Regional disparities in urban water resource utilization efficiency and their spatial spillover effects: from the perspective of spatial autocorrelation analysis

The study takes 27 core cities in the Yangtze River Delta from 2014 to 2023 as samples, uses a super efficiency data envelopment analysis model considering unexpected output to measure efficiency, combines Gini coefficient and Theil index to analyze regional differences, and uses spatial autocorrelation analysis and spatial Durbin model to reveal spatial effects. The results show that the water resource utilization efficiency in Shanghai increased from 1.23 in 2014 to 1.78 in 2023, and the Gini coefficient of water resource utilization efficiency in the Yangtze River Delta decreased from 0.321 in 2014 to 0.259 in 2023. Research has shown that there are significant regional differences and positive spatial autocorrelation in the water resource utilization efficiency of cities in the Yangtze River Delta, with obvious spatial spillover effects. This provides a scientific basis for optimizing the allocation and collaborative management of water resources, which helps promote regional sustainable development.