Research on the transformation mechanism of carbon sequestration benefits of the digital economy in the wetlands around dongting lake under high–quality development: a case study of the dongting lake wetland reserve

At present, China’s economy is at a critical stage of transition from high-speed growth to high-quality development, and the digital economy is playing an increasingly important role in driving the transition towards a green and low-carbon economy. Against the backdrop of the nation’s pursuit of high–quality development, the digital economy is a key driver for achieving energy conservation and emissions reduction, carbon sequestration benefits, and improvements to the ecological environment. This paper takes the Dongting Lake Wetland Reserve as its study area and utilises panel data from the three cities of Yueyang, Changde and Yiyang covering the period 2005–2022. Using Stata software and a least squares regression model, the study focuses on examining the mechanisms through which the digital economy influences carbon emissions and the optimisation of the energy structure, as well as how it facilitates the realisation of carbon sequestration benefits. This study finds that the development of the digital economy in the Dongting Lake Wetland Reserve remains in its early stages and has not yet fully realised its positive role in regional energy conservation, emissions reduction and carbon sequestration benefits; however, an analysis using a one-period lag reveals that improvements in technological levels can enhance the positive effects of the digital economy on carbon emissions reduction and play a guiding role in promoting the transformation of the energy structure through high–quality economic development.