Policies are the crucial means by which top-level designers coordinate the relationship between the ecological environment and social development.In this study, we conducted policy intensity scoring and text analysis on the government policy documents of the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region from 2013 to 2023. Meanwhile, based on the land use data of China from 2013 to 2023, we measured the carbon storage, habitat quality, and the value of ecosystem services in the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region. Moreover, we adopted the Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM) to evaluate the impact paths and effects of policies on the changes in ecosystem functions.The research findings are as follows. During the research period, the policy intensity in the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region first showed an upward trend and then a downward trend. It reached the maximum policy intensity within the research period in 2021, with a score of 419 points. In terms of carbon storage, the total carbon storage in 2013 was 2305.88 Tg, and it reached 2316.66 Tg in 2023, demonstrating a continuous increasing trend. Regarding habitat quality, the average value showed a fluctuating downward trend. Its spatial distribution characteristics indicated a gradual decrease from the northwest to the surrounding areas. The habitat degradation index presented a fluctuating upward trend, and its spatial distribution pattern showed that it was higher in the southeast and lower in the north. As for the value of ecosystem services, it was 4014.80 billion yuan in 2013 and 5412.75 billion yuan in 2023 respectively, generally showing an upward trend. The PLS-SEM model indicated that the implementation of policies had a significant impact on the changes in the ecosystem in the research area.To be specific, the policy intensity changes reflect the different focuses and efforts of the government in different stages. The initial upward trend might be due to the increasing awareness of ecological protection and the need to coordinate regional development, which led to the formulation and strengthening of a series of relevant policies. However, the subsequent decline might be related to the adjustment of the overall policy direction or the completion of some phased goals.The continuous increase in carbon storage is a positive sign for the ecological environment in the region. It implies that the measures taken in aspects such as forest protection and afforestation, as well as land use optimization, have played a certain role in enhancing the carbon sequestration capacity of the ecosystem. On the contrary, the fluctuating downward trend of habitat quality and the rising habitat degradation index indicate that there are still some challenges in maintaining a stable and high-quality habitat environment. It might be affected by factors such as urban expansion, industrial development, and infrastructure construction, which have continuously encroached on the original natural habitats.The increase in the value of ecosystem services further illustrates the improvement of the overall ecological function and its contribution to the economic and social aspects. This also reflects that the policies implemented have had a positive impact on promoting the comprehensive benefits of the ecosystem. In conclusion, through a comprehensive analysis of these aspects, we can more clearly understand the role and impact of policies on the ecological system in the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region, which can provide valuable references for future policy formulation and ecological protection work.