Local-tele coupling coordination of land use pressure and urbanization based on multi-source remote sensing data

Assessing land use pressure is fundamental to understanding regional sustainability. This study constructs a comprehensive Land Use Pressure Index (L) using remote sensing and socio-economic data from 2000 to 2019 across three dimensions—carbon effects, ecological risks, and landscape stability—with weights objectively determined by the entropy weight method. An Urbanization Composite Index (U) is also developed across demographic, economic, spatial, and social dimensions. We further introduce a local-tele coupling coordination framework incorporating an Inverse Distance Weighting (IDW) spatial weight matrix to capture inter-city spillover effects, extending traditional coupling analysis to include both local and tele-coupling interactions. When applied to the Middle Reaches of the Yangtze River Urban Agglomeration, the framework reveals: (1) the coupling degree (C) remained consistently high throughout 2000–2019; (2) the coupling coordination degree (D) transitioned from predominantly “barely coordinated” to “primary coordinated,” with four cities (Wuhan, Changsha, Nanchang, and Xinyu) achieving “intermediate coordinated” status by 2019; and (3) the three major urban agglomerations exhibited distinct evolutionary pathways. This study offers a spatially explicit perspective on urbanization–land use interactions and provides empirical evidence for differentiated land management in urban agglomerations.