Determining Water requirement of Anzali Wetland based on Eco-Tourism Indices within the Framework of IWRM

Document Type : Research Paper

Authors

1 Department of Water Engineering, Faculty of Agriculture and Natural Resources,, Imam Khomeini International University

2 Professor, Water Engineering Department, Imam Khomeini International University, Qazvin, Iran

Abstract

Wetlands as the most important aquatic ecosystems, in addition to include many ecological values, have provided many goods and services to local communities. Determining the amount of water required to simultaneously preserve the environmental and socio-economic values ​​of wetland stakeholders, is essential given the key role of water in functions dependent on aquatic ecosystems. Normally, socio-economic issues are less considered in calculating the water needs of wetland ecosystems, but in comprehensive approaches within the IWRM framework, in addition to hydrological and ecological issues, socio-economic issues related to the livelihood of human communities are also considered. In the present study, Anzali International Wetland was selected as a case study, and the required depth and volume of the wetland for tourism purposes was determined using a combined method that uses hydrological, ecological, and socio-economic methods. In this method, at first, all the services that the wetland provides to local stakeholders were identified through face-to-face interviews, observation, and review of resources, and it was shown that in socio-economic issues, boating tourism is one of the most important factors in determining the required water of the wetland. In the next step, the locations of cooperatives and boating docks were identified, and by selecting ecological-tourism indicators, the optimal routes for moving motorboats to these places were identified.  By estimating the depth of water required for the movement of boats, the volume of water required for the tourism water needs in Anzali Wetland was estimated to be 130 million cubic meters, which is 50 million cubic meters more than the current volume of the wetland and also less than the minimum ecological needs of the wetland.

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References

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Iranian Journal of Soil and Water Research
Volume 51, Issue 10
December 2020
Pages 2501-2517

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