Analysis on the Effect of Transfer Payment on Environmental Governance in Xin'an River Basin

The ecological environment plays a crucial role in human survival and development. Therefore, effective protection of the environment is an essential choice for achieving sustainable development. Our country has vast territory, and water resources are distributed in a complex manner. With the acceleration of urbanization, environmental and economic disparities between regions have widened, and conflicts of interest between upstream and downstream areas of river basins have become increasingly prominent. In recent years, to address water pollution in our country, to address the interests of upstream and downstream areas within river basins, the National People's Congress and other departments have jointly promoted the establishment of an inter-basin ecological compensation system, conducting a series of pilot projects nationwide. The Xin’an River Basin, as China's first provincial-level pilot area for the horizontal ecological compensation system, has been operating for decades, providing valuable practical experience for China's horizontal ecological compensation efforts. This study aims to analyze the operational mechanisms and pathways of horizontal ecological compensation by tracing the development process of the Xin'an River horizontal ecological compensation policy, with the goal of enhancing the effectiveness of horizontal ecological compensation policies and promoting the widespread application of the horizontal ecological compensation model.