By using the high-efficiency of four-stage calculation method named channel-junction-channel and con- sidering the influence of temporal and spatial variation of aquatic environmental capacity, an optimization method of aquatic environmental capacity for tidal river network was worked out. The method not only reflects characteristics of unsteady flow with variable directions, but also indicates that aquatic environmental capacity is influenced by boundary condition and water quality standard, etc. It has been applied to the regional program of Pudong area in Shanghai, and the computed results agree well with the practical data.