Ecological industry empowers rural industrial revitalization: The practical logic and driving mechanism of karst desertification control

Ecological industry (EI) for desertification control has become an important pathway for empowering rural industrial revitalization (RIR) and enhancing regional human well-being. However, few studies have explored the driving mechanisms through which EI promote RIR in the context of typical desertification control. Therefore, this study selected three comprehensive desertification control areas—Salaxi, Hongfenghu, and Huajiang—as study areas, evaluated the spatial differences in the levels of EI and RIR based on a unified criterion-layer and structural-layer framework, and revealed their coupling characteristics. Subsequently, a driving network through which EI promotes RIR was constructed based on the modified factor contribution model, and the interactive effects of factors on EI and RIR were examined using the optimal geographic detector. The results showed that: (1) the levels of EI and RIR in the three study areas exhibited consistency: Hongfenghu (EI = 0.5350, RIR = 0.5308) > Salaxi (EI = 0.2375, RIR = 0.2556) > Huajiang (EI = 0.2324, RIR = 0.2550). The coupling coordination level between EI and RIR followed the order of Hongfenghu (0.80) > Huajiang (0.43) > Salaxi (0.40), and villages such as LDS, YQ, and ML villages achieved high-level coupling. (2) The driving effect of EI on RIR was ranked as Hongfenghu (76.38%) > Huajiang (46.31%) > Salaxi (45.78%), with an overall driving effect of 55.48%. Resource dependence and insufficient infrastructure allocation were the key factors constraining the development of EI in Salaxi and Huajiang, whereas EI development in Hongfenghu has shifted from resource dependence to innovation-driven industrial development. (3) Factor interaction analysis indicated that EI-driven RIR is jointly influenced by internal industrial capacity and external environmental conditions, and the synergistic effects of production capacity, industrial benefits, and geographical advantages represent important pathways for promoting RIR. This study provides a scientific basis for consolidating the achievements of desertification control and promoting the healthy and sustainable development of regional ecological economies.