Sustainable Water Resources Management in an Arid Area Using a Coupled Optimization-Simulation Modeling

Abstract

Severe water scarcity in recent years has magnified the economic, social, and environmental significance of water stress globally, making optimal planning in water resources necessary for sustainable socio-economic development. One of the regions that is most affected by this is the Sistan region and its Hamoun wetland, located in south-east Iran. Water policies are essential to sustain current basin ecosystem services, maintaining a balance between conflicting demands from agriculture and the protection of wetland ecosystems. In the present study, a multi-objective optimization model is linked with the Water Evaluation and Planning (WEAP) software to optimize water allocation decisions over multiple years. We formulate and parameterize a multi-objective optimization problem where the net economic benefit from agriculture and the supply of environmental requirements were maximized, to analyze the trade-off between different stakeholders. This problem is modeled and solved for the study area with detailed agricultural, socio-economic, and environmental data for 30 years and quantification of ecosystem services. By plotting Pareto sets, we investigate the trade-offs between the two conflicting objectives and evaluate a possible compromise. The results are analyzed by comparing purely economic versus multi-objective scenarios on the Pareto front. Finally, the disadvantages and advantages of these scenarios are also qualitatively described to help the decision process for water resources managers.

Water-constrained green development framework based on economically-allocable water resources

“…1 ). The average annual rainfall of the basin is 160 mm, while it is about 50 mm in the lower Sistan plain 27 , 28 . Sistan Region in the north of Sistan-Baluchestan province (SB) of Iran with a hot and dry climate is located between latitudes 30° 10′ and 31° 28′ North and longitudes 58° 40′ and 61° 45′ East.…”

“…Sistan Region in the north of Sistan-Baluchestan province (SB) of Iran with a hot and dry climate is located between latitudes 30° 10′ and 31° 28′ North and longitudes 58° 40′ and 61° 45′ East. The 120-day winds and quick sands with a height of about 2 m are among the main features of Sistan Region 27 , 29 . About 200,000 ha of land in this plain has agricultural potential, and can be included in the crop production cycle 29 .…”

Assessment of the Trust Crisis between Upstream and Downstream States of the Helmand River Basin (1973–2022): A Half-Century of Optimism or Cynicism?

“…After a year of research and investigation, the Helmand River Delta Commission presented their findings to both upstream and downstream riparians. , According to their findings, Iran’s water share from the Helmand River has been calculated at 22 m 3 of water per second in a normal water year (Helmand River Delta Commission Report, 1951, p 95) . A normal water year is a year in which the flow of the Helmand River is at least 5.661 billion m 3 of water from October 1 to September 30 of the following year as measured at the Dehrawud Station in the upper Kajaki Dam on the Helmand River in Afghanistan. ,− The findings of their investigation were rejected by Iran, which demanded a higher share of the Helmand River’s flow. , …”

The effects of ENSO, climate change and human activities on the water level of Lake Toba, Indonesia: a critical literature review

“…According to Scott and Huff (1996), Samuelsson et al (2010), Notaro et al (2013), and Dehghanipour et al (2020a, b), lakes have a significant impact on several aspects of the Earth, including the local climate of a region, by supporting ecosystems with hundreds of species of diverse flora and fauna (Awange et al 2013;Schulz et al 2020). Lakes also have socioeconomic roles as sources of fresh water, renewable energy, and agricultural irrigation (Guo et al 2015;Wang et al 2017;Boadi and Owusu 2019;Pham-Duc et al 2020;Farrokhzadeh et al 2020). Therefore, it is important to carry out studies that examine all aspects affecting lakes to support the use of sustainable water resources.…”