access deny [1301]
access deny [1026]
Adaptive water governance systems are underpinned by enhanced social learning capacity of the society of actors to understand and adapt to changes properly. Thus, as a first step, it is crucial to assess the learning capacity of water actors in different levels, as human components of a socio-ecological system (SES), to know how to improve the water resources system adaptive capacity. Aiming at practicing assessment of learning capacity in a society of water actors, the present paper focuses on local water users, one the society of farmers using the groundwater resource in Rafsanjan Plain and the other one the society of farmers in Lakes Tashk-Bakhtegan Basin, both situated in the southern Iran. A methodological framework was developed and
Rafsanjan Plain, located in the central Iran, is a dry area relying solely on its local aquifer for Pistachio production as its dominant economy. During the past few decades, unsustainable growth of Pistachio orchards and correspondingly overexploitation of the local aquifer have resulted in about 18?m fall of the groundwater table with terrible consequences such as reduction in the groundwater yield and about 1.2?m of land subsidence. The aim of the present paper is to analyze water security of the water resources system in the Rafsanjan plain in terms of the system vulnerability to water scarcity. Adopting an analytical framework for assessing the system vulnerability to water scarcity, the paper derives vulnerability indicators based on
As an important stage in integrated water resources management, integrated assessment adopts a set of indicators to address not only the physical water balance, but also the role of water in social welfare, economic production, and employment. The indicators should be located in an analytical framework capable of figuring out the inter-relationships among different environmental, social, and economic disciplines. Adopting the System of Environmental and Economic Accounts for Water (developed by the United Nations), this paper aims to provide an integrated assessment in the groundwater resource in the Azarshahr aquifer area in the Northwestern Iran, comparing local water security indicators in 2006 and 2016. The results show that the local w
Similar to any modelling technique, system dynamics (SD) modelling should start with the essential step of scoping and identifying the problem of interest before further analysis and modelling. In practice, this first step is a challenging task, especially when wicked issues such as water management are being addressed. There is still a vital need for modelling methods and tools that can support modellers to identify and assemble essential data to inform problem scoping and boundary setting. This article aims to narrow this gap by presenting a methodology for combining a series of conceptual modelling techniques (extending the usually linear Driver-Pressure-State-Impact-Response framework with causal loop diagrams, system archetypes, stock
The groundwater system in the Rafsanjan aquifer perpetuated sustainably for decades before 1950s; however, its groundwater resources have been overexploited in the recent decades. In this paper, we aim to investigate the water governance system to understand the reasons behind the ongoing overexploitation. Sustainability processes are considered a policy implementation problematic. As such, we employ the contextual interaction theory as a policy implementation framework to assess the groundwater governance as part of the context for the conservation policy. Data for this qualitative research were gathered from legal texts, articles, technical reports, and multiple interviews with authorities and groundwater users. The assessmen
In this paper we will present a case study in Iran which explains the reasons for inaction by a society that is highly dependent on rapidly depleting groundwater resources. To obtain a better understanding of social inaction when faced with groundwater depletion, we investigated the changing role of society in groundwater systems and the movement away from collective action. A qualitative inquiry was used in this study, based mainly on an analysis of multiple interviews conducted with groundwater users, complemented by documentary analysis. Results are presented in different sections. First, a brief description of groundwater management in Rafsanjan is presented as typical of groundwater management in Iran. Then we present the chronology of
Tourism industry is one of the most important parts of economic development. It can create job either directly or through stimulating other economic sectors. Therefore, it is important for policy makers to determine the best places with good potentials for tourism development. Fars province has been the center of civilization and the origin of the Iranian literature and mysticism celebrities and could be a potential investment of tourism. However, this province does not have the infrastructure required to accommodate tourists, especially during holiday seasons. This study ranks different cities located in the Fras province having the necessary potential for investment in the tourism sector by using the numerical taxonomy in terms of 12 indi
There is no certainty that adaptation to climate change is sustainable, and new approaches to assess current climate change adaptation trajectories are sorely needed. In this paper, we review the farmer-focused approaches (typical of vulnerability approaches) and agro-ecosystem-focused approaches (typical of resilience approaches). We propose that a combination of the two may be a better way to conceptualize sustainable adaptation to future climate change within an agro-ecological system. To test our hypothesis, we use the case study of Iran, a land that has shown both tremendous resilience and vulnerability in its agro-ecological system. We explore the changes that have occurred in the Iranian farming system and their implic
An increased need for water, combined with a scarcity of water resources, has resulted in serious challenges regarding water resource management. Those issues have always been a major concern of most research regarding the management and operation of water resources. Various qualitative and quantitative methods, Game Theory (GT) being an example, have been proposed for managing common pool water resources. This study adopts GT to address a case of common pool water resource management, including consideration of the interference of a regulator. Urmia lake in north‐western Iran was chosen as an illustration of a common source of water shared between two provinces acting as littoral stakeholders to the lake. Due to a non‐cooperative beha
Unsustainable use of groundwater resources caused drop in the aquifers water table and accordingly has had widespread socio-ecological effects throughout the country. Different approaches have been studied by researchers to control the crisis. Most of these studies focused on engineering aspects while in the principles of the integrated water resources management it is emphasized on interdisciplinary approaches. Dealing with the problem of decrease of water table in Rafsanjan, thie paper examines the effects of the institutional context in the formation of such problems. Therefore, using the causal loop diagrams, the paper aims to analyze the factors related to the institutional context of groundwater resources in the regional and national
Over the past few decades, due to human activities, aquatic ecosystems have experienced severe damages. Lake Zrebar, located 3 Km West of Marivan city in Western Iran, is not exempt from this issue. Approximately nine villages as well as the city of Marivan is located in periphery of the lake. The stakeholder analysis methodology was used in this study to assess the socio-economic and political sub-systems of the Lake Zrebar basin. This analysis showed that over the last few years, for various reasons, including economic growth, demographic dynamics, and sediment inflow, the lake has faced with environmental and social problems. The wide variety of stakeholders in the lake as well as the complexity of issues has made the case of Lake Zrebar
Sistan plain is located in Hirmand River delta which is the only source of water for the plain. The plain has therefore the highest level of dependency on transboundary water resources in national scale. In spite of many studies–mostly focusing on supply side management practices-the observations are implying unsustainability and vulnerability of the area to the Hirmand river discharge variations. Analyzing the Sistan plain vulnerability to water scarcity, the paper adopts the vulnerability framework developed by Fussel. To apply the framework, the system attributes of concern in terms of socio-economic and biophysical features need to be determined. Thus, the value added and total population were considered to represent the socio-economi
Bakhtegan Lake, as other lakes and wetlands, depends entirely on the state of water resources of the basin. The lake has been dried up since few years ago. It is believed that periods of drought events have caused this. Meanwhile, there is another hypothesis that the lake has dried up due to anthropogenic activities such as the increased water exploitation in the upstream as well as the effects of two large dams named Mollasadra and Sivand. The present paper aims to assess separately the effect of these factors on the changes in Bakhtegan Lake in the period of 1956 to 2014. The assessment was carried out using the Landsat satellite images and also by analyzing rainfall and discharge data collected by the Ministry of Energy throughout the la
Policy making in Integrated Water Resources Management relies on understanding the concept of vulnerability. Therefore, it will be essential to identify the socio-economic state of the system under study as well as its hydrological state. In this paper, a water accounting framework is adopted to make a basis for integrated water resources management to embrace socio-economic aspects as well as the hydrological feature. The water accounting framework will be capable of integrating different data from economic, hydrological, and social domains. It is also suitable to address the effects of different policies. The aim of the present paper is to analyze vulnerability of the water resource system in the Rafsanjan study area. Adopting an analytic
Major share of water resources are used for agricultural purposes. Irrigation networks, have important role in optimal use of water resources. Due to several factors many of the irrigation networks in Iran, are performing below expectations. Therefore performance improvement of irrigation networks and their rehabilitation is necessary. Due to the complexity of the problems of irrigation networks and the interactions between components, irrigation performance improvement, requires a comprehensive and prospective approach. One of the management tools for this purpose is dynamics system. In this research, Causal loop diagrams for Foomanat irrigation network are determined and conceptual model is developed. Afterward the quantitative model is d