Standing up to Climate Change: Creating Prospects for a Sustainable Future in Rural Iran

Preface
Acknowledgments
Contents
Chapter 1: Standing Up to Climate Change: Creating Prospects for a Sustainable Future in Rural Iran
1.1 Introduction
1.2 Climate Change Perspectives in the MENA Region
1.3 Climate Changes Perspectives in Iran
1.3.1 The Water-Food-Health Nexus
1.3.2 Desertification, Salinization, and Dust Storms
1.4 Perspectives on Climate Change in the Zayandeh Rud River Basin
1.4.1 Consequences of Climate Change in the Zayandeh Rud Basin
1.4.2 Adaptation Strategies for the Zayandeh Rud Catchment
References
Part I: Water and Land Use Challenges in Iran
Chapter 2: Water Resources and Water Security in the MENA Region
2.1 Introduction
2.2 Key Water Security Issues in the MENA Region
2.2.1 Overuse of Available Water Resources
2.2.2 Desalination
2.2.3 Wastewater Treatment and Reuse
2.2.4 Water Use Efficiency and Water Losses
2.2.5 Available Water Resources and Climate Change
2.2.6 Socio-Economics of MENA Region and Water Security
2.2.7 Labor Market, Unemployment, and Migration
2.3 Conclusion and Outlook
References
Chapter 3: Water Management in Iran: Appearance and Reality
3.1 Introduction
3.2 Outline of the Iranian Water Sector
3.2.1 Iran´s Water Management Structure
3.2.2 Iran´s Water Resources
3.2.3 Rising Water Consumption
3.2.4 Iran´s Water Economy
3.3 Water and the Future of Iran
3.3.1 The 100 Most Important Challenges Facing Iran
3.3.2 Challenges Facing Iran by Sector
3.3.3 Consequences of the Water Crisis
3.4 Conclusion
References
Chapter 4: Contemporary Water Resource Management and Its Role in Tackling Land Degradation and Desertification in Iran
4.1 Introduction
4.2 Traditional Interventions
4.2.1 The Experience of Dams: From Massive Water Storage to Governmental Set Back
4.2.1.1 A Historical Intervention to Tackle Water Shortage
4.2.1.2 The Increase of Irrigation Areas and Water Shortage
4.2.1.3 Rescaling the Infrastructures: Alternative Options of Water Storage in Iran
4.2.2 The Priceless and Free Groundwater: The Necessity of Water Accounting
4.2.2.1 Current Measures to Control a Sensitive Water Resource
4.2.2.2 Increasing Yields and Irrigation Areas: The Multiplication of Water Wells in Iran
4.2.2.3 Strengthen the Control of Illegal Water Wells and Consumption
4.3 Use of New Technologies
4.3.1 Usage of Waste Water: A Minor Share of Water with Significant Capacities
4.3.1.1 Waste Water Treatment Initiatives in Iran
4.3.1.2 The Relevance of Treated Water and Usage Risks
4.3.1.3 Future Infrastructures for Waste Water Treatment
4.3.2 A Well-Known Low Water Use Efficiency: Review and Perspectives
4.3.2.1 Toward the Pressurized Irrigation System
4.3.2.2 Low Efficiency of Irrigation Water Use in Iran
4.3.2.3 Accessibility to Irrigation Systems and Tracking Water Consumption
4.3.3 Seawater Desalinisation: A Future Perspective to Tackle Water Shortage in Iran
4.3.3.1 Advantageous Seawater Bodies in Iran
4.3.3.2 Water Consumption in Iran: A Small Share of Desalinized Water
4.3.3.3 Solar and Wind Energy: A Relevant Opportunity for Water Desalinization in Iran
4.3.4 Cloud Seeding in Iran: A Lukewarm Experience
4.3.4.1 Cloud Seeding Campaigns to Date
4.3.4.2 Various Results and Efficiency of Cloud Seeding
4.3.4.3 The Accuracy of Cloud Seeding Models: The Condition of Success
4.4 Water Users´ Level
4.4.1 Charging Irrigation Water: A Debate in Iran
4.4.1.1 Current Pricing of Water in Agriculture
4.4.1.2 Water Pricing in Favor of Groundwater Exploitation
4.4.1.3 Consequences of Increasing Water Pricing
4.4.2 A Containing Challenge for Future Water Management: Participatory Water Management
4.4.2.1 Legal Tools in Favor of Participation in Environmental Management in Iran
4.4.2.2 The Relevance of Local Stakeholders´ Involvement in Environmental Projects in Iran
4.4.2.3 The Necessity to Apprehend Local Stakeholders´ Expectations Before Their Involvement
4.5 Conclusion
References
Part II: Water and Land Use Challenges in the Zayandeh Rud Basin
Chapter 5: Zayandeh Rud River Basin: A Region of Economic and Social Relevance in the Central Plateau of Iran
5.1 Introduction
5.2 Exchange of Surface and Underground Water Resources in the Zayandeh Rud River Basin
5.3 Interbasin Water Transfer to the Zayandeh Rud Basin
5.4 Constructing the Zayandeh Rud Storage Dam
5.5 Historical Distribution Systems of the Zayandeh Rud River
5.6 Routing Precipitation Changes in Mountainous Areas of Basin Upstream
5.7 Evaluating the Role of Climate Change in the Current Water Crisis in the Zayandeh Rud River Basin
5.8 Role of Human Factors in the Current Water Crisis
5.9 Roodasht: A Historical Land Dependent on Water Flow in the Zayandeh Rud River
5.10 Conclusion
References
Chapter 6: Returning Periods of Drought and Climate Change in the Zayandeh Rud River Basin
6.1 Introduction
6.2 Methodology
6.2.1 Standardized Precipitation Index (SPI)
6.2.1.1 Historical Drought Analysis
6.2.2 Copula-Based Multivariate Probability Distribution
6.2.2.1 Using Copula
6.2.3 Return Periods Based on Copula
6.2.4 Climate Scenarios
6.2.5 Study Area
6.2.6 Data
6.2.6.1 Observed Data
6.2.6.2 Data Analysis
6.3 Results and Discussion
6.3.1 Historical Drought
6.3.2 Impacts of Climate Change on the Drought Under RCP4.5 Scenario
6.3.3 Impacts of Climate Change on the Drought Under RCP8.5 Scenario
6.4 Conclusion
References
Chapter 7: Hydrological Modeling of Spatial and Temporal Changes of Blue and Green Water Resources in the Zayandeh Rud River B...
7.1 Introduction
7.2 Study Area
7.3 Methodology
7.3.1 SWAT-Zayandeh Rud
7.3.2 Improvement of the SWAT-Zayandeh Rud
7.3.3 Modeling of Water Resources Components
7.4 Results
7.4.1 Improvement of the SWAT-Zayandeh Rud
7.4.2 Spatial and Temporal Changes of Water Resources Components
7.4.2.1 Precipitation (PCP)
7.4.2.2 Blue Water (BW)
7.4.2.3 Green Water Flow (GWF)
7.4.2.4 Green Water Storage (GWS)
7.4.3 Monthly and Annual Changes of Water Resources Components
7.4.3.1 Monthly Changes
7.4.3.2 Yearly Changes
7.5 Discussion
7.5.1 Calibration Improvement
7.5.2 Spatial and Temporal Changes of Water Resources Components
7.6 Remarks and Recommendations
References
Part III: Water and Land Use Challenges in the Roodasht Region
Chapter 8: Realizing the Dynamic of Water Scarcity, Land-Use Change and Environmental Degradation in Roodasht, Iran
8.1 Introduction
8.2 Water Availability and Management in Roodasht
8.2.1 Climate Variability and Drought
8.2.2 Surface Water Availability and Distribution in Roodasht
8.2.3 Groundwater Extraction
8.2.4 Legal Water Rights and Customary Water Distribution
8.2.5 Decision-Making on Water Management
8.3 Land-Use Change and Environmental Degradation in Roodasht
8.3.1 Dependency of Agricultural Land Use on Surface Water Availability
8.3.2 Declination of Water Quality and Land Degradation
8.3.2.1 Groundwater Quality
8.3.2.2 Surface Water Quality
8.3.3 Environmental and Ecosystem Change
8.3.3.1 Soil Quality
8.3.3.2 Gavkhuni Wetland
8.4 Conclusion
References
Chapter 9: Structural Evolution of the Zayandeh-Rud River Basin Based on Historical Climate Changes
9.1 Introduction
9.2 Materials and Methods
9.3 Result and Discussion
9.3.1 Zayandeh-Rud River Formation
9.3.2 Paleo-terraces Formation
9.3.3 Extended Gavkhuni Wetland
9.3.4 Intensive Erosion
9.3.5 Lagoon Formation
9.3.6 River Route Shifting
9.3.7 Playa Formation
9.3.8 River´s New Terraces Formation
9.3.9 Wind Erosion
9.4 Conclusion
References
Chapter 10: Evaluation of Lead and Cadmium Contamination in the Zayandeh Rud River
10.1 Introduction
10.2 Materials and Methods
10.2.1 Study Area
10.2.2 Sampling
10.2.3 Heavy Metal Measurement
10.2.4 Risk Assessment Indices
10.2.4.1 The Geo-Accumulation Index(Igeo) (Muller 1969)
10.2.4.2 Contamination Factor (CF)
10.2.4.3 Degree of Contamination (Cd)
10.2.4.4 Modified Degree of Contamination (mCd)
10.2.4.5 Potential Ecological Risk Index (RI)
10.2.5 Statistical Method
10.3 Results
10.4 Discussion
10.5 Conclusion
References
Chapter 11: Dust Production Crisis Following the Recent Droughts in the Eastern Part of the Zayandeh Rud River Basin
11.1 Introduction
11.2 Material and Methods
11.2.1 Study Area
11.2.2 Sample Collections
11.2.2.1 Soil Samples
11.2.2.2 Wetland Sediment Samples
11.2.2.3 Dust Samples
11.2.3 Sample Analysis
11.2.4 Data Analysis
11.3 Results and Discussion
11.3.1 Geostatistical Analysis
11.3.1.1 Spatial Distribution of Soil Properties
11.3.1.2 Spatial Distribution of Dust Deposition Rates
11.3.1.3 Deposition Rate of Heavy Metals
11.4 Comparison of Heavy Metal Mean Concentrations in Dust, Gavkhuni Sediment, and Surface Soil
11.5 Identifying the Potential Source of Dusts in the Study Area
11.6 Conclusion
References
Part IV: Possible Solutions for the Region
Chapter 12: Participatory Development of Strategies for the Transformation of Agriculture in the Zayandeh Rud River Basin
12.1 Water and Land Management in the Zayandeh Rud River Basin
12.2 Participatory Approach
12.2.1 Expert Workshop
12.2.2 Citizens´ Jury Workshop
12.2.3 Strategy Development Workshop
12.3 Transformation Strategies
12.3.1 Agricultural Production Management
12.3.1.1 Irrigation According to Crop Water Requirements
12.3.1.2 Value Chains for New Crops and Products
12.3.1.3 Water-Efficient Greenhouses
12.3.2 Water Management
12.3.2.1 Water Distribution
12.3.2.2 Wastewater Reuse in Agriculture
12.3.3 Soil Fertility Management
12.3.4 Capacity Development
12.3.4.1 Agricultural Extension, Education and Consultation Services
12.3.4.2 Agricultural Cooperatives Development
12.4 Transformation Strategies Roadmap
12.5 Lessons Learned and Recommendations
References
Chapter 13: Environmental Capacity Building Program for the Residents of the Zayandeh Rud Basin
13.1 Introduction
13.2 WSAEPisf´s Areas of Operations in the Zayandeh Rud Basin
13.2.1 Celebration of the World Wetlands Day
13.2.2 Participatory Revitalization of Endangered Rangeland Plant Species in the Lay Rudasht Region of Gavkhouni Wetland Basin
13.2.3 International Carbon Sequestration Project
13.2.4 Wetland Local Schools
13.2.5 Training Children and Families for Waste Separation
13.2.6 Implementation of Alternative Livelihood Programs and Preserving Local Handicrafts
13.3 Summary
References
Chapter 14: Adaptive Land and Water Management: A Regional Action Plan for Roodasht to Cope with Climate Change
14.1 Introduction and Background
14.2 Reconciling Water Distribution
14.2.1 Transparent Water Rights
14.2.2 Extraction Monitoring
14.2.3 Enforcing Water Legislation
14.3 Improve Agricultural Management
14.3.1 New Forms of Land Use Zoning
14.3.2 Alternative Agricultural Products
14.3.3 Revising Agricultural Practice
14.3.4 Improving Local Value Chains
14.3.5 Empowerment of Agricultural Cooperatives
14.3.6 Developing Regional Marketing
14.4 Establishing Regional Management
14.4.1 Regional Coordination Council as New Regional Institution
14.4.2 Diversify Local Income Options
14.5 Protection of Gavkhuni Wetland
14.6 Conclusions
References
Chapter 15: A Short Ecological History of Varzaneh: Adaptive Responses to and Resilience Against the Adversity of Drought
15.1 Introduction
15.2 Research Field and Method: Writing a Short Ecological History
15.2.1 Previous Studies of Subsistence Activities in Arid and Semiarid Regions of Iran
15.2.2 Research Method
15.3 Life Histories in Varzaneh
15.3.1 Varzaneh: Ecological and Social Features
15.3.2 Varzaneh´s Recent Adaptive Strategies
15.3.3 Subsistence Activities in Varzaneh
15.3.3.1 Agriculture: The Cases of A and B
15.3.3.2 Pastoralism: The Cases of C and D
15.3.3.3 Different Combinations: The Cases of E, F, and G
15.4 Discussion: The Resilience of the Subsistence Way of Life in Varzaneh
15.5 Conclusion
References
Chapter 16: Determination of Net Water Requirement of Crops and Gardens in Order to Optimize the Management of Water Demand in...
16.1 Introduction
16.1.1 Problem Statement
16.1.2 Modeling Literature Review
16.1.3 Field Study
16.2 Materials and Methods
16.2.1 The Study Area
16.2.2 Site Description
16.2.3 Reference Evapotranspiration Calculation Method
16.2.4 Factors Determining the Crop Coefficient (Kcb and Ke)
16.2.5 Soil Data and Information
16.2.6 ETc: Crop Water Requirement
16.2.7 Agroclimatic Zoning of the Study Area
16.2.8 Creating an Intelligent Processing System
16.3 Results
16.3.1 ETo Outputs
16.3.2 Agroclimatic Zoning of Isfahan Province
16.3.3 Net Water Requirement
16.4 Conclusion
References
Chapter 17: Increasing Water and Energy Productivity via Replacing Abiotic Stress Tolerant Forages in East of Zayandeh Rud Riv...
17.1 Introduction
17.2 Water Productivity
17.3 Energy Productivity
17.4 Sorghum as Water Productive Forage
17.4.1 Features Related to Water Productivity and Drought Tolerance in Sorghum
17.5 Evaluation of Water and Energy Productivity in Sorghum and Corn Forage
17.5.1 Materials and Methods
17.5.2 Results
17.5.3 Conclusion
References