2020. Unlike previous studies that mainly assess coordination levels or map spatial patterns, this framework further identifies subsystem constraints, quantifies coordinated development potential, and determines key factors driving spatial differences. The results show that production and ecological functions remained weakly coordinated, indicating persistent tension between economic growth and ecological protection. In contrast, the relationships between production and living functions and between living and ecological functions improved from strong imbalance to moderate coordination. Spatially, higher coordination levels were concentrated in the southwestern basin. Decoupling analysis further reveals that production activities, especially the energy-intensive secondary industry, were the main constraint on ecological function. In addition, 88.2% of the basin showed an increasing trend in coordinated development potential. Land-use patterns, socioeconomic conditions, and eco-environmental quality were identified as direct drivers, whereas climate change mainly acted indirectly. By linking diagnostic results with spatially differentiated management needs, this study provides a basis for more targeted watershed governance.