Volume 16, Issue 2 (9-2025)
J Watershed Manage Res 2025, 16(2): 63-78 |
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Sadeghi S H, Chamani R, Zabihi Seilabi M, Tavosi M, Katebikord A, Nouri H, et al . (2025). Comparative Integrated Prioritization of the Status and Performance Conditions of Iran's Second-Order Watersheds Using Game Theory. J Watershed Manage Res. 16(2), 63-78. doi:10.61882/jwmr.2025.1285
URL: http://jwmr.sanru.ac.ir/article-1-1285-en.html
URL: http://jwmr.sanru.ac.ir/article-1-1285-en.html
Seyed Hamidreza Sadeghi *1 
, Reza Chamani1, Mostafa Zabihi Seilabi1, Mohammad Tavosi1, Azadeh Katebikord1, Hamid Nouri2, Abdulvahed Khaledi Darvishan1, Vahid Moosavi1, Padidehsadat Sadeghi1, Mehdi Vafakhah1, Hamidreza Moradi Rekabdarkolaei1
, Reza Chamani1, Mostafa Zabihi Seilabi1, Mohammad Tavosi1, Azadeh Katebikord1, Hamid Nouri2, Abdulvahed Khaledi Darvishan1, Vahid Moosavi1, Padidehsadat Sadeghi1, Mehdi Vafakhah1, Hamidreza Moradi Rekabdarkolaei1
1- Department of Watershed Management Engineering, Faculty of Natural Resources, Tarbiat Modares University, Noor, Iran
2- Faculty of Natural Resources and Environment, Malayer University, Malayer, Iran; At present: Director, International Center for Integrated Management of Watershed and Bio-Resources in Arid and Semi-Arid Regions (ICIMWB), Natural Resources and Watershed Management Organization of Iran, Tehran, Iran
2- Faculty of Natural Resources and Environment, Malayer University, Malayer, Iran; At present: Director, International Center for Integrated Management of Watershed and Bio-Resources in Arid and Semi-Arid Regions (ICIMWB), Natural Resources and Watershed Management Organization of Iran, Tehran, Iran
Abstract: (986 Views)
Extended Abstract
Background: Protection, exploitation, and sustainable management of watershed resources are priorities in meeting the needs of the growing population. Damage to natural resources leads to irreparable effects, such as severe floods, soil erosion, and, as a result, human and financial losses. Therefore, on the one hand, it is necessary to implement programs for the protection and restoration of natural resources. On the other hand, the lack of credits and economic, technical, and time limitations in different watersheds cause management measures to be taken in parts of watersheds that have more sensitive conditions than other areas. Based on this, prioritizing different areas of a watershed based on the severity of the problem is a valuable tool for the government in preparing regional development strategies. However, it is necessary to use an appropriate approach to make a management decision, considering the opinions of all stakeholders and reducing expert opinions. However, this issue of the watershed area has received less attention. In this regard, game theory has been used in the current research for the comparative prioritization of second-order watersheds in the country due to the reduction of the effect of expert opinion. The results of this research will help policymakers, managers, and decision-makers in the comprehensive management of watersheds in the country and the conservation of water and soil resources. Achieving detailed and operational approaches on operational scales requires extensive research on a larger scale and in sectors or watersheds with high management priority.
Methods: Some 44 national and accessible climatic, human, hydrological, and natural criteria were initially selected for the comparative prioritization of the country's second-order watersheds. Next, the values of study criteria were extracted for each watershed of the second category, and the necessary scaling was done according to the nature of the criteria and the type of their effect on the performance of the watersheds. The statistical measure of the variance inflation factor was used to eliminate the internal correlation of the study criteria. In this regard, 26 criteria were finalized for comparative prioritization. The Condorcet approach was used for comprehensive comparative prioritization, considering 26 criteria in the next step. In this regard, the values of the final criteria were ranked in 30 watersheds. In this regard, the watershed with the best condition in terms of the study criteria was ranked first, and the watershed with the worst condition was ranked last. This procedure was considered for all the study criteria. After ranking the watersheds by considering the criteria, a comparative prioritization was done between the second-order watersheds in the country, and the watersheds with the highest and lowest ranges in pairwise comparisons were identified as low and high-priority watersheds, respectively.
Results: The 30 watersheds of the country have been ranked first to fourth among the 26 study criteria at least once. In this regard, the Jarahi and Zohreh Watershed, with three points, and the Daranjir and Saghar Desert Watershed, with 54 points, respectively, have the lowest and highest points and the worst and best conditions according to the 26 final criteria. Examining the condition of the Jarahi and Zohreh Watershed showed that this watershed could be in a better condition regarding drainage density, specific erosion, and the density of order 4 streams. On the other hand, the condition of the Daranjir desert is better in the naturalness index, recharge volume of groundwater, carbon monoxide concentration, density of stream ordered 4, migration, specific erosion, population, and human outflow than the majority of watersheds. According to the study criteria, the status and functional conditions of the Jarahi and Zohreh Watershed in the southwest, the Hamon Jazmurian Watershed in the southeast, Bandar Abbas and Sedij Border Watersheds in the south, the Central Desert and Abarghou-Sirjan Desert Watersheds in the center, Urmia Lake, and the Sefidroud and Haraz Watershed in the northwest are weak in comparison with the other watersheds and should be given more attention. Based on the results, the watersheds of Jarahi and Zohreh, with three, and Deranjir desert, with 54 points, respectively, have the least and the most points and have the worst and the best possible conditions. Based on the obtained results, various variables are effective in prioritizing the country's watersheds, which requires a detailed and scientific evaluation of their individual effects on the performance of watersheds. The results of this research can contribute to allocating funds to provide management solutions and conducting detailed implementation studies on larger scales and smaller watersheds.
Conclusion: In the current research, the set of influential and available variables in watersheds has been used for comparative prioritization. It should be noted that because the comparison in the Condorcet approach is based on pairwise comparisons, Jarahi and Zohreh and Daranjir Desert Watersheds are the sub-watersheds that have experienced the highest and lowest losses, respectively, in the pairwise comparisons between the other sub-watersheds in the criteria as mentioned above. Therefore, the prioritization results will be reliable when the relevant manager is fully aware of the prioritization process, the type of criteria, and the purpose of the present study. Naturally, the results of the scale used in the current research need to provide the possibility of preparing and compiling executive plans for watershed management in the country. However, they provide a reasonable basis for focusing the attention of the departments and organizations in charge of protecting the country's water and soil resources for policy-making and planning on a national scale. It also provides detailed and goal-oriented studies on a large scale in high-priority watersheds. However, more extensive research is recommended with other prioritization methods based on game theory and similar approaches based on technical criteria.
Background: Protection, exploitation, and sustainable management of watershed resources are priorities in meeting the needs of the growing population. Damage to natural resources leads to irreparable effects, such as severe floods, soil erosion, and, as a result, human and financial losses. Therefore, on the one hand, it is necessary to implement programs for the protection and restoration of natural resources. On the other hand, the lack of credits and economic, technical, and time limitations in different watersheds cause management measures to be taken in parts of watersheds that have more sensitive conditions than other areas. Based on this, prioritizing different areas of a watershed based on the severity of the problem is a valuable tool for the government in preparing regional development strategies. However, it is necessary to use an appropriate approach to make a management decision, considering the opinions of all stakeholders and reducing expert opinions. However, this issue of the watershed area has received less attention. In this regard, game theory has been used in the current research for the comparative prioritization of second-order watersheds in the country due to the reduction of the effect of expert opinion. The results of this research will help policymakers, managers, and decision-makers in the comprehensive management of watersheds in the country and the conservation of water and soil resources. Achieving detailed and operational approaches on operational scales requires extensive research on a larger scale and in sectors or watersheds with high management priority.
Methods: Some 44 national and accessible climatic, human, hydrological, and natural criteria were initially selected for the comparative prioritization of the country's second-order watersheds. Next, the values of study criteria were extracted for each watershed of the second category, and the necessary scaling was done according to the nature of the criteria and the type of their effect on the performance of the watersheds. The statistical measure of the variance inflation factor was used to eliminate the internal correlation of the study criteria. In this regard, 26 criteria were finalized for comparative prioritization. The Condorcet approach was used for comprehensive comparative prioritization, considering 26 criteria in the next step. In this regard, the values of the final criteria were ranked in 30 watersheds. In this regard, the watershed with the best condition in terms of the study criteria was ranked first, and the watershed with the worst condition was ranked last. This procedure was considered for all the study criteria. After ranking the watersheds by considering the criteria, a comparative prioritization was done between the second-order watersheds in the country, and the watersheds with the highest and lowest ranges in pairwise comparisons were identified as low and high-priority watersheds, respectively.
Results: The 30 watersheds of the country have been ranked first to fourth among the 26 study criteria at least once. In this regard, the Jarahi and Zohreh Watershed, with three points, and the Daranjir and Saghar Desert Watershed, with 54 points, respectively, have the lowest and highest points and the worst and best conditions according to the 26 final criteria. Examining the condition of the Jarahi and Zohreh Watershed showed that this watershed could be in a better condition regarding drainage density, specific erosion, and the density of order 4 streams. On the other hand, the condition of the Daranjir desert is better in the naturalness index, recharge volume of groundwater, carbon monoxide concentration, density of stream ordered 4, migration, specific erosion, population, and human outflow than the majority of watersheds. According to the study criteria, the status and functional conditions of the Jarahi and Zohreh Watershed in the southwest, the Hamon Jazmurian Watershed in the southeast, Bandar Abbas and Sedij Border Watersheds in the south, the Central Desert and Abarghou-Sirjan Desert Watersheds in the center, Urmia Lake, and the Sefidroud and Haraz Watershed in the northwest are weak in comparison with the other watersheds and should be given more attention. Based on the results, the watersheds of Jarahi and Zohreh, with three, and Deranjir desert, with 54 points, respectively, have the least and the most points and have the worst and the best possible conditions. Based on the obtained results, various variables are effective in prioritizing the country's watersheds, which requires a detailed and scientific evaluation of their individual effects on the performance of watersheds. The results of this research can contribute to allocating funds to provide management solutions and conducting detailed implementation studies on larger scales and smaller watersheds.
Conclusion: In the current research, the set of influential and available variables in watersheds has been used for comparative prioritization. It should be noted that because the comparison in the Condorcet approach is based on pairwise comparisons, Jarahi and Zohreh and Daranjir Desert Watersheds are the sub-watersheds that have experienced the highest and lowest losses, respectively, in the pairwise comparisons between the other sub-watersheds in the criteria as mentioned above. Therefore, the prioritization results will be reliable when the relevant manager is fully aware of the prioritization process, the type of criteria, and the purpose of the present study. Naturally, the results of the scale used in the current research need to provide the possibility of preparing and compiling executive plans for watershed management in the country. However, they provide a reasonable basis for focusing the attention of the departments and organizations in charge of protecting the country's water and soil resources for policy-making and planning on a national scale. It also provides detailed and goal-oriented studies on a large scale in high-priority watersheds. However, more extensive research is recommended with other prioritization methods based on game theory and similar approaches based on technical criteria.
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