Mahmoud Ahmadi; Hasan lashkari; Ghasem Keikhosravi; Majed Azadi
Volume 13, Issue 1 , April 2015, , Pages 1-14
Abstract
Climate change with changing climate patterns and confounds Ecosystems discipline, imports Serious consequences on the environment. Changes in weather patterns Could lead to severe flooding, extreme heat or cold, more frequent droughts. Each of these phenomena could Put at risk the regional food reserves. ...
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Climate change with changing climate patterns and confounds Ecosystems discipline, imports Serious consequences on the environment. Changes in weather patterns Could lead to severe flooding, extreme heat or cold, more frequent droughts. Each of these phenomena could Put at risk the regional food reserves. North east of Iran due to the large area has very varied natural conditions and each of the areas included specific natural features. The extent of the area and factors such as mountains rising, desert areas , stay away from the water zones and different winds lead to variety of weather in each of those area. Based on the results if the man-kendall test and AHP model in north east of Iran, climatic elements with ascending trend (82.25%) much more than climatic elements with descending trend (35.5%) affect on climate change in north east of Iran. Areas that experience most climate changes due to descending elements (number of frost days , average moisture, the number of days with snowfall,24-hour rainfall, annual precipitation) is seen in the South and South east of region. Climatic elements with ascending trend (The average temperature, the minimum temperature, the maximum temperature, hours of sunshine) cover most extent of this region. Only Ghochan and Sabzevar stations demonstrate the least climate changes.
Behrouz BehrouziRad; Paivand Maktabi; Alireza Jafarnajadi
Volume 13, Issue 2 , July 2015, , Pages 1-10
Abstract
Fluctuation of diversity and population composition of birds are tow bio-indicators of environmental health. For this reason diversity and population composition of birds of Shady island in Karon River in Ahwaz implemented in winter and spring 2014. Area of the park is 17 hectare and adjoin by a bridge ...
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Fluctuation of diversity and population composition of birds are tow bio-indicators of environmental health. For this reason diversity and population composition of birds of Shady island in Karon River in Ahwaz implemented in winter and spring 2014. Area of the park is 17 hectare and adjoin by a bridge to the west of Karon river coast. During winter and autumn we recognized 37 species of birds by telescope and binocular (10 X 40) which belonged to eighteen family. In winter 1414 individuals belong to 23 species and in spring 1036 individuals belong to 29 species counted by total count method. Average density of birds was 83 individuals in winter and 61 in spring in per hectare. Population compound of birds were Ciconiformes and Passeriformes. Most number of birds counted in January and (688 individuals belong to 27 species) lowest was in April. Ardeidae family with 5 species had highest diversity and 10 Family with one species had lowest diversity. The Egretta garzetta with 437 and Larus ridibundus with 576 individuals were dominant in the Shady island.
Hamed Arfania; Farrokh Asadzadeh
Volume 13, Issue 3 , October 2015, , Pages 1-10
Abstract
The kinetics of release of heavy metal ions zinc, lead, nickel, copper and cadmium from the depth of 0 to 10 cm of downstream river sediment located in Hamedan Province, polluted with nitrate salt of these metals, were studied using the leaching column method. The rate of desorption of heavy metals from ...
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The kinetics of release of heavy metal ions zinc, lead, nickel, copper and cadmium from the depth of 0 to 10 cm of downstream river sediment located in Hamedan Province, polluted with nitrate salt of these metals, were studied using the leaching column method. The rate of desorption of heavy metals from polluted sediments was initially rapid and, then, gradually declined over time; the behavior of Pb was different and it was released in a gradual and continuous manner. In general, the release of heavy metals from clayey sediments polluted by an inorganic source conformed to a two-site model of first order kinetics; however, the release of Zn, Cd and Pb from sediment (1) and Pb from sediment (2) could also be adequately accounted for by a single-site model. The average coefficients of determination and RMSE for metals in the first order kinetics were 0.905 and 0.054 for a single-site model and for a two-site model were 0.986 and 0.046, respectively. Considering the total heavy metal content of sediments, the cumulative quantity of leached metals was low, indicating a high retention capacity of the sediments for heavy metals. This statement can be elucidated by the low values of the apparent coefficient of desorption in the first order kinetics model.
Esmail Fatehifar; Rasoul Ali Ashrafipour; Mohammad Rastgari
Volume 13, Issue 4 , January 2016, , Pages 1-8
Abstract
Tehran is the high pollution city and it’s negative point to human health. Volatile organic compounds especially BTEX are main air pollutants that play critical role in atmospheric chemistry of Tehran. Benzene is one of them that cause blood cancer and related diseases. For controlling volatile organic ...
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Tehran is the high pollution city and it’s negative point to human health. Volatile organic compounds especially BTEX are main air pollutants that play critical role in atmospheric chemistry of Tehran. Benzene is one of them that cause blood cancer and related diseases. For controlling volatile organic compounds, they should be monitored. To measure the amount of pollutants of VOC in the air of Tehran with portable instrument, 32 stations were selected, including residential areas, Traffically, industrial and controled area. The measurements in two stages (June and September 1391 and March 1391) were performed VOC average concentrations at first and second stage were 3.14 ppb and 3.67 ppb in urban area respectively. The results showed that pollutants emissions in high volume occur from refineries and oil storage. Location analysis of volatile organic compounds performed with Arcview software in the stations. According to location analysis of VOCs with ArcView, emission of VOCs occurred from refineries in huge amount. Points with high concentration of VOCs, showed
Taher Ahmadzadeh; Naser Mehrdadi; Mojtaba Ardestani; Akbar Baghvand
Volume 14, Issue 1 , April 2016, , Pages 1-8
Abstract
Intelligent model optimization is a key factor in water treatment improvement. In current study, we applied the artificial neural networks modelling for the optimization of coagulation and flocculation processes to get sufficient water quality control over the total organic carbon parameter. ANN network ...
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Intelligent model optimization is a key factor in water treatment improvement. In current study, we applied the artificial neural networks modelling for the optimization of coagulation and flocculation processes to get sufficient water quality control over the total organic carbon parameter. ANN network consisted of a multilayer feed forward structure with backpropagation learning algorithm with the output layer of ferric chloride and cationic polymer dosages. The results were simultaneously compared with the nonlinear multiple regression model. Model validation phase performed using 94 unknown samples for which the prediction result was in good agreement with the observed values. Analysis of the results showed a determination coefficient of 0.85 for cationic polymer and 0.97 for ferric chloride models. Mean absolute percentage error and root mean square errors were calculated consequently as 5.8% and 0.96 for polymer and 3.1% and 1.97 for ferric chloride models. According to the results, artificial neural networks showed to be very promising for the optimization of water treatment processes.
Javad bayat; Seyed Hossein Hashemi; Korous Khoshbakht; Reza Deihimfard
Volume 14, Issue 2 , July 2016, , Pages 1-12
Abstract
In this study, 83 sampling points were chosen in the study area. Sampling was conducted at two soil depths (0-30 cm and 30-60 cm) and the concentrations of nitrate, phosphate, EC, pH and organic carbon were determined. Interpolation maps were created using the IDW method. These showed that in the top ...
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In this study, 83 sampling points were chosen in the study area. Sampling was conducted at two soil depths (0-30 cm and 30-60 cm) and the concentrations of nitrate, phosphate, EC, pH and organic carbon were determined. Interpolation maps were created using the IDW method. These showed that in the top soil, soil phosphorus, EC and OC have the maximum concentration in the northern part of the area and nitrate in the southern part of the area; in second depth soil, phosphorus has the maximum concentration in the North of the area and nitrate and EC in the South of the area, while OC has a uniform distribution over the whole area. Analysis of soil chemical properties showed high concentrations of nitrate and phosphate in the upper soil layer in the studied areas, mainly due to the use of untreated urban wastewater and chemical fertilizers by the farmers; in addition, results of organic carbon measurement showed that this area has a good condition in terms of organic matters. Soil pH in the area was alkaline and EC decreased at a lower depth. The results of Spearman correlation analysis showed that EC has a positive correlation with nitrate and a negative correlation with phosphate at both depths. Also, organic carbon has a positive correlation with soil phosphate in the top soil.
Marzieh Hajjarian; Omid Hosseinzadeh; Farangiz Khalledi
Volume 14, Issue 3 , October 2016, , Pages 1-12
Abstract
Introduction: The phenomenon of deforestation is considered seriously by researchers as one of the most important issues in forest management. So far, many efforts have been made to identify the causes of deforestation and effective solutions have been proposed to reduce it. This study aimed to identify ...
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Introduction: The phenomenon of deforestation is considered seriously by researchers as one of the most important issues in forest management. So far, many efforts have been made to identify the causes of deforestation and effective solutions have been proposed to reduce it. This study aimed to identify and prioritize the causes of deforestation of the Hyrcanian forests in northern Iran. The results of this research can provide a basis for understanding the conditions facing Hyrcanian forest management and help managers to make more detailed plans. Material and methods: In this research, group decision making was used to identify and rank the causes of deforestation. For this purpose, two types of questionnaires were designed. The first questionnaire was used to identify causes of deforestation of Hyrcanian forest while the second questionnaire was developed with the aim of Pairwise comparisons. The data obtained from the second questionnaire was used to rank the causes of deforestation in the Hyrcanian forests using the AHP, TOPSIS, ELECTRE III and SAW methods. Finally, to achieve accurate ranking, the final ranking was done using integration methods. Results and discussion: The results showed that the weight of anthropogenic deforestation causes is much greater than the weight of natural deforestation causes; the weight of anthropogenic destruction factors was much more than natural factors. This shows that a large percentage of forest destruction in Hyrcanian forest is result of mismanagement of this forest and many human destruction factors can be stopped or modified and, while the natural factors are lower and under control, those effects can also be modified. Among the human causes of deforestation, illegal timber harvesting, invasion of forests, livestock grazing in forests and timber harvesting were the most important causes of deforestation according to forestry projects. After these factors, harvesting of wood for fuel, arson or spontaneous fires, early replacement of management and non-systematic exploitation of forests and construction development activities (road construction) were the main causes of deforestation in Hyrcanian forests. The most important of these deforestation causes were pests and spontaneous fires, respectively. In all four ranking methods (AHP, TOPSIS, ELECTRE III and SAW) ranked first to fourth respectively invasion of forested areas, The presence of livestock in the forest, illegally harvesting of wood from the forest and harvest wood as fuel, respectively. This indicates that these factors’ ranks have high stability and the total weight of each of these factors is high compared to the next factor, which means the impact of these factors on the destruction of the Hyrcanian forest is important. Conclusion: The results showed that success in the Hyrcanian forest protection plans depends on the cooperation of local and indigenous communities; because many of the environmental threats that cause destruction of the forests are the result of human activities, the success in most natural resource-related and the environmental projects depends on economic and social situations associated with the local and indigenous community living in the region.
Abdolmajid Zarei; Rohallah Kazemi
Volume 14, Issue 4 , January 2017, , Pages 1-16
Abstract
Introduction: According to the extent of the oil and gas industry and their role in environmental pollution, developing a strategic plan to improve environmental performance is essential. Therefore action taken to reduce environmental effects to acceptable range and within the rules and regulations about ...
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Introduction: According to the extent of the oil and gas industry and their role in environmental pollution, developing a strategic plan to improve environmental performance is essential. Therefore action taken to reduce environmental effects to acceptable range and within the rules and regulations about the environment is studied. Advanced methodologies should be used to achieving a certain level of reliability. Therefore to reduce the environmental aspects and impacts in various industries, especially oil and gas industry, the new strategy must be established. Materials and methods: The purpose of this research is to develop environmental strategies in oil and gas South Pars 2. this research can be a base to Develop an appropriate strategic management program in order to comply with environmental laws and regulations further provide for similar plants in the region.Results and discussion: The evaluation matrix results show that internal and external factors of studied refinery have more strengths than weaknesses and are more opportunities than threats. So this company should follow strategy and procedures to omit threats and minimize weaknesses. Finally, we selected 11 strategies and graded them, that region environmental conditions improvement strategy with a score of 6.23 and revising and reforming strategy of management programs and minimizing environment pollutants of the region with a score of 5.23, and the strategy of development and improvement the quality of wastewater and solid wastewater and solid waste management using environmental new technologies with score of 5.01 priorized respectively as the top environmental strategies.Conclusion: Findings and results indicate the position of the organization is a competitive position and it must apply strategies, maintaining, and stability, in ordr to reduce environmental damages.
Atousa Soleimani; Esmail Salehi
Volume 15, Issue 1 , April 2017, , Pages 1-14
Abstract
Introduction: Participatory teaching as a teaching method is a form of inter-personal relationship (Hsiung, 2012). There is an obvious gap in using the participatory teaching method for conveying environmental principles and monitoring them and examining studies of this teaching method would significantly ...
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Introduction: Participatory teaching as a teaching method is a form of inter-personal relationship (Hsiung, 2012). There is an obvious gap in using the participatory teaching method for conveying environmental principles and monitoring them and examining studies of this teaching method would significantly help environmental educators (Baker and Clark, 2010) and activists in selecting the most effective method for conveying the principles (Alton-Lee, 2012). Such training can be effective in developing interpersonal and mental skills and high-level critical thinking skills, bringing about more learning, efficient memorizing of information and classrooms enjoyment. This article aims to compare and monitor the effectiveness of inculcating urban environmental topics using the Jigsaw participatory and a traditional teaching method. The main questions outlined here are as follows: Which of aforementioned teaching methods is more effective in conveying urban environmental topics? How is the sustainability of environmental principles over time? Materials and methods: This is a quasi-experimental study with a pre-test/post-test design among two groups (participatory and traditional teaching methods). The statistical population consisted of male grade-three elementary students in Ahwaz, Iran. A total of 62 students (32 in the participatory teaching group and 30 in the traditional teaching group) were enrolled as the sample using random cluster sampling. Identical groups were verified using the pre-test and reliability was verified using Cronbach's alpha (0.84). The teaching methods were performed for three consecutive weeks and post-test was performed after one week and one month. Independent and dependent t-tests and effect size were employed to analyze the data using SPSS.Results and discussion: The results of the independent t-test of pre-test in participatory and traditional groups showed that the level of awareness concerning the urban environment is equal among the students and no significant difference was observed between two groups. The mean scores of participatory and traditional teaching methods were 18.68 and 18.66 in the pre-test concerning urban environmental topics, respectively. The results of post-test after a week showed that the mean scores were 26.28 and 23.10 in the participatory and traditional groups, respectively. They were 25.65 and 21.93 after a month, respectively. The mean scores were greater in the participatory group than in the traditional group at the post-test stage after one week and one month. The results of effect size showed that the effect size of the Jigsaw participatory method was 1.870 over a one-week interval and 2.137 over a one-month interval. According to the results of the dependent t-test, the level of awareness had a significant difference before the intervention and one week after the training programme. One month after the training course, the level of awareness decreased from 26.28 to 25.65 in the participatory group, and from 23.10 to 21.93 in the traditional teaching method group. A significant difference was found compared with the test prior to the training course. These results showed that students taught through the Jigsaw participatory method learn better than those taught through the traditional teaching method.Conclusions: The results of analyses showed that the level of awareness about the urban environment was significantly greater in students taught by the Jigsaw participatory teaching method than those in the traditional teaching group. The results of monitoring the effectiveness also showed that the Jigsaw participatory teaching method was superior to the traditional method.
Mansour Ghanian; Azar Hasheminejad; Omid M. Ghoochani; Azade Bakhshi; Roghaye Yusefi Hajivand
Volume 15, Issue 2 , July 2017, , Pages 1-20
Abstract
Introduction:
As the largest international wetland in Iran, Shadegan Wetland is one of the most important and valuable wetlands in the country and, even, the world. The widespread nature of the wetland, its natural character, high abundance of plant species, animals and its habitats has brought tremendous ...
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Introduction:
As the largest international wetland in Iran, Shadegan Wetland is one of the most important and valuable wetlands in the country and, even, the world. The widespread nature of the wetland, its natural character, high abundance of plant species, animals and its habitats has brought tremendous value to the wetland. In recent years, this valuable wetland has been exposed to drying up and destruction due to natural and human factors. The livelihood of rural households in the area is in all respects indebted to Shadegan Wetland: The death of the wetland will be accompanied by the death of their livelihood. One of the ways to reduce the vulnerability of marginalized people in Shadegan Wetland is to emphasize on their adaptation behaviors. In this regards, the present study aimed to explore beneficiaries Conservation Behavior against drought effects in Shadegan Wetlands based on vulnerability theory.
Material and methods:
The present study in terms of its nature and objectives is practical, in terms of data collection, is a descriptive survey and, in terms of analyzing the data, is a correlation study. The total population were the rural operators living in the central part of the town and Khnafereh village in Shadegan City, Khuzestan Province (Iran). They consisted of eight villages with 2319 household operators (N=2319). A random-quota method was used as sampling (n=124) and data were gathered via the use of a research-based questionnaire. The reliability of the questionnaire was confirmed by calculating Cronbach’s alpha coefficient as greater than 0.76. The validity of the questionnaire was confirmed by a panel of experts, and the data were analyzed using SPSSv20 and AMOSv20.
Results and discussion:
According to the results, 47.6 percent of the beneficiaries of the wetland show an irresponsible behaviour towards the vulnerability of natural and human hazard and 52.4 percent of them have responsible behaviour. Results of the study showed that sensitivity has a significantly positive effect on vulnerability (β=0.377) and conservation behaviour (β=0.208). Exposure has a significantly positive effect on vulnerability (β=0.492) and conservation behaviour (β=0.3). Also, the results revealed that exposure, sensitivity and adaptive capacity predict a 41% variation in vulnerability. Exposure, sensitivity and vulnerability predict a 20 % variation in conservation behaviour.
Conclusion:
Thus, it can be concluded that exposure of the beneficiaries to the drought conditions of Shadegan Wetland and their sensitivity to drought have resulted in vulnerability and adaptation behaviour among them. Hence, exposure to wetland droughts can have both direct and indirect effects on their lives. For example, changing product performance in response to drought can be one of the direct effects of this phenomenon. Also, an increase in unemployment resulting from the drying of the wetland due to the reduction of Karun and Jarahi rivers is one of its indirect effects. Therefore, the residents of the area are going to respond to these and this will lead to the adaptation behaviour of the beneficiaries.
Maryam Esmaeili Fard; Human Liaghati; Ahmad Saie; Hamidreza Malek Mohammadi
Volume 15, Issue 3 , October 2017, , Pages 1-18
Abstract
Introduction: Despite the history of legislative measures in the field of the environment of Iran, the environmental situation of the country based on “the Environmental Performance Index”, “the Global Footprint Network” and “the World Bank” is significantly different ...
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Introduction: Despite the history of legislative measures in the field of the environment of Iran, the environmental situation of the country based on “the Environmental Performance Index”, “the Global Footprint Network” and “the World Bank” is significantly different from the goal of "Desirable Environment" in the Iran's 20-year vision plan4. In search of the reason, this paper from a public policy perspective seeks to prioritize and explain the challenges of environmental policy making in the Islamic Republic of Iran in the first phase of the Jones staged model.In staged model, the government and decision makers performance are ideally divided into five stages: the process of recognizing the problem and its inclusion on the government agenda(Agenda setting), the stage of the solution proposal (Formulation), the decision-making stage, the stage of implementation and the evaluation stage(Vahid,2004). Materials and methods: The focus of this paper is on the pathology of the recognition and inclusion of the problem in agenda. What is meant by understanding the problem and including of it on the agenda is a process by which ideas and issues are raised through various political institutions to be taken into consideration by a political entity such as the legislative or judicial body. Although there are few places - such as the legislature, the judiciary or the regulatory Commission - that are able to formally formulate policy calendars (agendas), but there are countless sources where subjects of these calendars come from (Shafritz and Borick ,2012).Considering the nature and limitations of the subject literature in our country, from among existing approaches to research , the mixed methods and exploratory sequential designswere selected. In this formulation of the research project, first the collection and analysis of data is done qualitatively and then quantitatively and ultimately interpreted simultaneously. The main use of this type of research project is to investigate an issue deeply or for the first time for which the researcher does not have a guideline framework or measurement tool for them(Creswell,2003). Results and discussion: Findings of the research showed that the main challenges of environmental policy-making in identifying the problem and placing it in the agenda that led to the decline of quantitative and qualitative indices of the country's vital resources are: prioritizing the country's issues on the basis of economic, political and security considerations (rather than environmental ones), the poor citizen and interest groups participation in identifying and prioritizing local needs, the weak coordination of intergovernmental organizations and government agencies responsible for and influential in environmental issues, the neglect of local communities from the benefits of sustainable development and focus on growth-oriented demands and short-term ones, lack of bottom-to-top mechanisms to express the real public concerns to be included in the environmental policy calendar, the lack of information and accurate statistics on the status quo and future environmental trends, the lack of attention to communication channels such as the media and the press to transfer issues to higher layers for inclusion in the agenda. Conclusion: Improving Iran's environmental indicators based on the Environmental "Performance Index", "Global Footprint Network" and “World Bank" with the goal of "desirable environment" in the 1404 vision document require solving the challenges of the agenda Setting.
Reza Tamartash; Fatemeh Montazeri; Mohamadreza Tatian; Ghorban Vahab Zadeh
Volume 15, Issue 4 , January 2018, , Pages 1-14
Abstract
Introduction: Soil pollution by heavy metals in the soil due to long-term sustainability and ecologically harmful effects, has become an environmental problem. In the study of vegetation in polluted areas with heavy metals, plants have the ability to grow and absorption the heavy metals, viewpoint the ...
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Introduction: Soil pollution by heavy metals in the soil due to long-term sustainability and ecologically harmful effects, has become an environmental problem. In the study of vegetation in polluted areas with heavy metals, plants have the ability to grow and absorption the heavy metals, viewpoint the scientific aspects, functional and economically very important. Material and methods: In this study 500, 1250 and 2000 meter from the center Kiasar cement of sari in Mazandaran province, soil and vegetation sampling was conducted using systematic random. Plant species such as Astragalus, Artemisia and Convolvulus with 3 replications and 3 treatments (a total of 27 samples and 27 samples of soil from the plant Rhizosphere) in the form of randomized complete block design was tested. The collected Samples transported to the laboratory for testing. The concentration of Pb, Cu, and Zn of the samples were determined by using ICP Device. Results and discussion: Results of statistical analysis of this study showed that heavy metals in soil had difference was greater than the species studied. So compare means of data show amount of cu and pb in soil and species had significant differences with increasing distance (p < 0.05). Copper increased with increasing distance and lead showed decreasing trend. Zn did not show any significant differences with the changes of distance in soil but it was significant differences in species and does not follow the regular process. Conclusion: Correlation of heavy elements of species with soil elements showed that Astragalus and Artemisia have significant Correlation with Copper and lead but Convolvulus just significant positive correlation with the Zn.
Mehdi Panahi; Farhad Misagi; Parisa Asgari
Volume 16, Issue 1 , April 2018, , Pages 1-14
Abstract
Introduction: In recent decades, climate change and the lack of adequate and timely rainfall, due to the lack of water supply for irrigated plants, the limitation of renewable land and water resources, the heterogeneous distribution of spatial and temporal distribution of fresh water, as well as the ...
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Introduction: In recent decades, climate change and the lack of adequate and timely rainfall, due to the lack of water supply for irrigated plants, the limitation of renewable land and water resources, the heterogeneous distribution of spatial and temporal distribution of fresh water, as well as the rapid growth of the world population, including Iran, There are increasing problems in providing water resources for various uses. One of the main requirements for meeting the world's food needs is access to sustainable agriculture and its development. In order to achieve such a goal, it should be avoided by adopting appropriate measures to prevent damage to the system of limited resources in each region. Groundwater is always a source of water supplies as a source of fresh water. Underground water management in the first stage requires the identification and operation of aquifers in natural conditions. In most hydrological issues and underground water resources studies, the availability of groundwater resources data and statistics is of great importance. In order to assess the effects of development in existing conditions and provide management methods for groundwater resources, both quantitatively and qualitatively, mathematical and computer simulation of these resources is a powerful tool in optimal utilization of these resources. Maerials and methods: Numerical modeling of groundwater in aquifers is an important tool for the management of water resources. This model can be used to estimate the hydraulic parameters as well as water resources management. The aim of this study was to simulate the fluctuations in groundwater levels in the aquifer by GMS software Zanjan located at a latitude of 47 degrees 50 minutes 49 ° East and latitude 36 degrees 20 minutes north and 37 degrees is located. This model is a combination of code Modflow and GIS using the finite difference method, the underground water level simulation. For this research the information needed to run the model include: Positions border aquifers, at different heights above ground level bed rock aquifer, the amount of withdrawals from wells tapping position, the position and the water level in observation wells, hydraulic conductivity layer and nutrition, were introduced to the model. After preparation of the conceptual model and the determination of initial and boundary conditions, the simulation will be discussed. The flow simulation model was calibrated in a steady flow. Results and discution: The results of the calibration results in a steady state a reasonable balance between the observed and calculated in October 2002 showed. After calibration nutritional value 0/000321 meters per day was that this amount is 1/98 times the amount of power input to the model. The amount of horizontal hydraulic conductivity layers of sand, silt and sand, gravel 28.57 and 40.4 respectively km per day and then unsteady flow model calibration mode for distances between 2002 and 2007, using trial and error to achieve the best balance between the level observed daily and were calculated and projected groundwater levels drop, based on the implementation of the model for 2007 and 2015 and 2022 was performed. The root mean square error, mean absolute error and mean error, respectively, 17/41, 15/22 and -0.6, respectively. After calibration nutritional value 0.000321 meters per day was that this amount is 1/98 times the amount of input supply model. The amount of horizontal hydraulic conductivity layers of sand, silt and sand, gravel 28/57 and 40/4 respectively km per day and then unsteady flow model calibration mode for distances between 2002 and 2007, using trial and error to achieve the best result among the observed daily balance and balance was calculated. The root mean square error and average error with respect to the amount equal to 26/29 and -8/43 showed good accuracy model. The water level calculated for the converter, groundwater flow is from the southeast to the northwest of the current slope correspond area. Conclusion: The model was implemented with the assumption of the rate of groundwater abatement and constant nutrition for a 15-year interval from 2007 to 2022 Maps obtained for the groundwater level in the years reflects a sharp drop in the water level continued indiscriminate harvesting of underground water aquifer Zanjan.
Vida Varahrami; Sajad Hojat Shomami
Volume 16, Issue 2 , July 2018, , Pages 1-14
Abstract
Introduction: The chemical and oil industries are effective factors on the development of OPEC countries and their economies are dependent on exports of these industries. The main aim of many countries is for higher economic growth which leads to more environmental pollution, and so we should survey ...
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Introduction: The chemical and oil industries are effective factors on the development of OPEC countries and their economies are dependent on exports of these industries. The main aim of many countries is for higher economic growth which leads to more environmental pollution, and so we should survey effects of fiscal policies (value added tax) on environmental pollution. The aim of this paper is to survey the relationship between value added tax and water pollution from chemical and oil industries. Materials and methods: In this paper, we wish to survey changes in value added tax as an efficient form of taxation of oil and chemical commodities and services exports and in the GDP of selected OPEC countries and its impact on water pollution caused by the oil and chemical industries. Theoretically, a higher tax rate on the value added of chemical industries leads to a decline pollution. Therefore decreased water pollution causes a decline in industry value added and decrease of GDP. With exports increasing, we can expect that, due to greater production, we will have more pollution in the oil and chemical industries. A panel data model is used for 2000-2013 and variables such as export of chemical and oil industries and GDP are regressed. The panel model is worked with time series data for two or more crosses. For using this method, we should survey stationary variables and, then, we should survey the cointegration between variables. When variables are stationary and cointegrated, it means that there is a long standing relationship between variables and we can estimate the relations between them. After that, we use F-Limer to test that the model is panel and the Husman test to survey whether we have a fixed or random effect. After all of these tests, we can use from panel model to estimate and extract the coefficients and R2 of the model. In our model, all of variables are meaningful and the R2 is 0.87. Results and disscussion: Results of the model demonstrated that, in the selected OPEC countries in our estimation period, with one unit increase in the tax rate of these countries, water pollution from the oil and chemical industries decreased by 0.3. With one unit increase in these countries’ exports (oil and gas exports as a percentage of GDP), water pollution from the oil and chemical industries increased by 0.03 unit with a one unit increase in GDP of these countries, increasing in pollution of oil and chemical industries, so low. Therefore effect of GDP on water pollution of oil and chemical industries of these selective OPEC countries is very small and we can say that GDP does not affect water pollution from the oil and chemical industries in our period and in our selected countries. Conclusion: Results reveal that in these countries, there is a negative relation between value added tax rate and water pollution. According to the estimation of results, the best condition for these countries is an increase in the rate of tax on value added of the chemical and oil industries but, in the real world because of high competition between OPEC countries and the tendency of these countries towards more oil exports, in these countries the main aim is more production. Therefore, in OPEC countries, the negative relationship between tax on value added and pollution of water from oil and chemical industries is only because OPEC countries are so state-oriented.
Sajjad Bahrami; Ahad Sotoudeh; Naser Jamshidi; Mohammad Reza Elmi
Volume 16, Issue 3 , October 2018, , Pages 1-24
Abstract
Introduction: Development of various industries, despite providing human welfare, has potential risks for mankind. Due to its extensive operations and activity and also the potential risk for humans and the environment, the petrochemical industry is considered a high-risk industry. The purpose of this ...
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Introduction: Development of various industries, despite providing human welfare, has potential risks for mankind. Due to its extensive operations and activity and also the potential risk for humans and the environment, the petrochemical industry is considered a high-risk industry. The purpose of this study was to assess and prioritize the risks resulting from process activities in Kermanshah petrochemical complex using two approaches (i.e., the traditional and fuzzy FMEA method). Material and methods: The present study was an analytical-field research that has been conducted in Kermanshah petrochemical complex for 10 months. In this study, the product lines (urea and ammonia) were investigated and also a team of five experts was formed. In addition, an initial list of the most important risks and hazards in the environmental field was prepared and then, by using Brainstorming and Delphi Technique, the list was corrected. Finally, environmental risk assessment in the form of traditional and fuzzy FMEA methods was evaluated. Results and discussion: According to the results, 38 risks were identified by traditional FMEA. The highest priority risk was related to hydrogen and ammonia gas emissions when the ammonia unit was out of service by RPN number of 491. The lowest priority risk belonged to ammonia effluents by RPN number of 28. Also, the highest risks to air pollution, as well as the causes of the risks were related to defects in the system and connections. The results of input fuzzification and output FMEA method showed that among the 15 identified risks in the petrochemical complex, the highest number of fuzzy priority in the health section was related to noise pollution (0.75), in the safety section was falling from the heights (0.75), and in the environmental sector for the reduction of ecological resources (0.613). Conclusion: Comparing these two approaches suggest that the traditional FMEA is powerful in the early stages of risk assessment process, and on the other hand, the fuzzy approach is more flexible and user-friendly in the stage of prioritizing the risks.
Azadeh Askari; Sepideh Samaee
Volume 16, Issue 4 , January 2019, , Pages 1-16
Abstract
Introduction: In recent decades, the growth of environmental pollution has led to the emergence of a new type of consumer called the green consumer. They regard themselves as responsible for the environment and use products with less damage to the environment. By recognizing these consumers, companies ...
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Introduction: In recent decades, the growth of environmental pollution has led to the emergence of a new type of consumer called the green consumer. They regard themselves as responsible for the environment and use products with less damage to the environment. By recognizing these consumers, companies are putting more effort to make their business greener to achieve this market segment. Therefore, identifying the factors that influence the selection of green products and services is important. Since the values of individuals, as an important social phenomenon, is influential in shaping, controlling and predicting their behavior, they can affect the green consumption behavior. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to investigate the relationship between each ethical value and the green consumption behavior. Material and methods: This is an applied research that uses fundamental research findings to identify and solve various problems. In addition, a survey was carried out. The statistical population of this study included 17067 students studying at Shahid Beheshti University from all faculties and educational levels in 2017. The convenience sampling method was used for sampling. According to the sample size table, 375 people were selected and 353 questionnaires were analyzed. In order to evaluate the students' values, Schwartz Personal Values Questionnaire was used. The reliability of the test was estimated at 0.893 by calculating the Cronbach's alpha coefficient. In order to measure the green consumption, five questions were used, the validity and reliability of which were acceptable. In order to analyze the findings, descriptive and inferential statistical methods were carried out by SPSS software. Results and discussion: Comparison of descriptive statistics showed that the reason why people used green cars was easy transportation to the university (37.7%), helping to improve the environment (36.3%), reasonable prices (14.2%) and to diversify their trips (10.8%). The relation between the use of green cars for helping to improve the environment with each of Schwartz's ethical values and the relationship between the preference of using green products with these values showed that the correlation coefficient between the preferences of using green products and the excitement value is r= -0.114, which is significant at the level of 0.01. In other words, there is a significant and negative relationship between the use of green products and the excitement value. However, there was not a significant relationship between the use of green products and other values. Also, there is a significant relation between using green products to help the environment (green consumption) and the universalism value (p <0.01, r = 0.145). There was no significant relationship between using green products to help the environment and other values. Conclusion: The results showed that not all of the Schwartz values in green consumers are equally important. The existence of individual differences justifies the individual's tendency to use green products. These findings can be applied to environmental practitioners, especially educators and marketers.
Rogahyeh Shokri Biarargh; Marjan Nematimehr
Abstract
Introduction: So far, the use of water sensitive urban design (WSUD) has not been investigated in cities of Iran. This issue, for the first time introduced in Australia in 1994, has been implemented in several countries, such as America, Germany, the Netherlands, and Australia. The main objective of ...
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Introduction: So far, the use of water sensitive urban design (WSUD) has not been investigated in cities of Iran. This issue, for the first time introduced in Australia in 1994, has been implemented in several countries, such as America, Germany, the Netherlands, and Australia. The main objective of WSUD is to establish a link between urban planning and design, and landscape design with sustainable management of water flows in a city. In other words, this approach tries to revitalize the natural water cycle in the city by presenting urban design-oriented solutions that may have less environmental damages. Material and methods: In this descriptive-qualitative research, the WSUD approach has been firstly addressed; then, its indicators, as integrated water management factors, have been extracted, evaluated, and analyzed in the rainy city of Rasht. In addition, based on findings of the study, some strategies for improving the water management in the city of Rasht have been proposed. Since the extraction of its dimensions and indicators depends on an accurate and exact investigation of the resources and documents, data collection was done by a documentary study. In order to infer the repeatability and validity of the extracted data from the documentary texts, the content analysis was used. The extent of the significance of indicators is not the same. Therefore, after extracting dimensions, components and repeated indicators of integrated water management, the coefficients of the significance of each level at a higher level, based on obtained data from content analysis, have been calculated by data from the experts’ questionnaire (Delphi) which is 5-point Likert scale method. At last, the significance of each indicator was determined. Results and discussion: Based on the findings obtained from experts’ questionnaire, the environmental indicator was the most significant factor in sustainable urban water management, as well as urban river health and rate of rainwater storage with weights of 0.0469 and 0.0463, respectively. To analyze the present situation in Rasht city, observation, questionnaire, and statistical databases in the form of Swat Table were utilized as the instrumentation. By weighting the internal and external factors, based on the GOSP matrix, appropriate strategies were introduced in the group of adaptive strategies. In addition, prioritization was done by QSPM matrix strategies on different levels. Ultimately, appropriate policies for applying the water-sensitive urban design approach were made in Rasht city. The outcomes of these strategies can be as follows: transformation of the gray infrastructure network of the city of Rasht into the green-blue infrastructure network, eco-revelatory of green infrastructures instead of underground pipelines, changing attitudes towards the links of water, nature and buildings, and increasing citizens’ awareness of the natural water cycle, preventing urban flooding in passages during rainfall, cleaning up the rivers of Zarjoob and Goharrood as well as wetlands of Rasht and making them the green corridors and major leisure spots, increasing green roofs, green walls and green terraces that have positive effects on the city’s temperature, air quality, wildlife, and mental health, and reducing drinking water consumption for non-drinking consumptions up to 50 percent (i.e., reduction of five million liters of drinking water only by collecting and handling gray water or rainwater and utilizing it as for rainwater flush tanks of buildings), etc. Conclusion: The WSUD approach, as the latest urban design approach for sustainable urban water management, has been developed for the management of surface runoff quality to a wider framework, i.e., for integrating urban water management in combination with urban design. It is noteworthy that it testifies that there is a possibility of managing surface waters in the city, in such a way that, in spite of existing more than 2000 mm rainfall per year, and even the flow of 200 mm on height over the passageways, the use of urban spaces is not disturbed.
Amin Gharanjik; Jafar Kambouzia; Saeed Soufizadeh
Abstract
Introduction: Plants show different morphological and phonological responses to ecological conditions within their tolerable range, which are in fact part of their heredity. These changes have a key role in species survival and ecosystems sustainability. Agricultural ecosystems are very fragile due ...
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Introduction: Plants show different morphological and phonological responses to ecological conditions within their tolerable range, which are in fact part of their heredity. These changes have a key role in species survival and ecosystems sustainability. Agricultural ecosystems are very fragile due to the severe limitations of genetic diversity and biodiversity. In an agro-ecological approach, unlike current agriculture, careful consideration of the livelihood stages and other living organisms in the ecosystem is of interest, and so it is attempted to manage production as well as the optimal use of agricultural inputs. Material and methods: In order to study the phonological changes in four bread wheat genotypes (Gonbad, Karim, Koohdasht, Morvarid), at different levels of urea fertilizer application (0, 66, 200 kg/ha), a factorial experiment was conducted in a randomized complete block design with three replications in two crop years of 2014 and 2015 at Agricultural Research Station of Gonbad-e-kavoos. Results and discussion: The results of this study showed that the length of vegetative and reproductive stages in these two years are different, and the effect of urea content on these stages is not the same in different ecological conditions. Therefore, it was concluded that under different temperature and humidity conditions. it is possible to apply fertilizer management, without having a significant effect on the length of the phonological periods. Observations of this experiment showed that the stalking stage is more stable compared to the previous steps, so that the length of this stage was only 0.63 day in two years, and changes in different levels of fertilizer application did not show any significant difference in two years. It seems that the length of this period is less influenced by environmental factors than the other stages of wheat growth and in other words. it is expected to have a higher inheritance. Changes in the pregnancy stage are also relatively similar to the stalking stage. Even though the consumption of 200 kg/ha urea fertilizer slightly increased the change of the slope, in such a way that 68% slope the increase of the span of the period from the treatment until 66 kg/ha, urea fertilizer is changed into 111.9%, but the amount of this increase is only 0.75 day. It can be concluded that although the length of this stage of plant growth is more affected by environmental factors over the pregnancy stage, in general, the amount of this impact is not high. Observations of this study showed that the studied wheat cultivars (whether they are introduced for dry conditions or supplementary irrigation) during the course of their growth reached the stages of emergence of spike, flowering, and seedling 7.5 to 8.5 days later in the second year (pluvious) than the first year (lower rainfall). So that the difference between these two years for the emergence of the spike on average was 8.33 day, for flowering stage 7.72 day, and for the processing stage 7.56 day. Changes in fertilizer use in these three steps were similar in both years. Conclusion: This study is important in management and controlling the population of non-cultivated plant species, pathogens (fungi and bacteria), insects and other species in the amount and sustainability of crop production.
Mohammad Mahmudi; Seyed Hossein Hashemi; Amir Salemi
Abstract
Introduction: So far, several studies have been carried out all over the world on the development of appropriate indicators for the emission of hydrocarbon contaminants and several indicators have been presented in this regard. These indicators are divided into internal and external categories. External ...
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Introduction: So far, several studies have been carried out all over the world on the development of appropriate indicators for the emission of hydrocarbon contaminants and several indicators have been presented in this regard. These indicators are divided into internal and external categories. External indices determine the source of hydrocarbon pollution based on the ratio of metals in the oil, such as the ratio of nickel to vanadium. In contrast, indigenous indices, namely aromatic and aliphatic compounds, are used mainly for the propagation of hydrocarbon contamination. Because of the difference in reactivity, solubility, and thermodynamic properties between some polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons isomers, they can be used to determine the source of hydrocarbon pollution. Material and methods: In many studies on hydrocarbon contamination, only one of the aliphatic or aromatic compounds in the water, soil and sediment environment is investigated. However, in this study, for the determination of hydrocarbon contamination in the south of Tehran, aromatic and aliphatic compounds were investigated in all water, soil, and sediment environments. To determine the amount of contamination, 33 samples of water, soil, and sediment were collected. After collection, the samples were immediately transferred to the laboratory and extraction of hydrocarbon compounds was done. Water samples were collected from wells, aqueducts, surface waters, and canals. Soil samples were obtained from surface and 50 cm depth of agricultural land, and primer soil and sediment samples were collected from sediments accumulated in canals, aqueducts and surface waters. Results and discussion: In this study, 16 important PAH compounds that are declared as carcinogenic by the US Environmental Protection Agency and aliphatic compounds (C8-C40) were studied. The average concentration of PAHs compounds in water samples was 2127.72 ppb ranging from 5 to 147125.56, in soil samples was 6715.7 ppb, ranging from 5 to 446642, and in sediment samples was957.77 ppb ranging from5 to11992.02. As for aliphatic compounds (C8-C40), their concentrationin water samples was 39.50 ppm with a range of 5-785.2, in soil samples was 1110 ppm with a range of 5-16160/74, and insediment samples was1751.13 ppm with a range of 5-30497.37. The presence of hydrocarbon contamination in the south ofTehran showed that petroleum pollution is petrogenetic. According to these results, the most contamination was observed insamples around the pond of oil waste and samples near the oil pipelines, where the hydrocarbon contamination can penetrateinto the groundwater and the soil. Also, the oil pollution in the area was not limited to the oil refinery, but part of it was relatedto the liquefied gas collection from the city and transportation to the canals to use for irrigation of agricultural land. Regardingthe comparison of concentrations of PAH and aliphatic compounds, the highest concentrations of PAHs were found in waterand sediment, respectively, and the highest concentrations of aliphatic compounds were in the soil, sediment, and water, respectively,respectively. Due to the fact that the hydrocarbon compounds in the water column are deposited into the channel depositsand these channels are periodically dredged by farmers in the region, there is no possibility of accumulation of high levels ofhydrocarbons in these environments. For this reason, the highest concentrations are in the soil environment. Conclusion: The results of measurement and analysis of oil hydrocarbons in water, soil, and sediment environmentsshowed that oil pollution is petrogenetic. Most of this pollution is related to oil spills from Tehran refinery and the otherreason is the collecting channels of urban surface runoff, which are contaminated with petrogenetic petroleum compoundsthat lead to the south of Tehran.
ِAshkan Mohammadi; Naser Shafiei Sabet; Alireza Shakiba
Abstract
Introduction: One of the major implications of accelerated urbanization is the spatial expansion of urban sprawl and the corrosive of villages and peripheral lands that have been numerous in metropolitan areas. The irregular sprawl and extension of the Tehran metropolis into surrounding areas have led ...
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Introduction: One of the major implications of accelerated urbanization is the spatial expansion of urban sprawl and the corrosive of villages and peripheral lands that have been numerous in metropolitan areas. The irregular sprawl and extension of the Tehran metropolis into surrounding areas have led to disturbances and imbalances in the social, economic, and spatial organization of peripheral villages. In recent decades, urban growth analysis has started from a variety of perspectives. Over the past half century this phenomenon has been prominent in Iran. It originally took place in metropolises and large cities, but gradually moved to middle cities due to the centralized policies of the settlement .The study area has been expanding rapidly in the last three decades and has caused many environmental problems and rapid changes in the economic performance of villages and the transformation of valuable natural resources. Therefore, this research intends to investigate the manner and extent of land use changes in the study area by analyzing and accurately analyzing the phenomenon of creep and reducing the adverse effects by providing scientific solutions. Therefore, this research is intended by look up and accurate analysis of the sprawl phenomenon, study the method and extent of land use change in the study area and reduces its adverse effects by providing scientific solutions. Material and methods: For accurate analysis of the effects of sprawl phenomena, descriptive and analytical methods have been used. In this method, after collecting data contains Land sat satellite images with TM, ETM and OLI sensors and after visual interpretation of satellite images due to the absence of stroke errors, cloud spots by using remote sensing techniques and spatial information systems, the land use change process began in 1986, 2002, 2018, and divided into four residential and non-residential construction, vegetation, rangelands and roads. After that, the supervised classification operation was monitored by the SVM algorithm and the detection and determination of the sprawl pattern in the study area. Results and discussion: The calculations indicate that in the region of Tehran -Damavand, due to the crawling growth in discrete form and in some points continuous, the most changes in terms of increase is related to the use of residential construction 9.69% and the use of the road 1%, that this growing trend has reduced the use of pasture and vegetation by about 9.07% and 0.1%, respectively. After field operation and harvesting of samples with two-frequency GPS receivers and introducing it to the software, the classification of complications was performed by support vector machines with a mean total accuracy of 62.69% and a mean Kappa coefficient of 85.33%. Most changes were related to residential and non-residential classes and roads and in the study area, most vegetation coverings and agricultural land became industrial estates and recreational villas. This led to an increase the migration from villages to Tehran's metropolis, followed by the need for urban landscapes and finally fragility and instability of environmental resources. In Tehran- Damavand axis, these changes have been made by various factors and forces during its uneven spatial expansion. Conclusion: In the study of spatial and land use changes, it is important to pay attention to which side effects are slowly changing and which side effects change more quickly. In this research, it was revealed that the study of vegetation compared to other lands had the greatest change. Therefore, if there is no precise planning and policies and continuous monitoring to prevent this trend, there will be harmful and irreparable environmental impacts.
Sohrab Mazloomi; Abbas Esmaeili Sari; Nader Bahramifar
Abstract
Introduction: Particulate matters are one of the most important air pollutants in Tehran and very dangerous for human health according to the epidemiological studies. The ambient particles contain heavy metals, some of which are toxic and carcinogenic components. Therefore, in this study, the content ...
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Introduction: Particulate matters are one of the most important air pollutants in Tehran and very dangerous for human health according to the epidemiological studies. The ambient particles contain heavy metals, some of which are toxic and carcinogenic components. Therefore, in this study, the content of heavy metals in airborne particulate matters (PM4) of Tehran was measured and the related health risk was assessed. Material and methods: Sampling of PM4 was conducted every six days using Chrono PM Sampler with a 10 L/min flow rate at two residential areas including Tehranpars in the east and Ekbatan in the west of Tehran. The concentration of PM4 was calculated with Gravimetric analysis. After the preparation of the samples using the extraction solution (HCl and HNO3), the concentration of heavy metals was measured by ICP-MS. The metal richness was assessed using the enrichment factor. For health risk assessment of heavy metals in PM4, excess cancer risk was calculated. Results and discussion: At both sampling stations, the highest concentrations in all PM4 samples were related to Al and Fe due to the high abundance of these elements in the earth's crust. The results of the enrichment factor indicated that Al, Fe, Ti and Mn in PM4 had low enrichment degree and the source of these metals might mainly be the earth's crust. Ni and Cr had a high enrichment degree. In addition, Zn, Pb, Cu, Sn, As, and Cd had a very high enrichment degree and were mainly anthropogenic. The concentration of PM4 was not significantly different between the two stations in the east and west, but the comparison of the mean concentration of metals in PM4 samples between the two stations showed that the concentrations of Mn, Cu, Sn, Ni, and As at the eastern station were significantly higher than the western station. The comparison of the enrichment factor between the two sampling stations also showed that the EF values of the studied elements at the eastern station were higher than those at the western station, which could indicate a higher contribution of anthropogenic sources in the east. Among the studied elements, the highest excess cancer risk was related to Cr(VI) due to its high toxicity. The total excess cancer risk based on the average concentrations of toxic metals in PM4 was 120.1×10-6 at the eastern station and 83.1×10-6 at the western station. Conclusion: Most of heavy metals in PM4in the east and west of Tehran had mainly anthropogenic sources and were generated by human activities, especially transportation. The average concentration of heavy metals in PM4 at the east of Tehran was higher than the west, and as a result, the excess cancer risk of toxic metals in PM4 was also higher in the east. The most dangerous carcinogenic element in particulate matters of Tehran was Cr(VI), which should be taken more under consideration and its anthropogenic emission sources must be controlled.
Keyvan Ezimand; Hossein Aghighi; Davod Ashourloo; Aref Shahi Aqbelaghi
Abstract
Introduction: Urbanization and urban growth have a significant impact on the natural and human environment as well as the climate at local and regional scales. For instance, the difference in the energy balance of the central and peripheral regions of cities stems from their physical characteristics ...
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Introduction: Urbanization and urban growth have a significant impact on the natural and human environment as well as the climate at local and regional scales. For instance, the difference in the energy balance of the central and peripheral regions of cities stems from their physical characteristics and surface land cover. These characteristics in the temperate regions create the phenomenon of urban heat island, but they cause the phenomenon of the urban cold island in arid and semi-arid areas. The purpose of this study was to analyze the impacts of land-surface characteristics, land cover, built-up areas, and morphological characteristics on temperature changes in Zanjan city, Iran. Material and methods: The dataset used in this study included Landsat-5 TM sensor images in 2010 and 2011 as well as statistical information at the level of building blocks. The methodology used in this study was to investigate the effects of different land covers on surface temperature. Then, to demonstrate the effects of built-up areas on surface temperature, the IBI method and Otsu threshold were used. To investigate the effects of the configuration of built-up areas on land surface temperature variations, landscape metrics such as Landscape Division Index, Fractal Dimension Index, and Percent cover of class areas were used. Finally, urban morphology has been investigated using Plot size (PS). Results and discussion: The results of this research showed that among all seasons, the stronger cold island was detected in summer. Moreover, the results also showed that the cold island was much better presented in summer than other seasons. The scatter plots between the land surface temperature (LST) on one hand, and the built-up area as well as the vegetation land cover, on the other hand, illustrated indirect correlations where higher Pearson correlation coefficient was observed between LST and the built-up area (r = - 0.704). Among the landscape metrics, the highest positive correlation (r = 0.72) was observed between LST and the Landscape Division Index. Moreover, a high negative correlation was found between the characteristics of urban morphology or Plot size and the LST (r = - 0.73). The results of the Pearson correlation between land cover, configuration, and morphology characteristics and LST were quite significant (P≤0.01). Conclusion: From this research, it can be concluded that the configuration and morphology characteristics can model surface temperature variations better than the land cover.
Afsaneh Yousefi; Reza Mirzaeitalarposhti; Fatemeh-Sadat Aghamir; Jafar Nabati
Abstract
Introduction: Economic problems caused by increased consumption of fertilizers from one hand and environmental issues related to non-scientific consumption of such fertilizers (e.g., pollution of water and soil, loss of soil fertility, and crop quality) on the other hand, have shifted attentions towards ...
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Introduction: Economic problems caused by increased consumption of fertilizers from one hand and environmental issues related to non-scientific consumption of such fertilizers (e.g., pollution of water and soil, loss of soil fertility, and crop quality) on the other hand, have shifted attentions towards application of biological fertilizers. In order to reduce environmental pollution and ecological damage caused by the use of chemical fertilizers, there is a need to use resources and inputs, which not only meet crop nutrient requirements, but also guarantee the long-term sustainability of agricultural systems. The purpose of this study was to reduce the harmful effects of chemical fertilizers on the agroecosystem and to reduce the cost associated with crop production through application of biofertilizers (free-living nitrogen-fixating bacteria, and potassium and phosphate solubilizing bacteria) on mung bean. Material and methods: A field experiment was carried out as a randomized complete block design with factorial arrangement of treatments. Two mung bean genotypes (Dezfouli and Indian) were planted under six fertilization systems at the Agricultural Research Station of Ferdowsi University of Mashhad, Iran in 2017. Fertilization treatments were Nitro Bacteria (NB), Phosphate Power Bacteria (PhPB), Potassium Power Bacteria (PPB), NB+PhPB+PPB, chemical nitrogen fertilizer (N), and no fertilizer as control (C). Prior to planting, the soil was sampled at a depth of 0-30 cm for measurement of common physico-chemical characteristics. At the end of the growing season, an area of 1 m2 from the middle of each plot was harvested for crop traits. Plant height, the number of branches per plant, grain yield, biological yield, and yield components including the number of pods per plant, the number of seeds per pod, and 100-seed weight were measured accordingly. Results and discussion: The results showed a significant difference between mung bean genotypes and also fertilization treatments regarding yield and yield components (p < 0.05). The highest biological yield (6555 kg ha-1 ) and grain yield (1558 kg ha-1 ) were obtained from Dezfouli genotype under NPB+PhPB+PPB treatment. The lowest biomass and grain yield were observed for Indian genotype under control treatment with 3518 and 1393 kg ha-1 , respectively. The results showed that the combined application of nitrogen stabilizing bacteria and potassium and phosphate release bacteria, due to increased access to nutrients that is an effective factor in stimulating the growth and photosynthesis of plants, improved conditions for growth and production of photosynthetic materials, and also increased the yield of mung bean plants. Conclusion: It was revealed that the combined application of various biofertilizers not only improves the mung bean yield, but also can reduce negative aspects of chemical fertilizer application in crop production systems. Paying attention to more frequent use of biological fertilizers could be considered as an important agroecological approach, which results in healthier soil and water resources.
Yasaman Amirsoleymani; Ozeair Abessi; Yasser Ebrahimian Ghajari
Abstract
Introduction: Today, solid waste management is an important problem for urban planners all over the world. The landfill, which is a site for the safe disposal of waste materials by burial, considered to be the core of an integrated waste management strategy in modern cities, when it is accompanied by ...
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Introduction: Today, solid waste management is an important problem for urban planners all over the world. The landfill, which is a site for the safe disposal of waste materials by burial, considered to be the core of an integrated waste management strategy in modern cities, when it is accompanied by other methods. Selecting a suitable site for landfilling is the first and most important phase in the process of waste disposal. Geospatial Information Systems (GIS) became a common tool for the selection of landfill sites. In this research by integrating spatial information systems and a multi-criteria decision-making model, spatial limitations for siting sanitary landfills along the province of Mazandaran were evaluated based on the regulatory compliance mentioned by the Iranian Department of Environment. Material and methods: Municipal solid waste disposal is one of the major problems of the urban environment in almost all northern states of Iran, especially in Mazandaran Province. In this paper, using the analytical hierarchy process a spatial information system has been developed for siting urban waste burial landfills in Mazandaran province. In this study, ArcGIS 10.4.1 software was used to create an information database for spatial analysis and integration of map layers. The AHP model and Expert choice software were also used to compute the weight of criteria. Results and discussion: In this study, first, according to the regulatory requirements of the Iranian Department of Environment, the effective factors for siting urban landfills were extracted. These criteria are slope, distance from fault, flood plain, distance from the sea, distance from rivers, distance from lakes and wetlands, distance from groundwater wells, groundwater depth, distance from the protected areas, distance from urban areas, distance from rural areas, distance from educational and medical centers, distance from historical and ancient centers, distance from local and international airports, distance from industries and also having access to roads. Considering the elimination criteria and by classification and scoring them, maps of the layer of each criterion were produced in the GIS system. As the role of each criterion is different, at the next step, the relative weights of criteria were calculated using AHP and Expert Choice. Finally, by integrating the map layers of each criterion and by deleting layers of limitation, the suitable areas have been classified into three categories. The results show that 16156 KM2 of Mazandaran province (about 68 percent of the total area) is forbidden for any landfilling based on the national regulations of DOE and only 32 percent of the total area has the initial conditions for any disposal. The initial candidate landfill sites were separated into 3 categories, high suitability, moderate suitability and low suitability. So the 2405 KM2 of the province's area has low suitability, 4914 KM2 with moderate suitability and 281 KM2 has high suitability conditions. Conclusion: The comparison of results show that only 2 percent of the province has essentially the optimal conditions for proper landfilling and Mazandaran province is a region with strict restriction from this aspect. This study shows that the combination of GIS and AHP methods for application of regulatory requirements for limitation zone and the priority setting criteria can be considered as a suitable approach for siting urban landfills.
Sara Abdollahi; HamidReza Azimzadeh; MohammadReza Ekhtesasi; Asghar Mosleh-Arani
Abstract
Introduction: Dust is one of the phenomena of atmospheric and natural disasters that poses adverse environmental effects and impacts. Due to the wide distribution of dust, this phenomenon can also change the soil and its biology trends. Typically, dust particles have a diameter of less than 100 microns, ...
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Introduction: Dust is one of the phenomena of atmospheric and natural disasters that poses adverse environmental effects and impacts. Due to the wide distribution of dust, this phenomenon can also change the soil and its biology trends. Typically, dust particles have a diameter of less than 100 microns, which can be transmitted horizontally or vertically to the ground after miles. The aim of this study was to determine the amount of dust falling and heavy metals lead and cadmium concentrations in dust samples to evaluate these elements is the urban pollution.Material and methods: In this study, samples were collected using mild sediment trap for six months.A total of 180 samples were collected. Samples were weighed accurately using a scale of 0.001 g. The analysis of samples was performed using ISO11466. The samples were extracted by the Institute of Water and Soil Research, and the concentration of heavy metals was measured by the atomic absorption spectrometry of the Analyti jena-951 model.Results and discussion: The results showed that in the winter of March and in the spring of June, the highest rate of dust was observed. The mean lead concentration in winter was 97.32 ± 5.40 mg.kg and 90.16 ± 5.93 mg.kg in spring. Also, the average cadmium concentration in winter was 37.19 ± 3.60 mg.kg and 29.62 ± 2.42 mg.kg in the spring. According to the pollution index (PI), the level of contamination of lead is high in the floor, however, according to this index, cadmium contamination in both seasons is more than the level of contamination of lead and is higher than the limit, which is the risk index The ecology of cadmium, with an average of 1673.98 and 1333.03, also confirms this and is in the hazardous area of contamination. Also, the ecological risk of lead metal in winter was 18.14 ± 1.01 and in the spring with a mean of 16.91 ± 1.11 in the low pollution class. According to the values obtained for the pollution load index (PLI), this contamination rate is Cdwinte r˃Cdspring˃Pbwinter˃Pbsprin, and both of these elements are highly polluted in the classroom.Conclusion: The results of statistical calculations and contamination levels indicate that the amount of dust pollution to lead and cadmium is higher than most of the calculated indices in the classes with high to high contamination.Therefore, these elements have been brought into the environment as a result of human activities and have less natural origin.
