@article{ author = {}, title = {Applying Feature-Selection Algorithm to Predict Landslide in the Southwest of Iran}, abstract ={Extended abstract 1- INTRODUCTION Nowadays people have an increased sensitivity towards landslides especially in mountainous areas using change in the land use and the expansion of communication networks (Gvrsysky et al., 2006). In the twentieth century, Asia has allocated the highest incident of landslides (220 landslides). Latin America has had the highest number of casualties (more than 2,500) and Europe has experienced the highest loss (Karami, 2012). Landslide is one of the significant phenomena in the environment, watershed management, and natural resources. The importance of landslides can be discussed and analyzed from various perspectives. The most important reason refers to human and financial loss (Rajab Zadeh, 2013). Research on the dynamic relationships between factors in landslides has a high role in the investigation of the respective risk. In fact, much research has been conducted in the realm of determining the relationship between environmental factors and the occurrence of landslide (Anbalagan, 1992, Liu Min, 2001, Ayvahashy et al., 2003, Yalv and Yamagyshy, 2005). Some of such research is consistent with the relationship between the distribution of geological and geomorphological factors and landslides observed. However, to analyze the results and predict the likelihood of landslides, there are common tools that are used in statistical calculations. 2- THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK A landslide, also known as a landslip, is a form of mass wasting that includes a wide range of ground movements, such as rock falls, deep failure of slopes, and shallow debris flows. Slope, fine sediments and ground moisture have important roles in the occurrence of landslides; given that many parameters affect the landslide, a more effective choice to reduce time and costs is important. The subject of feature selection is the one of the issues identified in the machine learning and statistics. The problem in many applications (such as classification) is very important. Because in these applications, there are a large number of features that many of them are unused. In fact, if they are not removed, these features will not create problems, but save a lot of useless and useful information together. 3- METHODOLOGY This study was carried out in the southwest of Iran (a part of Khuzestan, Khorramabad, Ilam, Kermanshah and Hamedan). It includes an area of about 154272.48 km2 and is located at the longitude of N 29° 56΄to 35° 46΄and the latitude of E 45° 24΄ to 52° 1΄. The altitude of the study area ranges from the lowest 30 m to the highest 4,415 m. There are different methods that try to find better subsets among the 2T subsets. In all of these methods, the selection of the subset is based on the type of application and type of definition that can optimize the value of an evaluation function. In fact, each way tries to make the best attributes of choices, but according to the extent of answers and increasing the answer with T, finding the optimal solution and T medium is costly. Feature selection process has four steps: Generation function: this function find sub-candidates for the procedure. Elevation function: it is based on data subset to be evaluated and a number as the method returns. Different methods try to find a subset that optimizes the amount. Stopping criterion: it is used to decide when to stop the algorithm. 4- RESULTS The results show that the case study is located in 6 classes increasing sensitivity as the number of class increases. So that the areas located in the South, East, and parts of the West regions are most sensitive to landslide. Motevali et al., (2008) show that using a new method such as LMT can prepare landslide map with low data. So, in the research of geomorphology and geology, feature selection can be used. Rasaie et al (2015) used regression in GIS software to prepare landslide map.  The results showed that using effective parameters of landslide can find landslide map easily and quirkily.   5- CONCLUSIONS AND SUGGESTIONS The results of feature selection method show that the Ranker method with Gain-Ratio-Attribute-Eval, with low error, with highly significant correlation (87.5), and with LMT classification is the best method for the selection of the most effective data to determine landslide. Also, the results indicated that some parts of North and South-East of the study area are located at greater risk of landslide. Also, principal components showed that curvature, profile, plan and SPI were the most important data for determining landslide. In the study, it was attempted to use low data selected by feature selection, and save time and money via determining important data for landslide. Using the data, landslide map was prepared spatially.}, Keywords = {Feature Selection Algorithm, Landslide, Southwest of Iran}, volume = {7}, Number = {1}, pages = {1-25}, publisher = {University of Hormozgan}, url = {http://magazine.hormozgan.ac.ir/article-1-370-en.html}, eprint = {http://magazine.hormozgan.ac.ir/article-1-370-en.pdf}, journal = {Environmental Erosion Research Journal}, issn = {2251-7812}, eissn = {2717-3968}, year = {2017} } @article{ author = {Karami, Parviz and Amiri, Omid and JoneidiJaafari, Hame}, title = {The Effect of Change in Land Use on the indicators of Ecosystem Function and Soil Erosion via Landscape Function Analysis Method (LFA)}, abstract ={1- INTRODUCTION Over the past few decades, the objective of the evaluation and monitoring of the optimal utilization of sustainable natural resource services and ecosystem performance has been the successor to the ecosystem structure. Tongway and Hindley introduced a Landscape Function Analysis (LFA) method in 2004 to evaluate the ecosystem Function. In the new method, soil is considered as the most important element in rangeland ecosystems in order to determine the spectacle function, because the ecosystem status can be determined by examining the changes in the soil surface indexes, and this was possible for the expert to judge the changes brought about by the management and ecological practices of the rangeland.This research was carried out with the aim of evaluating the effect of change of rangeland conversion to farmland and its land use change effect on ecosystem function in rangelands of Navar area in the suburbs of Sanandaj. 2- THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK The importance of soil surface indexes has been expressed by various researchers such as the high correlation between basal cover and disruption of water flow, the importance of canopy size as an indicator of the distribution of soil resources, the effect of plant composition on organic carbon changes, soil permeability, the effect of bare soil on the potential of erosion and the importance of cryptogam cover in soil stabilization. Landscape Performance Analysis (LFA) is a method of monitoring with quantitative indicators. In this method, 11 indicators of soil surface area have been used to evaluate three functional properties including stability, permeability and elemental cycle. 3- METHODOLOGY The study area was divided into two landscapes. Based on the LFA method, three 50-meter transects were deployed in a 10-meter intervals along the slopes. During each transect, the length and width of patches included shrub, grass, forb and combination (combination of all patches and space between pieces (bare soil) were recorded. For each patch and inter-patch, five replicates were determined and for each replication the 11 soil surface parameters were evaluated. The soil surface parameters were evaluated for each ecological patch and inter-patch according to the LFA method. To evaluate three functional properties including stability, permeability and elemental cycle, and calculating 11 soil surface indexes, the LFA guidelines and the LFA software designed in the Excel environment were used. 4- RESULTS The results showed that the total stability index in the rangeland (47.2%) was higher than that of the dryland (24.4%) and their difference was significant (p <0.05). Due to the variety of ecological patches and their number, as well as the irregular and discontinuous pattern of water flow in the rangeland, the stability index in the rangeland was more than the drayland. The results showed that in the rangeland the ecological shrub patche had the highest stability, and in the dryland the combined patch had the highest stability. With regard to stability index, there was a significant difference between the combination of patches with other ecological components and inter patches (bare soil) in dryland, and in the case of rangeland, the shrub patch also yielded a similar result (p <0.05). Regarding permeability index in rangeland and dryland, grass and combined patch had the highest amount, respectively. With regard to nutrient cycle index in the rangeland, grass patch had the highest amount. The combined patch in the dryland had the highest amount of nutritional cycle index. 5- CONCLUSIONS AND SUGGESTIONS In general, the two landscapes have different functions depending on environmental factors and vegetative forms. The presence of independent grass patches in the rangeland (ecological indicator of rangeland) and the presence of a small number of combined patches (3 pieces) and shrub patches in the abandoned dryland (the ecologically indicator of this landscape) are due to the difference in the function of these landscapes. The rangeland has the highest function and the abandoned dryland has the lowest function. It can also be argued that LFA is a simple and fast method for assessing the function of rangeland ecosystems. In fact, saving time and cost of decision-making on management projects will reduce the risk of any operation at natural ecosystems. According to the results, it can be stated that the change in the utilization of the rangeland to dryland has reduced the ecosystem stability index and thus provided the soil surface with more soil erosion. Therefore, we must strictly prevent rangeland conversion to dryland.}, Keywords = {Ecosystem Function, Vegetation and Soil Indices, land use change, Soil Erosion, Kurdistan Province}, volume = {7}, Number = {1}, pages = {20-34}, publisher = {University of Hormozgan}, url = {http://magazine.hormozgan.ac.ir/article-1-295-en.html}, eprint = {http://magazine.hormozgan.ac.ir/article-1-295-en.pdf}, journal = {Environmental Erosion Research Journal}, issn = {2251-7812}, eissn = {2717-3968}, year = {2017} } @article{ author = {koohbanani, Hamidreza and Dashtiamirabad, Jamal and Nikoo, Shima and Taya, Ali}, title = {Desertification-Intensity Zoning through Fuzzy-Logic Approach: A Case Study of Deyhook-Tabas, Iran}, abstract ={Extended abstract 1- INTRODUCTION Destructive phenomenon of desertification is one of the serious ecological crises at the present time. In order to improve efficiency of combating desertification projects and inhibiting destruction of natural resources and our asset, it sounds considerably meaningful to reach a systematic and comprehensive method that can use different criteria and indicators to provide optimal solutions. Traditional models of desertification assessment are based on defined thresholds and limits and in the real nature of ecosystems, there are no boundaries and contractors. So, there is always a level of uncertainty in the phenomena such as desertification mapping.   2- THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK Land degradation assessment strategies are based on experts’ opinions, and usually the evaluation methods based on multi-criterion decision-making models are not concerned in Iran. Until now, clear and uniform procedures for the classification of desertification have not been provided based on desertification processes. In this regard, the identification and evaluation processes, and the identification of current state of desertification intensity are generally among the basic requirements of desert areas. In the present paper, the fuzzy approach, as one of the effective ways to assess desertification, has been used. For this purpose, it should be noted that in fuzzy methods, the thresholds of each class can be reviewed in different management scenarios.   3- METHODOLOGY Some indices of climate, soil and water criteria were selected to be considered for each condition of the region. The samples were collected in homogeneous units in Deyhook basin. The next step was converting layers to fuzzy layers by linear functions of fuzzy membership. Final desertification intensity was calculated based on fuzzy overlaying via gamma operators of the selected criteria and their indices on a scale of zero to one. The numerical value was reclassified into 4 levels including low, medium, severe and very severe, and the desertification intensity map was drawn using GIS in the studied period. For the vegetation and precipitation indices, the decreasing fuzzy function, and for the others, the increasing fuzzy function were used.   4- RESULTS According to the results, among the studied areas, approximately 14.5% of the area was very severely degraded and 3.5 percent was in the intensity of severe class. Most of the basin was allocated to the moderate intensity of desertification class and if the current trends continued increasing desertification, it would be under more severe desertification risk. It is important that severely and very severely degraded areas have the largest population centers. In fact, these areas are located mainly in rural areas, and it seems that the population pressure makes an improper use of surface and underground water resources. According to the results, 81 percent of the basin, sodium adsorption ratio is higher than 32. Aside from sodium ion toxicity effects on plants, along with increasing SAR, available water for plants is reduced subsequently. According to the results of the current study, 91 percent of the basin Deyhook, EC soil is more than 17 dS m. High salt levels lead to plant growth reduction and biomass loss.   5- CONCLUSIONS AND SUGGESTIONS The strength of fuzzy method is that the indices map and the final map of desertification have a dynamic and continuous nature, and therefore, the intensity class boundaries can be changed according to the user requirements in various management and land reclamation scenarios. Given that environmental restrictions in the basin Deyhook are very intense, so changes in the cropping pattern, dependent reduction in livestock pastures, reduction of human dependence on nature and the use of varieties resistant to drought and salinity are among the cases that can be offered to slow the desertification Deyhook basin. It is recommended in the mentioned basin that halophytes species and tolerant species such as Salsola and Atriplex be utilized in agricultural and rangeland management plans.}, Keywords = {Zoning, desertification, fuzzy logic, linear membership function, Gis}, volume = {7}, Number = {1}, pages = {35-49}, publisher = {University of Hormozgan}, url = {http://magazine.hormozgan.ac.ir/article-1-322-en.html}, eprint = {http://magazine.hormozgan.ac.ir/article-1-322-en.pdf}, journal = {Environmental Erosion Research Journal}, issn = {2251-7812}, eissn = {2717-3968}, year = {2017} } @article{ author = {Abdollahzadeh, Gholamhossien and Farahi, Nadia and Sharifzadeh, Mohammad Sharif}, title = {Factors Affecting the Adoption of Conservation Measures in Soil Erosion Control: A Case of Orchard Lands of Chehel-Chay Watershed}, abstract ={1- INTRODUCTION Soil as one of the most important inputs in agricultural production process plays an important role in the quality of production operation, food security and sustainable development. On the other hand, soil erosion as one of the environmental agriculture issues has been intensified with increasing population and transforming to intensive forms of agriculture in recent years. Minodasht County in Golestan province of Iran is faced daily with the phenomenon of erosion which contributes to weakening agro-silvo-pastoral production. According to many previous investigations, soil degradation is one of the basic problems facing villages within Minodasht County in their efforts to increase production and reduce poverty and food insecurity. In order to avoid or mitigate these detrimental environmental effects, a number of conservation measures can be undertaken by farmers. Hence, the purpose of this study was to investigate factors affecting the adoption of soil conservation practices in horticulture lands of Chehel-Chai watershed basin. 2- THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK There are three groups of adoption models: (i) the innovation-diffusion model, (ii) the economic constraints model, and (iii) user-technique characteristics model. The third group is of interest to us principally because of the difficulties involved in collecting data for the first two, and because of our working hypotheses. According to this model, the characteristics of the technique, within the institutional and socio-economic context of production, play a central role in the adoption process. In the same way, it takes into consideration the diversity of activities having an influence on adoption. Moreover, this user-technique model integrates the perception of the individual, which has rarely been studied. 3- METHODOLOGY The target population of this research consisted of 623 fruit growers of Chehel-Chai watershed, out of which 241 samples were selected through cluster sampling from 12 villages. Chehel-Chai watershed is characterized by a high degree of soil degradation and common practices of soil conservation, i.e. the use of strip crops and crop rotation. The data were collected via questionnaire whose validity was confirmed by some experts’ comments, and also its reliability was confirmed through calculating Cronbach Alpha for perception items of benefits (0.78) and cost using of soil conservation measures. The data collected through survey were processed using Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) and Eviews. 4- RESULTS The results showed that 53.5 percent of the respondents stated that their garden needs urgent soil conservation measures, while only 37.8 percent of respondents using one of the soil conservation methods among which permanent soil cover by simultaneous cultivation and strip cropping were the main conservation methods that are mostly used. The results showed that 48.1 percent had little awareness regarding the soil conservation methods. Among the items related to benefits of conservation agriculture, the items such as, increase soil fertility and reduce runoff pollution were more important, and the items related to cost of soil conservation such as high risk of new methods and increasing labor costs have a higher priority. The results of running logit model showed that agricultural experience, age, and perceived costs of conservational agriculture have a negative impact while the variables frequency of flooding, awareness of soil conservation methods, using soil tests in the garden, existence of soil erosion, area of slop land, land size and income have a positive and significant impact on the adoption of soil conservation methods. 5- CONCLUSIONS AND SUGGESTIONS Soil degradation due to erosion in the study area was increased which led to a significant decrease in land performance and that is why the respondents had a great desire to the adoption of soil conservation measures. The combination of individual variables, farm level, perception of costs and benefits of conservational agriculture, and knowledge and awareness of soil erosion influences the adoption soil conservation methods. These components must be considered in the design of extension programs to increase the effectiveness of this program to encourage the adoption and use of conservation methods.  }, Keywords = {Soil erosion, soil conservation, adoption, Chehel-Chay watershed}, volume = {7}, Number = {1}, pages = {50-68}, publisher = {University of Hormozgan}, url = {http://magazine.hormozgan.ac.ir/article-1-339-en.html}, eprint = {http://magazine.hormozgan.ac.ir/article-1-339-en.pdf}, journal = {Environmental Erosion Research Journal}, issn = {2251-7812}, eissn = {2717-3968}, year = {2017} } @article{ author = {}, title = {Modeling the Potential of Gully Erosion Occurrence Applying Shannon Entropy and Statistical Index Models in Seymareh Region}, abstract ={1- Introduction The gully erosion occurrence, due to the high rate of sediment production in the watershed, is one of the problems of natural resources management in the context of soil management and protection. It is known as an important signature of land degradation and forming as well as a source of sediment in a range of environments. Gully erosion often has severe environmental and economic ramifications worldwide such as destroying soil, damaging agricultural fields, undermining infrastructure, altering transportation corridors, and degrading surface water quality, which can be difficult to reverse. In this study, the potential of gully erosion occurrence was evaluated using Shannon entropy and statistical index models in the Seymareh region of Lorestan province. Firstly, digital layers of gully conditioning factors including altitude, lithology, slope angle, slope aspect, land use, distance from river, soil, topographic wetness index and stream power index were produced using ArcGIS 10.2. In modeling the gully erosion occurrence, the mentioned factors were regarded as independent variables and gully erosion occurrence was considered as dependent variable, whose interrelations will be determined based on Statistical Index and Shannon's entropy models.   2- Methodology Initially, a gully erosion inventory was prepared through a field survey. An inventory of 100 gullies was randomly divided into training group (70 %) and validation group (30 %). The weight of each conditioning factor was determined through the probability analysis of Statistical Index and Shannon's entropy models. The weights of gully conditioning factors were specified in each model based on the frequency and density of gullies. These weights were associated to each class of conditioning factors in GIS environment. Then, the map of gully-prone areas was produced using both models. Subsequently, the produced maps were validated using receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve method and validation group. The area under this curve (AUC) was calculated for the quantitative comparison of models performances. Finally, the gully erosion potential values were reclassified into four levels, including ‘low’, ‘medium’, ‘high’, and ‘very high’ susceptibility, using the natural breaks.      3- Results The results showed that the generated maps based on Statistical Index and Shannon's entropy models have the prediction accuracy rate of 77.3 % and 79.8 %, respectively, implying that these models are capable of detecting gully-erosion-prone areas. In addition, according to the Shannon entropy results, lithology, elevation, and land use were represented as having significant effects on the gully erosion occurrences. Visually, the highest gully erosion susceptibility of the Seymareh region was located on the center, eastern and western parts of the study area where the lithology and land use are Quaternary deposits and agriculture, respectively. From a geomorphological point of view, the areas with gentle slopes, located in high TWI and near the streams show a high gully erosion susceptibility. 4- Discussion and Conclusions These models exhibited acceptable cases of accuracy for the area under study, indicating that they are highly appropriate for gully erosion susceptibility mapping. This study, not only analyzed the relationship between the gully erosion inventory and geo-environmental variables, but also illustrated susceptibility to gully erosion based on statistical analysis of conditional probability technique. Determining the susceptibility level of different regions in terms of gully erosion occurrence in order to measure the soil erosion protection is necessary, which was provided in the current study. The results of the study can provide useful information to understand gully erosion mechanisms and scientific policy-planning and decision-making in the semi-arid regions. }, Keywords = {management and protection of soil, validation, geo-environmental variables, spatial prediction}, volume = {7}, Number = {1}, pages = {69-89}, publisher = {University of Hormozgan}, url = {http://magazine.hormozgan.ac.ir/article-1-373-en.html}, eprint = {http://magazine.hormozgan.ac.ir/article-1-373-en.pdf}, journal = {Environmental Erosion Research Journal}, issn = {2251-7812}, eissn = {2717-3968}, year = {2017} } @article{ author = {Mohamadi, Sedigheh}, title = {The efficiency of Artificial Neural Network, Neuro-Fuzzy and Multivariate Regression models for runoff and erosion simulation using rainfall simulator}, abstract ={1- INTRODUCTION According to the complexity of environmental factors related to erosion and runoff, correct simulation of these variables find importance under rain intensity domain of watershed areas.  Although modeling of erosion and runoff by Artificial Neural Network and Neuro-Fuzzy based on rainfall-runoff and discharge-sediment models were widely applied by researchers, scrutinizing Artificial Neural Network and Neuro-Fuzzy models based on environmental factors has been paid less attention.  Therefore, this study aimed at determining the efficiency of different models including Artificial Neural Network, Neuro-Fuzzy and Multivariate Regression for runoff and erosion simulation using rainfall simulator in some catchments of the North-West of Iran selected in terms of the same rain intensity of half an hour with a 10-year return. 2- THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK Modeling runoff and erosion relations with environmental factors under prevelant rainfall intensity in a watershed scale are considered as the novel aspect of recognition of these complex relations. In this regard, implementation of determined rainfall intensity in a watershed scale is needed in the utilization of rainfall simulator apparatus. Also, the complexity of runoff and erosion relations with the environmental factors is the reason for the application of different models including Artificial Neural Network, Neuro-Fuzzy and Multivariate Regression. In fact Artificial Neural Network models are able to recognize the complex and unknown relations based on working as human brain. The simulation by these models finds importance when these relation have a non-linear feature. Parallel and Distributive processing of information and interpolation ability are major properties of Artificial Neural Network and Neuro-Fuzzy models characterized in the utilization of these models in the correct simulation of complex relations. 3- METHODOLOGY The establishment of rainfall simulator conducted at 86 sites and 21 environmental variables (the characteristics of topography, pedology, vegetation and species diversity) were used as inputs to models. In this regard, Topographic characteristics (including elevation, slope and …) of established sites of rainfall simulator apparatus were first recorded. Then sampling of soil was done from 4 corners of each site and compounded in order to eliminate soil heterogenic effects. After providing one soil sample from each site, all samples were sent to soil laboratory for measurement and analysis of different pedology properties including soil organic matter, total nitrogenous, absorbable phosphorus, available potassium, pH, electrical conductivity, soil moisture, calcareous content, gypsum content, Ca cation, Na cation, soil texture, distribution of clay, silt and sand percentage of soil. Also, vegetation characteristics including canopy cover, pavement and stone percentage and species abundance of each site was investigated in plot of simulator apparatus. Abundance parameter of species in each site was used for determining different species diversity indices (including species number, Simpson, Shannon-wiener and dominance indices) in PAST software package. Implementation of determined rainfall intensity of each site by simulator apparatus was finally performed for the measurement of runoff and erosion variable. Analysis of data was done through Multivariate Regression in SPSS software package, simulation via Artificial Neural Network (multi - layer perceptron and radial basis function methods), and Neuro-Fuzzy models was performed via MATLAB software package. Model validation conducted on 18 percent of the data based on Root of Mean Square Error, Nash–Sutcliffe Efficiency and Mean Absolute Error indices. 4- RESULTS The results of Multivariate Regression model of this research showed that variables such as soil moisture, absorbable phosphorus, canopy cover percentage and soil sand percentage caused for runoff content and variables as calcareous content, total nitrogenous, canopy cover percentage, soil organic carbon and land slope determined erosion variable. In this regard, Multivariate Regression model was able to explain 68% and 46 % of changes in the runoff and soil erosion variables and its efficacy was lower in the simulation. As a result, Radial Basis Function neural network model compared with Multi Layer Perceptron as well as Neuro-Fuzzy model with scenarios of cluster (hybrid procedure) compared to grid method was able to predict more accurately. As indicators of RMSE, MAE and NSE were gained on optimum model of neural networks of 0.135, 0.114 and 0.99 for runoff volume, 0.011, 0.009 and 0.98 for the erosion and on optimum model of neuro-fuzzy models of 0.132, 0.111 and 0.92 for the volume of runoff and 0.013, 0.011 and 0.98 for the erosion, respectively. 5- CONCLUSIONS AND SUGGESTIONS In general, it can be concluded that according to the presence of the complex environmental relations of erosion and runoff variables, Artificial Neural Network model with Radial Basis Function method  and Neuro-Fuzzy model with scenarios of cluster (hybrid procedure)  are recommended to be simulated based on ecological factors.  }, Keywords = {Multi Layer Perceptron, Radial Basis Function, Neuro-Fuzzy, rainfall simulator}, volume = {7}, Number = {1}, pages = {90-113}, publisher = {University of Hormozgan}, url = {http://magazine.hormozgan.ac.ir/article-1-332-en.html}, eprint = {http://magazine.hormozgan.ac.ir/article-1-332-en.pdf}, journal = {Environmental Erosion Research Journal}, issn = {2251-7812}, eissn = {2717-3968}, year = {2017} } @article{ author = {moradzadeh, fardin and Hosseini, Ataollah and abdie, ehsan and Kavian, Ataollah}, title = {Evaluating the Impact of Road Longitudinal Slope Angle in Forest Roads (Main Access and Main Roads) on Runoff and Soil Loss. (Case Study: Gardeshi District, Mazandaran)}, abstract ={Extended abstract 1- Introduction     Forest is a sustainable ecosystem with a high balance, and is characterized by non-eroded soils and sediment-free water. Forest roads serve as the largest construction activities and a component added to the forests which are required for the accessibility to forests and forest resources, logging, transportation, conservation, tourism, etc. However, these changes in the dynamic environment of forest structure cause many disruptions in the natural behaviors of environmental factors affecting the forest structure. Roads create surfaces without vegetation which can serve as a starting point for runoff, disrupting and diverting the natural flow and sudden accumulation of water, diverting the natural down-slope drainage route, accumulation of water and transmitting it to other sub-basins, changing the runoff pattern and carrying deposits due to the increased water velocity and ultimately the destruction of the forest. Studies have shown that forest roads are among the main sources of sediment transport into rivers, and approximately 90% of the sediment coming from a forested area into rivers originates from forest roads. Increased sediment transport into rivers can cause irreparable damages to water quality, ecosystems and aquatic organisms. Therefore, forest road experts should consider not only the road construction costs but also the environmental damages caused by the road operation. 2- Methodology     Among the challenges for forest managers is the accurate design and construction of forest roads with required standards and minimum possible costs. Ignoring these defined measures and standards will result in the financial and environmental damages. One of the most important standards for road construction is road longitudinal slope angle. Determining the relationship between road longitudinal slope angle with runoff amount and the volume of produced sediment helps to manage the road network for constructing new roads in accordance with the standards, to define new standards, and to predict the maintenance of roads.     This research aims at evaluating the impact of road longitudinal slope angle in the forest roads (Main Access and Main Roads) of Gardeshi district (Sari, Mazandaran Province) on runoff and soil loss through applying simulation techniques and artificial rainfall simulator in a completely randomized design on 1 m2 plots with 4 replicates in 3 slope classes in each road. Then, sediment and runoff during rainfall simulation performed with a constant intensity of 60 mm h-1 was measured for 30 minutes in each slope class. The district was selected so that the other parameters such as road surface area, traffic, and rainfall were fixed, and only the effect of road longitudinal slope angle on runoff and sediment was addressed.   3- Results     Results showed the average produced runoff, runoff coefficient and sediment concentration in slope classes of 1 (3 – 5%), 2 (5 – 8%) and 3 (more than 8%) on grade 1 road. The runoff volumes were 15.9, 17, and 18.78 L m2, with the corresponding runoff coefficients of 53%, 56.66%, and 62.58% and soil loss values of 6.12, 9.05, and 12.38 g L-1, respectively. Results also showed the average produced runoff, runoff coefficient and sediment concentration in slope classes of 1 (0-3%), 2 (3-6%) and 3 (6-9%) on grade 2 road. The runoff volumes were 19.92, 21.25, and 22.8 L m2, with the corresponding runoff coefficients of 66.41%, 70.83%, and 76% and soil loss values of 8.51, 10.17, and 16.82 g L-1, respectively.  Results of ANOVA showed a significant difference between the amount of runoff and sediment in road slope classes. The results of Tukey test indicated that runoff and sediment significantly increased with an increase in the slope. Results of Independent t-test showed that the mean values of runoff volume, runoff coefficient and sediment concentration were 23.33 L, 71% and 11.84 g per liter in the grade 2 road compared to 17.23 L, 57% and 9.18 g per liter in the grade 1 road. According to the F (0.85) and P (< 0.05) values, there was a significant difference in terms of the runoff and the coefficient between the two types of roads. Moreover, according to the F (0.85) and P (< 0.05) values, there was no significant difference in terms of sediment concentration between the two types of roads. 4- Discussion & Conclusions     It can be concluded that road longitudinal slope angle is one of the most important factors determining the amount of runoff and sediment on the road, so that the amount of runoff and sediment will increase with an increase in the slope, which should be considered according to the location of road.}, Keywords = {rain simulator, forest roads, Gardeshi district, sediment, runoff, road longitudinal slope angle }, volume = {7}, Number = {1}, pages = {114-126}, publisher = {University of Hormozgan}, url = {http://magazine.hormozgan.ac.ir/article-1-399-en.html}, eprint = {http://magazine.hormozgan.ac.ir/article-1-399-en.pdf}, journal = {Environmental Erosion Research Journal}, issn = {2251-7812}, eissn = {2717-3968}, year = {2017} } @article{ author = {Jafari, Hassan and Avaji, mi}, title = {Reconstruction Glacier Circus in volcanic craters (Case study Kurdistan Qorveh)}, abstract ={Extended abstract Introduction The attention of forefront foreign researchers has focused on glacier circus. Glacial cirque is the most important pattern of glacial erosion. Deep depressions with steep walls, flat floor or low slope, half-bowl shaped (crescent shaped) are created at high altitudes in the mountains margin by the erosion of mountain glacier (Ahmadi, Feiznia, 2012). The form of circus is a reflection of topography, geology, type and duration of glaciers (Derruau 1990). Distribution of circus and glaciers with different dimensions in particular mountain range depends not only on the topography of the mountain, but also on the slope direction (the sun) and the wind (Motamed (2003). The morphological effects of Quaternary glacial in Iran had been known, at least from the late 19th century (Jedari Eivazi, 2011). There is no comprehensive study about different shapes of the circus like land forms which have been created by lithology, direction and an amount of slope and territorial levels. The study area lies on the political sphere of three provinces of Kurdistan, Kermanshah and Hamadan between 34.752 to 35.223 latitudes (northern degrees) and 47.411 to 47.416 longitude (eastern degrees).  In the study area, 52 circuses were identified, 20 of which belong to the north-northeast slopes, and the rest have been located in the south-southwest slopes. Initially, north-eastern and south-western slopes of Qorveh's mountainous region were divided based on the Wright method. An altitude, which 60% of circuses were higher than it, was considered as the permanent snow line altitude after identifying and counting the circus area according to the curved lines form and they were sorted in a descending order. The snow line altitude was estimated as 2,200 meters in the study area, and the snow line altitude difference in the northern and southern slopes was negligible. Circuses were divided into three categories due to the differences in the appearance (valley circus, domain circus, crater circus). The difference between valley circus and crater circus is that the valley circuses are extended along the foothills by the very small circus floor, long and narrow valley, while the crater circus is perfectly circular, wide and is surrounded by steep mountains. This kind of circus in southern slopes have extended in narrow and long valley along the foothills; on the other hand, in the northern slopes, they extended in wide valleys with no clear boundaries with ther neighboring lowlands. Domain circus was considered as an indicator to evaluate the characteristics of the study area's circuses. 2- Methodology Qorveh, Asadabad, Chenar Sofla, Kamshgran, Bolbolan Abad, Satre, Sonqor and Kangavar 1: 50,000 Topographic maps (Figure 2) and satellite images are among the investigated documents. Slopes of the snow line altitude was examined due to the impact of the slope direction on the permanent snow line altitude, because the effect of the slope direction on the solar altitude angle and precipitation is reflected in the land forms. According to the slope direction and the amount of it in the circus basins, the differences in circus features were explained. In this regard, the amount of avalanche of fertility or feeding in association with the amount of directon were used. 3- Results The results show that the effect of land slope direction has reflected in circus morphology rather than in the snow line altitude. This means in both northern and southern slopes, the crater-like land forms have caused concentration of glaciers in early drill, and the ice circus had little role in the development of their own. The slope of the land has completely destroyed the wall of early plains craters in the northern slopes, and the circuses are associated with lowlands by the wide open valley. In the southern slopes, circuses are connected with the surrounding area by long and narrow valley, and have maintained their crater-like forms more than the northern slopes. 4- Discussion and Conclusions The mountain peaks around the circus are almost all in the same height range, higher than 2800 meters, and connected with circular circus floor with the diameter of more than 4 km, and the valley width of less than 500 m. Such features in the form of main circus in the area refer to the existence of multiple crater forms in Quaternary in cold periods, and have provided fertile ground for the snow driven by the wind and avalanche. These features have influenced the scattering of circuses, in such a way that the dominant aspect of Qorveh mountain range had little impact on the Quaternary permanent snow line altitude. However, the direction affects the permanent snow line and the shape of the circus. The direction has effects not only on the snow line altitude, but also on the shapes of the circus in the study area. The difference between the snow line altitude in the northeastern slopes, which have better feeding situation, and the snow line altitude in the southwestern slopes is not noticeable due to the impact of the direction. Based on Chorly et al. (2007), Mo'ayyeri et al. (2011), Ramesht and Shoshtari (2004) and Talebi’s (2002) findings, the northeast direction is the best direction to form a glacial cirque. The difference in the feeding or melting status of the glacier in the Qorveh mountainous area is not reflected in the permanent snow line, rather its reflection is evident in the shape of land forms resulting from the external processes.}, Keywords = { Circus, Glacier, Craters, Volcanoes, Quaternary.}, volume = {7}, Number = {2}, pages = {1-15}, publisher = {University of Hormozgan}, url = {http://magazine.hormozgan.ac.ir/article-1-290-en.html}, eprint = {http://magazine.hormozgan.ac.ir/article-1-290-en.pdf}, journal = {Environmental Erosion Research Journal}, issn = {2251-7812}, eissn = {2717-3968}, year = {2017} } @article{ author = {Akbari, Maryam and Bashiri, Mehdi and Rangavar, Abdossaleh}, title = {Application of Data-Mining Algorithms in the Sensitivity Analysis and Zoning of Areas Prone to Gully Erosion in the Indicator Watersheds of Khorasan Razavi Province}, abstract ={Extended abstract 1- Introduction Gully erosion is one of the most important sources of sediment in the watersheds and a common phenomenon in semi-arid climate that affects vast areas with different morphological, soil and climatic conditions. This type of erosion is very dangerous due to the transfer of fertile soil horizons, and the reduction of water holding capacity also is a factor for soil instability and erosion creating problems for the functioning of agricultural machines. Hence, the identification of effective factors in the formation and development of gully, plays an important role in the watershed management and prevention of land degradation in the direction of sustainable development. There are few studies regarding the application of different data mining methods to determine the effective variables in the occurrence of gullies and most studies are based on the other statistical methods. Data mining is called as knowledge discovery in databases and is a way to discover new and potential beneficial information through lots of information. Some of the most important data mining algorithms include the decision tree, random forest, boosting aggregate demand, support vector machine, logistic regression and neural network algorithms. Given that the data mining extracts useful information from large volumes of data and has shown a good performance, therefore, the aim of the present study is the prioritization of environmental factors affecting the occurrence of gully erosion including the altitude, slope, aspect, climate, land use, land capability, lithology, flood zones, evaporation, rainfall, temperature, distance from road, distance from fault, distance from river, topographic wetness index, sediment transport index and stream power index using data mining algorithms and zoning its sensitivity using bivariate statistical models of information value and area density in five Shekarkalat, Qarehtikan, Komajkhoore Dargaz, Sabzevar Kaloots and Mooshak-Kashmar watersheds in the Khorasan Razavi province. 2- Methodology The present study aimed at investigating the factors affecting the occurrence of gully erosion and its zoning in the five Shekarkalat, Qarehtikan, Komajkhoore Dargaz, Sabzevar Kaloots and Mooshak-Kashmar watersheds in the Khorasan-Razavi province. Within these five watersheds, 15 representative gullies were selected and subsequently, the distribution map of gullies in these watersheds were prepared. Then, each of the factors affecting the occurrence of gully erosion in the study areas consisting of 17 information layers including altitude, slope, aspect, climate, land use, land capability, lithology, flood zones, evaporation, rainfall, temperature, distance from road, distance from fault, distance from river, topographic wetness index, sediment transport index and stream power index were prepared and digitized using the ArcGIS10.3 software. By using data mining algorithms in the R software, the factors affecting the gully formation were introduced. Finally, the gully erosion hazard zonation in the GIS was done using bivariate statistical models. 3- Results The results of data mining algorithms showed that the distance from road, lithology, slope, aspect, stream power index, sediment transport index and topographic wetness index variables were the most important factors in the occurrence of gully erosion. According to the obtained zoning map and also the weight of  classes for each parameter, the slope between 0 to 5 degrees, the northeast and southeast directions, a distance more than 2000 m from roads, glauconite sandstone class in the lithology layer and classes with high levels of the secondary topographic indicators had the highest weight and effect on the occurrence of gully erosion in the study areas. The evaluation results of the zoning map using the information value and area density methods based on the weighted quantitative amounts showed that in the information value method, 98.08 % and 1.92% of the gullies were located at the medium and high hazard zones, respectively and in the area density method, 100% of the gullies were located at the very low hazard zone. The results indicated that the areas prone to gully erosion were not detected in high accuracy but the information value method was more favorable than the density area method. 4- Discussion and Conclusions According to the results of this research, the distance from road, lithology, slope, aspect, stream power index, sediment transport index and topographic wetness index variables considered as the most important factors in the occurrence of gully erosion. Although the factors such as lithology, slope, aspect and the secondary topographic indicators (topographic wetness index, sediment transport index and stream power index), which were identified as the most important factors influencing the development of gully in this research, were classified as natural factors, they could be influenced by human factors. Therefore, the sensitivity of the lithological units should well noted. Also, controlling the stream flows, implementing of management plans especially in low slopes and vegetation regeneration, which increase the surface roughness coefficient and decrease the runoff velocity and ultimately control the gully erosion, is essential. In case of zoning with the two methods of information value and area density, it follows that the information value method is more appropriate than the area density method.}, Keywords = {Area Density, Data Mining, Hazard Zonation, Information Value, Water Erosion}, volume = {7}, Number = {2}, pages = {16-42}, publisher = {University of Hormozgan}, url = {http://magazine.hormozgan.ac.ir/article-1-387-en.html}, eprint = {http://magazine.hormozgan.ac.ir/article-1-387-en.pdf}, journal = {Environmental Erosion Research Journal}, issn = {2251-7812}, eissn = {2717-3968}, year = {2017} } @article{ author = {Khoshakhlagh, Faramrz and Moradimoghadam, Mohamadamin and Mohamadi, hossein and Mahoutchi, Mohamadhass}, title = {Assessing the Effects of Global Warming on the Areas Susceptible to Wind Erosion in the West of Central Plains and the East of Central Zagros Mountains of Iran}, abstract ={Extended abstract     1- Introduction     Climate change is one of the problems human is facing today, and most of the scientific societies know that it is rooted in the distribution of greenhouse gases. Distribution of greenhouse gases with large volumes and in large spans has been affecting the energy budget and consequently has caused earth rapid temperature increase during the last decades. On the other hand, such a growth of world means temperature has changed the amount, type and spatiotemporal pattern of precipitation and it is forecasted that it will affect the hydrological cycle in the future decades, severely. Different Changes of moisture and thermal components as inputs for the organized systems of nature means that (under present condition which can be called rapid change era) we should wait for the consequences of irreversible human manipulations on the nature. The damages caused by wind erosion on the environment, health and economy are vast. These damages occur at the removal place and also at the places where the particles of soil deposit. Wind erosion entails the loss of soil fertility, the damage to infrastructure and railway lines, the limitation of the life of plant and animal species, the occurrence of severe dust storms and air quality fall, increase in respiratory problems and illnesses, and desertification. Several factors contribute to the erosion of the soil by the wind. For example, to determine the severity of wind erosion in the IRIFR model, 9 different factors are used. The Raizal model, which is a software program, determines the amount of soil erosion in terms of the physical condition of the land, including the soil, climate, and region. A point among all the wind erosion models is that the climate factors are the most effective factors in creating wind erosion. Wind erosion is one of the most important factors in soil erosion in the arid and semi-arid regions. Iran, due to its location in the arid and semi-arid belt of the Earth, is one of the areas that exposed to wind erosion. Most of the researches on wind erosion in Iran have been in the central and desert regions of Iran, whereas other parts of Iran also affected by this phenomenon. One aspect of the climate change includes the changes in soil erosion susceptibility from the wind. If the climate becomes dry, the wind erosion will increase. This study investigated the effects of global warming on the soil erosion caused by the wind in the West Central Plains and the East central Zagros mountains of Iran.   2- Methodology    Wind erosion is a process where soil particles detached from the surface and moved by the wind. Several factors contribute to the creation of wind erodibility including lithology, topography, climate, land use and vegetation. Climate conditions among these factors is the most effective one due to the fact that the climate conditions influence the other factors such as land use, vegetation, and even the surface layers of lithology and topography in the long term. This article focused on climatic aspect of influencing factors on the soil wind erodibility.    The study area was limited to Khoramabad (48.17 E, 33.26 N), Kashan (51.27 E, 33.59 N), Yazd (54.17 E, 31.54 N) and Yasuj (51.41 E, 3050 N) contexts. Louis Peltier, using two climate indices, i.e. rainfall and temperature, determines the susceptibility of the soil erosion by the wind. For the zoning of the areas susceptible to the wind erosion, Louis Peltier's model used. In order to choose a suitable model for predicting the temperature and precipitation values under the effects of global warming‌, MAGICC SCENGEN model used. This composite model used for evaluating the climate change due to the greenhouse gases.     3-Results    The results showed that in the regions of the West Central plains of Iran in the current period which had low rainfall and relatively high temperature, the wind plays an important role in the soil erosion. According to Peltier's classification, wind erosion is severe in these areas. While passing through these areas to the eastern slopes of the central Zagros Mountains, the rate of wind erosion reduced. In these areas, the wind erosion is moderate. In the highlands of the Zagros Mountains, undergoing low temperature and relatively high rainfall, the wind has very little role in the erosion of the soil. The results also showed that due to global warming, the areas with severe wind erosion would expand.   4- Discussion and Conclusion    Because Iran is located in the arid and semi-arid belt of the Earth, it can regarded as one of the areas susceptible to wind erosion. This study indicated that the climate factors, the most important of which are temperature and rainfall, have created the conditions for wind erosion in Iran. Wind erosion is so severe in the large parts of the study area. Only in the highlands of the Zagros Mountains, due to higher rainfalls and lower temperatures and thus maintaining the soil moisture, the wind cannot cause soil erosion. This study showed that global warming could play a major role in the development of the regions where the wind erosion is severe. Hence, in land use and infrastructure planning, the type of the wind erosion in the current period as well as in the future periods must take into account.  }, Keywords = {Central plain, Zagros Mountains, Global Warming, Peltier's model, Wind Erosion}, volume = {7}, Number = {2}, pages = {43-58}, publisher = {University of Hormozgan}, url = {http://magazine.hormozgan.ac.ir/article-1-390-en.html}, eprint = {http://magazine.hormozgan.ac.ir/article-1-390-en.pdf}, journal = {Environmental Erosion Research Journal}, issn = {2251-7812}, eissn = {2717-3968}, year = {2017} } @article{ author = {Khazaei, majid and Nohegar, ahmad and Mahdavi, rasol and Telvari, abdrasol}, title = {Investigating the Banks Sensitive to Erosion with an Emphasis on Geological, Geometric, and Hydraulic Characteristics: A Case Study of Bashar River}, abstract ={Extended abstract Introduction The vital need for river management is understood and predicts bank erosion processes. River bank erosion is one of the sediment major sources for many rivers across the world. Bank erosion is a key process in fluvial dynamics, affecting a wide range of physical, ecological and socio-economic issues in the fluvial environment. These include the establishment and evolution of river and floodplain morphology and their associated habitats, turbidity problems, sediment, nutrient and contaminant dynamics, loss of riparian lands, and associated threats to flood defense and transportation infrastructure. Moreover, recent studies have shown that the contribution of bank-derived sediments to catchment sediment budgets may be higher than what previously thought. The study of the factors influencing Bank Geomorphology and Erosion requires basic information on geological, hydraulic and geometric characteristics. Therefore, the main aim of this paper is to study the stream banks susceptible to bank erosion in Bashar River.   Methodology   2-1- Geometry and Morphology of Beshar River  In order to understand the mechanism of the lateral erosion, the morphology of the Bashar River was identified through digitizing the Landsat satellite image in the ENVI software. After making necessary corrections, the geometric properties and the river morphological parameters were determined in the AutoCAD software. The most important indicators used in this study included the central angle of the grunge, the bending coefficient, relative radius and Meandander width and length. To calculate each of the indicators, refer to the guide for river morphological studies.   2-2-Geology of Beshar River: In order to study the geological condition of the  Beshar river, the geology map of Bashar watershed was prepared using a map of 1/400,000 Geological organization; then the map of Bashar's main river was overlapped with the geological formations map and the geological map of the river was extracted.   2-3- Shear Stress The reach of Beshar river with a length of 10-km was selected and the hydraulic, morphologic and geologic characteristics were studied. Then, the critical shear stress was computed using the empirical relations based on the soil parameters.   2-3-1- Near-Bank Shear Stress In order to determine the erosion reaches of Beshar river, shear stress coefficient was used which was calculated according to the ratio of the curvature radius to the river's width.   2-3-2-Total Shear Stress Shear Stress (t) is a measure of the force of friction from a fluid acting on a body in the path of that fluid. In the case of open channel flow, it is the force of moving water against the bed of the channel. Shear stress is calculated as: 2-3-2- Critical Shear Stress   2-3-3-Relative Bed Stability Index   3- Results The results showed that Bashar river has more than 100 large and small meander. Curvature coefficient in reach located in the kilometers of 7-14 and 75-85, is equal to 1.4. Critical shear stress index indicated that the reach of Beshar river located in 10km is instable (τc> τ and RBS< 1 and FS<1). The results showed that the shear stresses calculated for the east, west and bed cross-sections are instable (facror safety<1). Also, the rate of bed stability index is less than one in most sections. The results inicated that the shear stresses calculated for the cross sections are more than thershold amount. The average shear stress on the eastern and western banks are 8.85 and 14.87 kg / m2, respectively Whereas Permissible shear stresses average in the eastern and western banks are 61.93 and 61.76 kg / m2, respectively. Therefore, shear stress average of the river bank is less than the Permissible shear stress average. Also, the shear stress average of the river bed is equal to 17.44 kg / m2 and the bed Permissible shear stress mean of river bed is 78.17 kg / m2. Therefore, the average shear stress tolerance is lower than the shear stress average on the bed. 4- Discussion and Conclusions Results indicated that the reach of Beshar River, crossing the silt formations, has a high level of sensitivity to erosion bank. More than 50 km of the Beshar River crosses Asmari formation. The long length of Beshar River contains alluvial sediments, which is located on Asmari formation. The effect of shear stress on the cross-sections of Beshar River indicated that the shear stresses on the riverbed and bank are more than the Permissible shear stress. Also, the bed stability index is less than one, which indicates the instability of Beshar River in the selected reach, which is in line with the findings of Ghaffari et al (2006), who reached similar results in terms of Babol River. On the outer side, the amount of shear stress in the river bank is less than the main channel, so that in the river meanders, the amount of shear stress and the amount of bank erosion increased.}, Keywords = {Bashar River Erosion, Morphology, Safety Factor, Sheer stress}, volume = {7}, Number = {2}, pages = {59-77}, publisher = {University of Hormozgan}, url = {http://magazine.hormozgan.ac.ir/article-1-285-en.html}, eprint = {http://magazine.hormozgan.ac.ir/article-1-285-en.pdf}, journal = {Environmental Erosion Research Journal}, issn = {2251-7812}, eissn = {2717-3968}, year = {2017} } @article{ author = {Lahijanzadeh, Ahmadreza and Zarasvandi, Alireza and Shoaei, Ziauddin and Heidari, Majid and Jalali, Sedigheh and Fereydouni, Zahr}, title = {Spatio-Temporal, Mineralogy and Micro-Morphology of Dust Occurrences and Centers with Internal Sources in the Khouzestan Province}, abstract ={Extended abstract 1- Introduction Dust occurrences as natural events are common in arid, semi-arid and desert areas. Investigation of the dust with internal sources in the Khuzestan province including about 15 percent of the dust events coming to the region and the presence of the annual average of 50 times of the internal dust (with the concentration maximum of PM10 particles more than 8000ppm in Khuzestan) is very important. Recently, air pollution due to the occurrence of dust is one of the worst environmental problems in the western and southwestern Iran, especially the Khouzestan province. Dust mineralogy is an important factor in source identification of the particles. In this way, frequency, distribution, mineralogy and morphology of the internal dust and so the depositional centers susceptible to dust production in this province were studied for the first time. The source, generation, transport and sediment of dust have been paid significant attention by the scientific community. Investigations of dust events are important because of the impact of the dust on the environment, particularly on the health and human biological system. The regional dust had negative effects on the health of human life which can cause asthma, bronchitis and lung diseases due to their carrying micro-organisms. Dust causes severe soil erosion, desertification, and a significant reduction in the agricultural production and farming as well. Thus, such a crisis is concerned with economic consequences in the short- and long-term periods. In this way, distribution, mineralogy and morphology of the internal dust and so depositional centers susceptible to dust producing in this province were studied for the first time. 2- Methodology At first, the frequency and the spatial-temporal data related to the internal dust (Code 07) over the 2009-2015 periods were investigated using 13 synoptic data stations in Khuzestan. 32 TSP samples of dust and 65 sediment sample were taken. Mineralogical study of the 11 dust samples associated with 11 sediments samples were determined by X-Ray Diffraction (XRD) using Philips 3040 PW at Kansaran Binaloud Company in Pardis Science and Technology Park, Tehran, Iran. With regard to morphology studies, Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) was used on 20 internal and external dust samples at the central laboratory of Shahid Chamran University of Ahvaz (LEO 1455 VP). Also, grading analysis of the erosional zones using LPSA method and Q10- Q50- Q90% standards were done on 11 samples at the central laboratory in Shahid Chamran University of Ahvaz, Iran. 3- Results The obtained data shows 406 times internal dust in the studied period. Also, the internal dust has a continuity between 1-3 day(s). Bostan, the northeastern city, with the annual frequency of 78 days, has the maximum, and Izeh and Masjid Suleiman, with the annual mean of 6 days, has the minimum duration of the dust in the province. With regard to time, the year of 2009 and the month of June have experienced the largest amounts of dust. Also, the frequency and duration of the internal-derived dust are compatible with the east-western and north-southern increasing trend. The temperature, height, relative humidity and precipitation indexes do not show the same pattern as the frequency of the internal dust in 2009-June, 2015 period. 4- Discussion & Conclusions Mineralogical study of the 11 dust samples and 11 sediments samples using XRD shows that carbonates, silicates and evaporates are the main mineralogy composition of the internal dust and the erosional sediments in Khuzestan. Halite and dolomite are considered as the main minerals of dust particles, respectively, in over the 70 and 30 percent of the samples, respectively. Evaporate minerals such as gypsum and halite are found more in the internal dust compared with the external dust coming to Khuzestan. Also, quartz frequency in the internal dust occurrences is about 45% more than the dust occurrences from the neighboring country. In addition, minor minerals such as albite are present in all the samples and the other minerals including gypsum, chlorite, illite, and muscovite are the minor minerals in the dust samples as well. SEM analysis shows that spherical and crystalline shapes are the most abundant ones in the dust with calcite, quartz and halite composition. Grading analysis of the erosional zones using LPSA method and Q10- Q50- Q90% standards, illustrates high amounts of silt particles in the Province. But clay distribution was seen in 10-35% of the samples. 15-24 µm is the predominant grading range in Khuzestan. Mean grading of these samples with about 18.9 µm, is a sign of dust-producing potential of all the desert centers in the Khuzestan province. }, Keywords = {Khuzestan, Grading, Morphology, Mineralogy, Internal dust}, volume = {7}, Number = {2}, pages = {78-100}, publisher = {University of Hormozgan}, url = {http://magazine.hormozgan.ac.ir/article-1-397-en.html}, eprint = {http://magazine.hormozgan.ac.ir/article-1-397-en.pdf}, journal = {Environmental Erosion Research Journal}, issn = {2251-7812}, eissn = {2717-3968}, year = {2017} } @article{ author = {Maghsoudi, 1Mehran and Mahboobi, Sedigheh and Baharvand, Mehdi and Khanbabai, Zahra and Mohammadi, Abotaleb}, title = {Statistical Analysis of Sediment Diameter of West Lut Desert Barchan and the Study of their Type and Origin}, abstract ={Extended abstract 1- Introduction     Granulometric analysis is a common tool used to understand and determine the origin of wind sands, and is applied in desertification studies; to realize such knowledge, the parameters of sand particles size as well as statistical analysis such as mean, standard deviation, kurtosis, skewness, etc. are used. One of the most common types of sand dunes formed by accumulation of sand in desert areas is crescent-shape dune known as Barchan. The most prominent features of such dunes are mobility and lateral movements which transform them into the heart of crisis and threat to the urban and rural residential areas as well as economic, army and communication centers. Barchans are produced in the lands where the sand fails to fully cover the surface area and the wind action is predominant from one direction. The main location of Barchan dunes is between the original wind source and the main dune concentration areas. They are crescent-shape, and possess two "horns" that face downwind and two gentle and sleeper slopes. There is a ridge in between the two slopes. Barchans are produced by the moving sands, appearing convex, and wind action predominately from one direction, and might gradually migrate. The most prominent features of this phenomenon are mobility and lateral movements with specific annual trends. 3- Methodology    The research have investigated the granulometric characteristics of 7 barchans in Pashuiyeh, western Lut. Up to 42 samples have been taken from different parts of the dunes. These parts are right horn, left horn, lee slope, two samples from windward slope, and the crest. From each sample, 100 g of sediments have been separately sieved by the shaker, and then weighed, and the measurements have been transferred into GRADISTAT to analyze the data. In this step, various coefficients and granulometric components of the grains, such as K2f coefficient (chromobin sorting index), percentage of component particle size, uniformity or alignment, middle, faces, mean particle size, bending and stretching of particles using statistical relationships of Folk and Ward (1957) were applied. 4- Results    The greatest mean size belongs to Barchan number 3 (2.502 j). This is because the dunes are located in alluvial fans. The greatest proportion of particle size refers to sand particles. All dunes have good sorting and due to fine grained particles they have also a sym­metrical skewness. All Barchans, from the origin point of view are single-origin with a relatively good particle size and the type of texture in all is sand. The components of Barchans are all single-origin (Single-origin grain stipulates that the sediment, the water, or the wind were single-origin). Flooding from the mountains of the west to the Yardang creates streams in the region with fine-grained sediments which form a part of the sedimentation of the Barchans. For this reason, the chromaticity coefficient is based on the river sediments. The statistical results indicate that Barchans number 1 and 6 are more of a microfiber. Barchan number 6 is smaller than all the others which might be attributed to the fact that it can be split from asymmetrical Barchan behind it. Barchans numbers 2 and 7 contain the highest amount of sand. The reason of this very fact in Barchan 2 might be attributed to the tilled and abandoned farmlands around the village. These lands, which have destroyed the hard surface of the desert and are abandoned, provide a very good source of sand accessible for regional wind, traveling from the northwest. Barchan number 7, in addition to being in line with an asymmetrical and large Barchan, is located in the dry path of the streams caused by a large conifer, which provides a lot of sandy sediments for this Barchan. The least amount of sand belongs to Barchans 4 and 5. These barchans are exposed to the dry, large rivers of the area, and therefore, it is provided with more fine-grained sand material, which confirms the presence of mud aggregates and fine-grains. The amount of mud in Barchans 4 and 5 was higher, first, due to the presence of floods stuck behind these Barchans with fine-grained sediments, leading to an increase in finer materials in these Barchans, and second, due to the fact that these Barchans are on the track or behind the cloves, which are generally fine-grained. 4- Discussion and Conclusions    According to the results, including crumbin coefficient, despite common perceptions of the origin of Barchan sediments, the sediments of under-study Barchans were mostly water and river sediments and due to their location by the end of the alluvial fans, they are mostly fine-grained and mobile. In most of the studies of sand dunes, as it is already known in the background, either types of sand dunes including Barchans is studied in terms of their morphometric and granulometric measurements. Most of these studies consider the source of these desert sand dunes as wind sediments. However, in this research, in addition to the morphometric and granulometric studies of Barchans, the wind sediment element in these dunes was ignored to achieve new results; upon the completion of laboratory and software processes, interesting results were gained which were different from what is attained concerning desert dunes and particle size and grain origins. These results indicate that in the study area, the Barchans have no wind origin but are the results of water and stream sediments. This result, prior to this study, in the desert area of study was unperceivable and the result is achieved through in-depth studies and scrutiny over these sand dunes within the area.}, Keywords = {Barchans, Granulometry, Morphology, Pashuiyeh, Rig-e-Lut}, volume = {7}, Number = {2}, pages = {101-125}, publisher = {University of Hormozgan}, url = {http://magazine.hormozgan.ac.ir/article-1-379-en.html}, eprint = {http://magazine.hormozgan.ac.ir/article-1-379-en.pdf}, journal = {Environmental Erosion Research Journal}, issn = {2251-7812}, eissn = {2717-3968}, year = {2017} } @article{ author = {ahmadi, mehdi and Mokhtari, Davood and hejazi, asad allah and Nikseresht, Mehdi}, title = {Comparing WEPP and Hydro Physical Models to Estimate Soil Erosion and Sediment Production: A Case Study of Chardavol Watershed}, abstract ={Extended abstract 1- Introduction Soil erosion and sediment production include fundamental limitations in the use of soil and water resources. The sediment yields watersheds in addition to the loss of soil fertility, causing water quality reduction. Therefore, evaluation processes that govern their behavior to better understand and assess the systems of watershed management practices are important. The role of soil erosion and sediment productuion in soil fertility decline and waste as well as in filling reservoirs dams is a global problem. This is due to the destruction of the environment and human factor on landuse cover. WEPP erosion model is a physical model that estimates the amount of erosion and loss of soil using the approach of local development assessment. WEPP model can assess the amount of runoff and erosion process in a watershed.  Nearly 2 billion tons of resource soil is destroyed, and much damage equivalent to 18.5 × 1012 Rails enters the country of Iran. Therefore, to prevent this destruction of natural resources, suitable management for preventing erosion and sediment movement is needed. While erosion is a natural process, human activity is the cause of erosion. Also, erosion caused a devastating impact on the landscape and natural resource. These effects included decrease in the agricultural productivity resulting in ecological collapse. Water and wind erosion are the two primary causes of land degradation; both of them together are responsible for about 84% of the global extent of degraded land.   2- Methodology In order to achieve the purpose of the research, a case was studied and identified based on the WEPP and Hydro physical Models. In this study, to estimate soil erosion and sediment production, the WEPP and Hydro physical models were used. In the research, to prepare database for estimating soil erosion and sediment production, suitable map, topography map, slop, and land use were produced. In the second step, in the environment of GIS software, all the layers were corrected and analyzed.  Many data were collected through field work. In this study, WEPP and Hydro physical models were utilized for estimating soil erosion and sediment production in the watershed of Chardavol in the northern Ilam province. In the WEPP model, for data collection, geomorphology methods were used to determine the work units. In WEPP Model, the type of data collection run in six classes was classification, which contained the files of soil, climate, management, slope, drainage, and tank. In the soil class, information such as texture, action exchange capacity, organic matter, some pebbles, and effective hydraulic flow was used. In file management, information such as the type of landuse cover, vegetation, soil and plant phonological characteristics were dominant. Klyghen sowftware was used to build the climate file. Information required in this file included daily rainfall and temperature. For the stream slope and the scope of slope, the software of geo-WEPP was used.   3- Results According to the results of weighting maps and the data about the potential of sedimentary basins, the basin A8, with a potential production of 13.76 tons of sediment per square hectar, was the highest rate of sedimentary and erosion. Also, the lowest sedimentary was located in the sub-basin A3 with a potential production of 2.64 tons of sediment per hectar. The highest erosion rates in the three sub-basins in the southeastern part of the basin Chardavol were located in this part of the basin due to slopes and high rainfall, low vegetation and poor pastures. The rate of erosion was very high due to natural and human destructive factors. These areas have the highest amount of sediment in the study area. In this study, the lowest rate of erosion in western and northern study areas is located in the areas covered with dense forest and semi-dense and high vegetation with protective programs.   4- Discussion and Conclusions The results of the study based on the WEPP model showed that the amounts of sediment in the three methods of domain, watershed and flow direction were 7.64, 6.01, and 11.87 ton/ha/year, respectively. According to the estimated results, the domain and flow direction methods with 7.64 and 11.87 ton/ha/year were in good agreement with the actual amount (10.5), and were suitable for the erosion and sediment estimation in Chardavol watershed. Also, the results obtained in the Hydro physical method indicated that the amount of sediment was 8.066 ton/ha/year (Table 1).   Table 1: Comparing WEPP and hydro physical models for estimating soil erosion and sediment production Type Parameter model WEPP Hydro physical Model   Hydrometric Station Watershed Flow direction Domain Sediment (t/ha/yr) 6/01 11/87 7/64 8/066 10/5  }, Keywords = {Erosion, Sediment, WEPP, Hydro physical, Chardavol Watershed}, volume = {7}, Number = {3}, pages = {1-24}, publisher = {University of Hormozgan}, url = {http://magazine.hormozgan.ac.ir/article-1-381-en.html}, eprint = {http://magazine.hormozgan.ac.ir/article-1-381-en.pdf}, journal = {Environmental Erosion Research Journal}, issn = {2251-7812}, eissn = {2717-3968}, year = {2017} } @article{ author = {Soofi, Mohammad Bagher and Emami, Hojat}, title = {Evaluation soil erodibility in catchment of Torogh dam of Mashhad}, abstract ={Extended abstract 1- Introduction Soil erosion is one of the most important problems in the arid and semi-arid areas in Iran and the knowledge about its content has an important role on the management practices of soil conservation. Topography as one of the soil-making factors affects the physical properties of the soil through the aspect and the degree of the slope. The aspect of the slope changes the soil moisture, temperature, and the activity of the soil micro-organisms, causing changes in the soil organic matter at different slope degrees, and as a result, creating different soil qualities. Different slope degrees through transportation, the clay particles, and even the organic matter down to the low lands as well as the change in the soil bulk density may change the quality of the soil. In order to maximize the utilization of agricultural lands, to minimize the environmental degradation, and to prevent soil erosion, investigating the soil quality is essential. The aim of this study was to evaluate the amount of soil erosion and quality in different degrees of the southern and northern slopes in the catchment of Torogh dam located in the southwestern Mashhad. 2- Methodology To evaluate the soil erodibility index and quality, 40 soil samples were collected from 0-30 cm depth at the southern and northern slopes including less than 10%, 10-20%, 20-30% and more than 30% slope degrees in the catchment of Torogh dam located in the southwestern Mashhad. 5 samples were taken from each position and some soil properties, including the particle size distribution, the percentage of the soil organic matter, the mean weight diameter of aggregates, the water dispersible clay and silt contents, and the soil structural stability index (SI), were measured. The soil erodibility index was calculated based on five characteristics including sand, silt with fine sand, organic matter, soil structure class, and the infiltration rate class of the soil profile. In addition, the soil quality index, i.e. Integral Quality Index (IQI), was calculated according to the data set. To calculate the soil quality, the score of each property were determined based on the scoring functions and their weights calculated by dividing the communality value of each property to the total communality of all the properties in the JMP4 software. Then, the soil quality index (i.e. IQI) was calculated through multiplying the score and weight of the studied properties and their sum. 3- Results The results showed that the mean of the organic matter in the North aspect was significantly more than the South slop due to the coarse soil texture and the scarce cover crop in the South aspect. The weight diameter of the aggregates (MWD) in the northern aspect was significantly lower than the southern one because of the higher contents of the silt, fine sand, and the water dispersible clay and silt. Therefore, the low instability of the soil structure in the northern aspect was compared to the southern slope. Also, the MWD had a significant difference between the diverse degrees of the southern slope. In addition, the soil erodibility index in the northern aspect of the slope was significantly greater than that of the southern aspect due to more contents of the water dispersible clay and silt in the northern aspect compared to the southern one. The lowest value of the soil erodibility index was obtained at less than 10% of the North aspect that had a significant difference in relation to the other slope degrees. The difference of the soil erodibility index was not significant in different slope degrees of the South aspect. In addition, the quantitative value of the soil quality index in the northern slope was significantly more than that of the southern slope. Because of the optimal values of most soil properties in the North aspect, therefore, the soil quality in this aspect was higher than that of the South. There was no significant difference between the slope degrees in the South slope, but in the North aspect, the difference between various slope degrees of 20-30% was significant (P < 0.05) and the soil quality value was the least compared to the others. 4- Discussion & Conclusions In the studied area, the annual precipitation is low, so that the plant residue and the organic matter are low, and as a result of this, the impact of the organic matter on soil erodibility was low. Therefore, other soil properties, i.e. the contents of silt, sand, clay, water dispersible clay and silt have important roles in controlling the soil erosion. In this research, the effect of the slope aspect on the soil quality was more than the respective degree, so that the soil erosion value in the North aspect was greater than that of the South one, and diverse slope degrees had no significant effects on the soil quality. With regard to the low content of the organic matter in this area, it is suggested that the soil management practices be performed to increase the soil organic matter, to decrease the soil erodibility, and to improve the soil quality.  }, Keywords = {Erodibilty index, slope aspect, water dispersible clay, Soil quality}, volume = {7}, Number = {3}, pages = {25-38}, publisher = {University of Hormozgan}, url = {http://magazine.hormozgan.ac.ir/article-1-403-en.html}, eprint = {http://magazine.hormozgan.ac.ir/article-1-403-en.pdf}, journal = {Environmental Erosion Research Journal}, issn = {2251-7812}, eissn = {2717-3968}, year = {2017} } @article{ author = {Roshun, Sayed Hussein and VahabzadehKebria, Ghorban and Solaimani, Karim and KhalediDarvishan, Abdulvahe}, title = {Determination of the Best Model to Estimate Suspended Sediment Load in Zaremrood River, Mazandaran Province}, abstract ={Extended abstract 1- Introduction The phenomena of erosion, sediment transport, and sedimentations have tremendously destructive effects on the environment and hydraulics structures. In general, the sediment transportation depends on river discharges, but the proposed equations inherited serious errors.  The estimation of suspended sediment load (SSL) is one of the most important factors in river hydraulics, morphology and sediment hydraulic studies. An accurate estimation of suspended sediment loads (SSL) is crucial for the management and construction of the water resources projects. This factor also is the fundamental basis for the proper management planning of the soil and water resource in the watershed. The estimation of the total suspended load of the river with measured data in the hydrometric stations using the relation sediment rating curves are possible through the conventional methods. Accurate and reliable suspended sediment estimates are required in a variety of experimental and operational hydrological situations for scientific and/or river management purposes. Sediment ratings may, for example, be used to estimate the long-term rates of landscape denudation, to reflect the river morphological changes, to gauge the sensitivity of catchments for varying land-use practices, or to accomplish specific project applications, such as the estimation of the reservoir lifetimes, or the identification of the tolerable effluent discharge, and/or the water quality inputs, around the hydroelectric turbines. Suspended sediment loads (SSL) are often estimated through an empirical relation between suspended sediment load (L) and streamflow (S). This relation is usually defined as a power function, L = aSb, and is referred to as a suspended sediment rating curve. This function can be formulated as either a linear or non-linear model to find the solution of the rating curve parameters (a and b). Formulation of the power function as a linear model requires a logarithmic transformation to linearize the function and a subsequent correction for the transformation bias. Rating-curve parameter estimates for both the bias-corrected, transformed-linear or non-linear models can be obtained through the method of least squares. 2- Methodology In this paper, the rate of the sediment load in Zaremrood river was estimated using USBR, Polyline USBR, moderate categories curve, seasonal rating curve and FAO models. In addition, during 30 days (60 samples), the suspended load sampling was conducted, then, the selected model was evaluated using a direct sampling of the suspended load. To evaluate the suspended sediment loads and an optimized model on them, in this research, the data were collected from the Iranian water resources management company and Mazandaran regional water authority. The data analysis first included the control and adequacy testing, detection of outliers and normality test. Also, to ensure the homogeneity of the data, the homogeneity test was performed using Kolmogorov-Smirnov test in the SPSS software. Finally, the five models were derived using the corresponding data of flow (Qw) and sediment discharge (Qs). 3- Results The results of this study showed that the moderate categories curve model had the lowest RME rate (173/65) and the highest coefficients of determination (96%) (table 1), and as a result, this model was selected as the best model to estimate the suspended load of Zaremrood river (Figure 1).   Table 1. RME values for the models Estimation Models Single Linear Rating Curve Model Multiline Rating Curve Model Moderate Categories Curve Model Seasonal Rating Curve Model FAO Model RME 1984.42 745.50 173.65 227.12 426.23   Fig. 1 Mid-Range Rating Curve    Also, with regard to the linear rating curve model having a maximum deviation from the observational data, it was recommended to apply this model to estimate the total suspended load, through the methods with the latest error to estimate the river sediment load in this case study. Finally, the results showed that the highest amount of suspended sediment load (SSL) in the spring season is due to the land use type in this season and also the high intensity of rainfall in this watershed. 4- Discussion & Conclusions Correct estimation of sediment discharge and consequently, sediment load is an essential component in river management. The key objective of this study was to determine the best model to estimate the suspended sediment load (SSL) in Zaremrood river, Mazandaran province. Flow and sediment discharge data were collected and used to establish a sediment rating curve models. Then, five rating curve models including Single Linear Rating Curve Model, Multiline Rating Curve Model, Moderate Categories Curve Model, Seasonal Rating Curve Model and FAO Model were conducted. Suspended sediment was sampled using a direct method and analysis in the laboratory to be evaluated through statistical evaluation indices. As a result, the moderate categories curve model was selected as the most suitable and best model for estimating the suspended sediment load in Zaremrood river. Zaremrood watershed was the most important in sediment production located at the upper Sari plain where agricultural land and rice fields were present. So, by considering the results of this research and the management of the sediment produced in this watershed, it is possible to prevent the damages caused by the sedimentation of the Zaremrood watershed. To conserve the water and soil in the watershed, a similar research is necessary. The selected model can estimate the total sediment load used in the water and soil resources management plan, including the identification of sources of sediment production, the determination of the areas with high potential sedimentation in order to reduce erosion in the studied area.}, Keywords = {Suspended Sediment Load, Direct Sampling, Moderate Categories Curve Model, RME, Zaremrood River. }, volume = {7}, Number = {3}, pages = {39-54}, publisher = {University of Hormozgan}, url = {http://magazine.hormozgan.ac.ir/article-1-335-en.html}, eprint = {http://magazine.hormozgan.ac.ir/article-1-335-en.pdf}, journal = {Environmental Erosion Research Journal}, issn = {2251-7812}, eissn = {2717-3968}, year = {2017} } @article{ author = {shayan, syavosh and sharifikia, mohamad and naseri, nahi}, title = {Drought Analysis of Alvand Boundary River Using Remote Sensing Data}, abstract ={Extended abstract 1- Introduction       The study of the behavior of rivers in the arid and dry areas is one of the most important tasks in the country. Because the area has increased the effects of drought due to the sensitivity of the area and rainfall shortage, it causes changes in the flow and sediment regime, water resources, agriculture, and so on. Since plants react more precisely to the specific climate changes of the environmental water changes, historically, they have been regarded as important indicators to identify the type of climate and its changes. In the recent years, as the satellite images are regularly and accurately separated from the surface, the growing role of vegetation cover associated with drought conditions is more assumed. The NDVI index was first introduced in 1973 and is the most comprehensive indicator ever used in many studies. This index can well reflect changes in the areas with more rangeland coverage. Also, given that the water has a lower NDVI than other surface coatings, therefore, the areas that are covered with the water can be detected by the changes in their NDVI values before and after the flood. 2- Methodology First, in order to identify the trends and droughts in the region, the hydrometric and climatic data (1955-2011) were analyzed. Based on the annual flow diagram of the Qasr-e-Shirin station, the diagrams of rainfall and precipitation were identified using the 45-year moving average index in the river to identify the maximum points of the land as well as the wet points, and subsequently, the data from the satellite imagery of 1987 (first year of landing), the maximum drought of 2005, the maximum wetland of 2003, and those of 2015 were used to collect the satellite images from the hydrometric chart. Subsequently, multispectral images were taken to produce a green index. Using the controlled classification method and the statistical parameter, the least space was used to classify the images. Finally, using the observations, measurements and field observations, with the accuracy of 90 meters at 5 points around the river, the findings of the extracted images were corrected and controlled. 3- Results          An investigation of the hydrologic regime of the basin in the drought and wet periods indicates changes in the river flow and the impact of the climate and environmental factors on it. Despite the continuity of the river flow and the same rainfall (264 mm) during the two periods, the average of the mean and the basin water levels decreased sharply and the flow of the river at the location of the river divisions has changed from a volatile to a seasonal, which has led to the blockage of the river by the sediment yields from them. Using the NDVI index, land use has been classified into cropping water, rain, and pastures. A comparison of the classified images shows that 70% of the vegetation degradation is related to the rangelands and marginal lands of the river and river basins, which are natural in the region. The remaining 30 percent of the vegetation degradation is related to aquaculture and dry-land farming. The research findings from the discovery of changes through the illustrations reveal the role of the climate change in the Alvand river basin. 10188 ha of the damaged land is due to the drought. In other areas, and especially around the river, the changes in the coverage elucidate a negative trend. In the rivers of Khosravi plain, 8001 ha of the pastures around the river is destroyed. 4- Discussion & Conclusions The results of this study showed that the vegetation level in the region has changed during the research period throughout the studied years. The NDVI index showed a desirable correlation with the moving average drought index Therefore, it is suggested that the method described, that is, the combination of the climatic and hydrological elements and the vegetation indices derived from the satellite images, which have been investigated and proved by various researchers, have been repeatedly correlated with the drought to investigate it by the vegetation index in the rangeland and semi-arid areas of the country. The results of this study showed that the NDVI index could be a favorable alternative to moving average, and in the hydrological drought studies, the semi-arid and rangeland areas can be trusted.}, Keywords = {drought, Remote Sensing, NDVI, Alvand River}, volume = {7}, Number = {3}, pages = {55-69}, publisher = {University of Hormozgan}, url = {http://magazine.hormozgan.ac.ir/article-1-385-en.html}, eprint = {http://magazine.hormozgan.ac.ir/article-1-385-en.pdf}, journal = {Environmental Erosion Research Journal}, issn = {2251-7812}, eissn = {2717-3968}, year = {2017} } @article{ author = {Farokhzadeh, Behnoush and GhasemiAghbash, Farhad and Karami, Ahou}, title = {Estimating sediment yield from a paved forest road (Asphalt) (Case study: Watershed Leyle, Ravansar)}, abstract ={Extended abstract 1- Introduction Forest roads are among the largest sediment transport sources to drainage network. So, estimating the sediments of the road network is an important factor in the evaluation of the impact of the road construction. One of the biggest problems caused by the road construction in the forest is the increase in various forms of erosion, such as Gully erosion and masses movements around the roads. The main cause of this process is the destruction of vegetation, soil destruction, increasing runoff rate and unstable slopes. Therefore, in designing forest roads, not only the costs, but also the proper management of the water and soil should be considered. Research results have shown that the forest roads produce a high volume of forest land sediments. An optimal management of forest areas requires having a forest road network with a proper distribution on the forest. Hence, it is one of the most important cost factors for the forest management. Forest roads differ from rural roads and highways. They have low traffic and heavy vehicles. In the areas where these roads are built, there are usually different types of erosion. Therefore, the ability to predict erosion correctly can reduce their negative sedimentation effects. Accordingly, the purpose of this study is to estimate the sediment and erosion of different parts of Shabankar forest road in Zagros region, and to determine the final rate of the road sediment yield, as well as to identify the high potential deposits of the sediments by SEDMODEL. 2- Methodology In this study, Road Sediment Delivery Model (SEDMODL) was used to estimate the erosion of a paved forest road in 24 km northwest of the Rawansar in Kermanshah province. The road was divided into 5 parts and the factors such as geology, elevation and the cover of cut slope, road traffic, the distance from the streams and rainfall were estimated that were the effective parameters of the model. To estimate the amount of the sediment production, after an evaluation of the factors of the model, the erosion and sediment delivery amount to the streams were estimated in 5 sections of the road. In order to implement the model, the geological maps, topography, slope, road and waterway networks with a scale of 1: 50,000 were produced in the ARC GIS environment. 3- Results The results showed that the fifth part of the road has more sediments delivery to the waterways among the other sectors. According to results, the total sediment production is 11.92 tons and the sediment delivery to the waterways is 2.06 tons while the area of this road makes about 0.03 percent of the total watershed. In addition, according to the Pearson correlation results, the height of the cut slope and the longitudinal slope of the road were recognized as the main factors affecting the erosion of the road. In this area, the factors such as the length of the road, longitudinal slope, cut slopes and vegetation, and sediment delivery factor were different in various parts of the road leading to differences in erosion and sediment production. The third part of the road, due to having the highest amount of road length and wall height and the minimum coverage, has the highest amount of erosion. After that, the highest erosion belongs to the fourth part, while the length of this sector of the road is less than the first and second parts, due to the high height of the excavation walls in the fourth part, as well as the absence of the wall coverings relevant to the parts one and two. According to Table 10, only the second and fifth parts, due to the intervals of less than 60 meters from the closest waterway, were involved in the delivery of the sediment to the currents of the basin. The high erosion rate in the fifth part is greater than the third and fourth parts due to the minimum level of road surface covered by the fifth part compared to that of the second.   4- Discussion & Conclusions The construction of roads in the forest areas is one of the factors affecting erosion and sediment production. As the results of this study showed, one of the capabilities of the SEDMODL model is identifying the erosion-sensitive points. According to the results of this research and other similar studies, it is necessary for the erosion control activites to be done in the upstream of the roads having high erosion potential due to the steeper slope to the lower parts, as well as in downstream units due to being close to the waterways and having sediment transfer factor to reduce erosion per unit area of the road.  }, Keywords = {Sediment delivery, Forest roads, Erosion,Hydrology SEDMODL}, volume = {7}, Number = {3}, pages = {70-85}, publisher = {University of Hormozgan}, url = {http://magazine.hormozgan.ac.ir/article-1-374-en.html}, eprint = {http://magazine.hormozgan.ac.ir/article-1-374-en.pdf}, journal = {Environmental Erosion Research Journal}, issn = {2251-7812}, eissn = {2717-3968}, year = {2017} } @article{ author = {ildoromi, alireza and NOURI, HAMID and Aghabeigi, Soheila and HaghighiKermanshahi, Afsaneh}, title = {An Evaluation of the Optimal Change Scenarios of Land Use and their Impacts on the Hydrological Parameters: A Case Study of Dinevar Watershed}, abstract ={EXTENDED ABSTRACT      The land use change of watersheds has entailed many impacts on the processes of erosion and sediment yield over the time, and has caused the loss of soil quality and fertility. On the other hand, an increase in the sediment generation and its accumulation would reduce the capacity of the reservoirs. In this respect, the purpose of this study was to evaluate the effects of the implementation of land-use change scenarios on runoff and suspended sediment from the outlet of the watershed. The simulation of runoff and sediment was investigated according to the defined scenario for the Dinevar watershed with a focus on SWAT model based on the statistical indicators. The results of NS and R2 indicators above 50 and 60 percent for both calibration and validation steps, respectively, imply the model efficiency regarding the hydrological data simulating in the watershed. The results of the coefficient of determination and Nash-Sutcliffe were 0.55 and 0.6, respectively, in the calibration, and were 0.58 and 0.62, respectively in the validation, implying the model efficiency in the watershed. The suggested scenario was applied to improve the lands. This means that the bare land, which increased during this period, was planted by the evergreens and deciduous. The results of this scenario showed that the implementation of this land use change in the scenario reduced the suspended sediment and runoff into 52 and 32 percent, respectively. 1- INTRODUCTION      Land use with inappropriate vegetation patterns can cause severe water, soil and food losses and land degradation. Land use change is a large and fast process and assessing such changes and their impacts on the development, and management of the water resources in the future is very important. In order to better understand the process and the fate of the pollution and also the hydrologic regime, the SWAT model was used to simulate the runoff and suspended sediment under the influence of land use change over time during a given period based on the hypothetical scenarios in Dinewar watershed. 2- METHODOLOGY      Dinewar watershed with 214577 hectares is located in the northeast of Kermanshah. The average of the annual precipitation of this area during a 25-year period is 549.1 mm. The types of visible erosion in this watershed include surface erosion, rill erosion, water way erosion, gully and bank river erosion. The existing land use in the watershed included 34% agriculture, 1% garden, 10% free, 52% rangeland, 1% stone, 2.5% roads and residential areas. One of the models used to investigate the effects of land use change and climate change on runoff and sediment in the watershed scale was SWAT model. In the SWAT model, there is a possibility to assess the effects of different natural or managerial changes on runoff, sediment, nutrients and chemical balance in the watershed. With regard to runoff and sediment simulation, the data pertained to the synoptic station of Kermanshah and the meteorology stations of Sahne, Bisotun, Sonqor and Hasan Abad Sofla were utilized. Also, with regard to calibration, the validation and uncertainty analysis of results, i.e. the SUFI-2, was applied. To evaluate the simulated results, the performance criteria of the model including "P factor" and "R factor" as well as the two parameters of determination coefficient (R2) and Nash-Sutcliff were used.The new scenario was defined based on the previous and current proceeding land uses and the results of the simulation were compared to the current situation related to 2010. 3- RESULTS      Flood and suspended sediment data of 1998 to 2006 were used for calibration, and 2007-2010 were used for validation. The results for flow data showed that determination coefficients of both the calibration and validation steps were higher than 0.77, and the Nash-Sutcliff coefficient was about 0.6 and higher. The results of the calibration step for sedimentation data were also equal to 0.55 in the determination coefficient and 0.66 in the Nash-Sutcliff coefficient, and the results of the statistical indices during the validation period increased 0.1 percent. The P factor is closer to the one that implied a higher percentage of observation data in the uncertainty band and the R factor is closer to zero that implied better simulation at this step. In the new scenario, degraded and no vegetation areas were replaced by the evergreen and shrubbery trees with moderate density, and the simulations were carried out based on a new scenario. The land use map for 2010 was taken as a control map. The results of the simulation based on the new land use scenario showed that the daily average runoff is 4.86 m3 / s (32.72%), and the maximum discharge rate during the studied period decreased to 74.13 m3/s (36/69 %). The proposed scenario can also reduce the daily average suspended sediment in the study period by 252.98 mg / s (52.83%) and decrease the maximum suspended sediment rate by 9050 mg / sec (71.54%). 4- DISCUSSION and CONLLUSIONS In the defined scenario in this study, a change was made whose implementation is possible in reality. Many changes, such as reducing the area under the cultivation, residential and industrial areas, are not applicable in most of the watersheds. The new scenario, which aims at improving the vegetation cover and soil conservation, reduces sediment yield from the watershed, and this effect is especially noticeable at the peak of the simulation curves, and little effect is observed in places where the amount of sediment is lower. In addition, the results of the statistical indicators implied the high performance of the SWAT model in simulating hydrological processes which demonstrates the impact of various management measures and land use on these processes in the studied watershed.}, Keywords = {Hydrologic parameter, Land use change, Scenario}, volume = {7}, Number = {3}, pages = {86-99}, publisher = {University of Hormozgan}, url = {http://magazine.hormozgan.ac.ir/article-1-346-en.html}, eprint = {http://magazine.hormozgan.ac.ir/article-1-346-en.pdf}, journal = {Environmental Erosion Research Journal}, issn = {2251-7812}, eissn = {2717-3968}, year = {2017} } @article{ author = {ildoromi, Alireza and nouri, Hamid and Mohammady, Majid and mosavi, Maryam}, title = {Investigation of Effective Factors and Landslide Hazard Zoning Using Density Area, Analytical Hierarchy Process and Logistic Regression Methods in the Ashvand Watershed}, abstract ={EXTENDED ABSTRACT      Recognition of effective factors on landslide occurrence in the area leads to an important set of solutions to control and take suitable actions upon this phenomenon. This paper aims at recognizing such factors and also landslide occurrence and zoning landslide hazard, using density area, Analytical Hierarchy Process and logistic regression, and also investigating the accuracy of the proposed models through the Ashvand Watershed at Nahavand city. To this end, the author conducted a field study and also reviewed the related research that resulted to the identification of 10 factors as effective on landslides including: slope, aspect, elevation, distance from river, distance from road, distance from fault, distance from village, geology, land use, and precipitation. In the next step, the data layers for these factors and landslide distribution have been generated. The factors were prioritized using AHP method and weight maps were generated for each identified factor. Landslide hazard zoning maps were also prepared for all the three conducted methods. Finally, the output maps from the previous step were categorized into four groups including low risk, medium risk, high risk, and very high risk. Through the assessment of the zoning maps by means of the ROC curve, the authors concluded that the logistic regression with AUC 0/891 and AHP with AUC 0/844 are the optimal models for the aim of this study.   1- INTRODUCTION      If only one factor was causing a phenomenon in nature, it would be very simple to decide on it and to predict its occurrence, but in general, the phenomena in nature have many qualitative and quantitative factors. One of the most dangerous type of erosion phenomena can be mass and land slide movements that have a lot of financial dangers. According to the definition of the International Geological Engineering Association in 1990, the movement of land constituents, from slope downwards is called landslide or sloping instability. In Iran, landslide is one of the most important natural disasters that has a significant role in destroying communication roads, pastures, Gardens and residential areas, as well as erosion and transfer of high volumes of sediment in our country's catchment areas. Therefore, in order to manage and mitigate the risk, it is necessary to predict the occurrence and preparation of a landslide hazard zonation map, and this has led to the development of numerous empirical and statistical models emphasizing the use of the Geographic Information System (GIS). In the Ashwand Basin in Nahavand, due to the sensitivity of the area, the greatest amount of erosion is due to landslides. Therefore, the assessment and management of the region is necessary in order to compensate for any damage and injuries incurred. 2- Methodology      The watershed of Aswand is located in Hamadan province and northeast of Nahavand city with an area of ​​about 96/47 square kilometers and an environment of about 24/24 km. After reviewing the field and reviewing similar studies, 10 factors including slope, tilt direction, elevation, distance from the waterway, distance from the road, distance from the fault, distance from the village, geology, land use and precipitation were extracted as factors affecting the occurrence of the known landslide. Then, the ten layers of the data and the distribution of the landfall event were prepared. Using AHP, 10 factors investigated were prioritized. After drawing up weight maps for each factor, zoning maps were prepared in all three models, in which the maps were classified into four categories including low risk, medium risk, high risk and very high risk.   3- Results      In this study, we tried to determine the factors affecting landslide according to past studies as well as their existence. Selection of these factors plays an important role in the accuracy of the landslide zonation map in the region. The first step in zoning landslide is the recognition and selection of effective factors in its occurrence, which indicates the accuracy of the zoning map. The first step in the zoning of land scaling is the identification and selection of effective factors in its occurrence, which indicates the accuracy of the zoning map. According to the review of available resources and available data, 10 geological factors including land use, elevation, slope, slope direction, distance from the road, distance from the waterway, distance from the village, distance from fault and precipitation for zoning the land scarcity risk in the region were identified and classified. The purpose of this study was to determine the landslide hazard zonation using the three methods of AHP, surface density and logistic regression using operational maps. At first, the maps of the agent were prepared and, according to each method, a landslide hazard zonation map was prepared. Then, using three levels of surface density, AHP and logistic regression, a zoning map, and in the next step, other zoning maps were prepared. The results were categorized into four classes of low risk, moderate, hazardous and very high risk. The results of the evaluation of the models based on the ROC are presented in Figures 17-19. AUC below represents the predictive value of the system by describing its ability to accurately estimate events occurring (landslide occurrence) and its failure to occur. AUC values vary from 0.5 to 1. In these curves, as stated above, the most ideal model has the highest level below the curve, which is a logistic with a curve surface of 0.891 and AHP with a surface below the curve of 0.484 with a slight difference in the surface area under the curve. Ideal models are as much as 766/0 compared to the level-level congestion model. 4- Discussion & Conclusions In general, identification of the most important factors affecting the occurrence of landslide with the use of the AHP model is presented in Figure 3. Accordingly, the important factors in landslide occurrence are respectively: distance from fault, distance from the road, slope, distance from the village, geology, land use, distance from the waterway, altitude, precipitation and direction of slope. The density of landslides in each class of factors was investigated and it was determined that in each factor which class has the most slip. In considering the distance from the road, the maximum slip is less than 1000 m from the fault, because the fault is one of the most important tectonic factors that can potentially sensitize the slopes. In the study of the effect of the distance factor on the road landslide, it was concluded that in the distance of 1000-400 meters from the road, the highest slip is observed and the reason why the slipping distance is less than 400 meters is that the protective structures in this distance disturb the natural state of the area and the slope of the region, and create vertical cuts. In the study of slope factor, the maximum slip occurred in slope categories of 45-30 degrees and then 15-15 degrees. In the downward slopes, due to the rocky extent of the slopes and the small thickness of the detached materials, the occurrence of low-lying slopes is usually less and sloping slopes, due to lower shear stress, are usually less susceptible to ground occurrence. The distance from the village showed that the maximum slip occurred up to 1000 meters. The presence of the village in the area causes the disturbance of the gradient equilibrium, the creation of vertical cuts, the change of use around the village, and the compaction of the soil and its degradation. In the geological factor, the greatest slip occurred in the AN class (anidrite and gabbro), due to its high sensitivity to erosion and fragmentation of the existing minerals and formation of surface-shaped structures, which are sensitive to slip, water penetration and mass movements. The created land use in the area shows that a high percentage of landslides has occurred in the rangelands with the number of landslides in semi-dense, low-density rangeland and dense pasture, respectively. Investigating the distance factor from the waterway network showed that the slides occurred in the studied area at a distance of 200 meters from this complication. The reason for this is that the drainage is due to the river's dredging and erosion, which carries the material to the slopes and maintains the retaining factor from the slopes, and the rubbing of the wall along the river causes a collapse of the slope and, consequently, the instability of the slope overlooking the river. From the study of elevation classes, it was also found that the classes with an average height had the highest sensitivity to the slippage, due to the low rainfall in the lower floors and the phenomenon of glaciation and slowness of the clay process in the upper classes. In the results of precipitation analysis in the region, it was concluded that the greatest effect on slippage is, respectively, on the average rainfall levels (455-445 mm). The increase is expected to increase by more than 465 mm for reasons other than excavation, but the result shows that there is less slip in the classes with a rainfall of more than 465 mm, which can be due to other effective factors such as Gradient and geological factor or elevation of the area. In the southern slopes that are considered as slopes, they have the highest slip in comparison with other directions in the region, which can be due to weathering. In these slopes, the high humidity of the area, along with heat from the sunlight, provides suitable conditions for chemical weathering. The intensity of weathering is inversely related to the amount of adhesion of materials, which provides a ground for landslide occurrence. Using three models of surface density and AHP and logistic regression, zoning maps were prepared and the area was classified into 4 categories with low risk, medium risk, high risk and very high risk (Figure 4). Also, by evaluating research done using ROC and accuracy, it is shown in Figure 5 that the logistic regression model and then the hierarchical analysis process model have been used as important and efficient models in the zoning of ground-sensitive sensitivity. The study area is due to a combination of natural and human factors that have a great potential for earthquake occurrence. These landslides annually cause many damage to the road, residential areas, agricultural lands and other resources in the region. Fault factors, geology and network of inland waterways are irrevocable and the only way to prevent their damage is to not disturb these areas and avoid them. Road, village and land use planning and management factors can be prevented by stimulating and increasing movements in these areas by constructing a road based on environmental conditions and preventing the construction of unpredicted roads and proper use in these areas. . It is suggested that other models be used in this area in order to map the zoning and compare different models in order to determine the best model for zoning of landslide hazard and also to consider more effective factors in the region and economic losses caused by landslides and the costs of slip control are evaluated and calculated.}, Keywords = {landslide hazard mapping, logistic regression, density, AHP, watershed Ashvand}, volume = {7}, Number = {4}, pages = {1-23}, publisher = {University of Hormozgan}, url = {http://magazine.hormozgan.ac.ir/article-1-309-en.html}, eprint = {http://magazine.hormozgan.ac.ir/article-1-309-en.pdf}, journal = {Environmental Erosion Research Journal}, issn = {2251-7812}, eissn = {2717-3968}, year = {2018} } @article{ author = {Amini, Donya and Tavakoli, Mohsen and Rostaminya, Mahmou}, title = {Mapping Spatial Variability of Soil Salinity Using Remote Sensing Data and Geostatistical Analysis: A Case of Shadegan, Khuzestan}, abstract ={Extended abstract 1- Introduction Soil salinity is one of the most important desertification parameters in many parts of the world. Thus, preparing soil salinity maps in macro scales is necessary. Water and soil salinity as one of the contributing parameters in desertification, cause soil and vegetation degradation. Soil salinization represents many negative effects on the earth systems such as water and wind erosion, increasing dust storms, removing vegetation, reducing production capacity of the soils, etc. Most of the saline soils are located in the regions with hot and dry climates like Iran. One of the ways to combat desertification phenomenon is understanding effective factors in intensification. On the other hand, soil salinity measurement in laboratory is costly and time-consuming, especially in the large-scale regions. Spatial interpolation methods and satellite images interpretation can be used to map soil salinity with high accuracy in both temporal and spatial resolution. Remote sensing and geostatistics can play an important role in identifying the phenomena, mapping, time monitoring changes, controlling, modifying and finally managing soils salinity. The purpose of this study is soil salinity zonation and its trend investigation using remote sensing data and geostatistical techniques in Shadegan area.   2- Methodology Geostatistical techniques are generally used for spatial changes and they are useful for soil salinity investigation and results can be more valuable when they are coupled to remote sensing data. Interpolation methods can be done by many GIS programs and also remote sensing can be a useful tool for collecting the earth data of a broad area in a short time. These applications are more useful for impassable, dangerous and wide areas. Electromagnetic wave reflections are different in various lands and this is the basic principle of using satellite images for landscape interpretation. For mapping the soil salinity in the study area, 54 soil samples were used which have been sampled in 2006 using interpolation methods with the maximum likelihood of mapping the soil salinity. Some descriptive statistical analyses (e.g. mean, mode, variance, standard deviation, kurtosis, skewness) and the normality of the data were conducted using SPSS software. The interpolation methods including deterministic methods and geostatistical methods were used for mapping the soil salinity in ArcGIS software. In this study, deterministic statistical methods such as inverse distance weighted, global polynomial, radial basis functions and geostatistical methods (ordinary kriging and simple kriging) for soil salinity mapping were evaluated for the region. For this goal, the remote sensing data (bands, salinity indices and principal component analysis) were used for the satellite image of ETM+ from the nearest time to the sampling time, namely 2006. For studying the correlation between brightness of the pixel values and soil samples, the regression with the highest correlation with the sample points, was selected as the suitable method between the fit method and soil samples to establish the regression equation. Finally, regarding to the sampling points, supervised classification was used. Then, regression obtained equation was used for salinity map in 1990 and 2015 for soil salinity trend analysis investigation. 3- Results The results showed that the simple Kriging interpolation has the higher accuracy than the other methods for mapping the soil salinity. Among the geostatistical methods, simple kriging and ordinary kriging are similar in terms of accuracy, but the simple Kriging with spherical semivariogram model, compared to the other methods of soil salinity zonation is more appropriate in the study area. Study of the methods of salinity map showed that in 2006, the PCA123 method has the highest correlation with the sampling point compared to the real map of soil salinity. Trend analysis of soil salinity in 1990, 2006 and 2015 showed that the area of average and high salinity are reduced but the area of very high salinity‌ increased sharply from 1990 to 2015. On the other hand, the area with medium and high salinity classes has decreased and closed to zero in 2015, but the extreme salinity class has increased about 2.5 times more. 4- Discussion & Conclusions It can be concluded that satellite images, remote sensing data and geostatistical techniques are reliable tools for soil salinity studies. Increased soil salinity in the study area shows that the intense salinity of the southern part to the northern parts has slowly been moved. Abadan and Mahshahr in Khuzestan province are considered coastal areas except Shadegan city located in the southern part. In the coastal areas with low slope, transition of salt from the sea to the coastal area is acceptable but for other regions, other reasons are needed. Finally, it is suggested to use these methods and techniques for soil salinity investigation for the similar areas.}, Keywords = {Soil salinity, Remote sensing, Geostatistic, Interpolation, Shadegan}, volume = {7}, Number = {4}, pages = {24-43}, publisher = {University of Hormozgan}, url = {http://magazine.hormozgan.ac.ir/article-1-402-en.html}, eprint = {http://magazine.hormozgan.ac.ir/article-1-402-en.pdf}, journal = {Environmental Erosion Research Journal}, issn = {2251-7812}, eissn = {2717-3968}, year = {2018} } @article{ author = {forootandanesh, mahtab and alvandi, ehsan and bahremand, abdolreza and zeinivand, hosein and Mirzaei, Ghasem}, title = {Simulating Optimal Scenarios of Urbanization Impacts on Flow Hydro-graph and Sediment Concentration in Ziarat Watershed, Iran}, abstract ={Extended abstract 1- INTRODUCTION Landuse change due to human activities is one of the important issues in regional planning. Considering the advantages and capabilities of the distributed hydrological models, they are appropriate for the survey of landuse changes as well as their quantitative estimates. Land evaluation methods are used to determine the compatibility of the land according to land capability, identification of effective factors on the floodwaters potential of the basins and zoning of the basins which are essential for runoff capability. The land is used according to their potential. For this purpose, the remote sensing data and geographic information system (GIS) were used to identify the factors affecting the flood potential and zoning of the basin in terms of flood potential. 2- THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK In this research, a hydrological distribution model of WetSpa is used to simulate the hydrological components. This study examines the Simulation of optimal scenarios of urbanization impacts on flow hydrograph and sediment concentration using WetSpa model in Ziarat watershed in Iran.  In this study, TOPSIS method and GIS were used to model the suitability of land for urbanization, providing optimal scenarios. 3- METHODOLOGY In this study, the basic WetSpa model inputs were the maps of a digital elevation model (DEM), land use and soil type in GIS raster format, and hydrometeorological data including hourly precipitation, evapotranspiration, temperature and sediment. In ArcGIS software, the distributed required maps for the model were extracted using the model input maps. Then, the model was implemented using these maps and data on rainfall, evapotranspiration, temperature, flow rate, sediment. With the help of the reference tables in the ArcView software environment, the spatial parameters of the model were determined in each cellular network. After modeling the suitability of land for residential development through TOPSIS and GIS methods, the effects of the optimal scenario of residential development on the hydrograph and sediment were assessed. According to expert opinions, three scenarios including the current state of the residential areas of the basin, the development of residential areas with alternative low forest cover, and the residential development with alternative crops were considered, and also WetSpa model was implemented through mapping the three scenarios. 4- RESULTS The accuracy of flow simulations based on the Nash-Sutcliffe model efficiency was 0.67.The evaluation of suspended sediment simulations for the calibration period based on the Nash–Sutcliffe criteria was 0.63 for the suspended sediment concentration. According to the assessment criteria considered in this study and using TOPSIS, 37 hectares of  Ziarat watershed area conditions are to create residential area. After running WetSpa model with the optimal scenarios, increased roughness coefficient reduced the flow velocity and runoff coefficient as well as the peak discharge watershed. Also, the amount of suspended sediment concentration and sediment transport was reduced to the current land use scenario. Thus, by applying the optimal scenarios, urbanization, flow hydrograph and sediment density showed better conditions in comparison to the current land use scenario. 5- CONCLUSIONS & SUGGESTIONS Changes in the flow hydrograph parameters are insignificant among the scenarios. After applying optimal scenarios, the extent of residential areas has decreased, which has led to a slight decrease in surface runoff and peak discharge in Ziarat watershed. By applying the optimal scenario, the amount of runoff coefficient has decreased slightly, which is a slight decrease in runoff coefficient due to a slight increase in penetration and evaporation. Also, the coefficient of roughness has increased slightly with the application of optimal scenarios, which is due to the reduction of the size of residential areas in the optimal scenarios. After applying the optimal scenarios, the flow velocity has been reduced slightly, which is a slight decrease in flow velocity due to a small decrease in the runoff coefficient and a slight increase in roughness coefficient. So, with the implementation of the optimal scenarios for the development of residential areas, hydrograph and sediment had better conditions than the scenario of the current state of residential areas. According to the results of this study and similar studies in Ziarat watershed, it is hoped that the authorities pay more attention to the crisis in the watershed and the increase in the indiscriminate and unprincipled residential areas in the watershed so as to prevent the unexpected consequences of the change before it can be prevented.}, Keywords = {Multi-Criteria Decision-Making, Optimal Scenarios, WetSpa Model, Ziarat Watershed}, volume = {7}, Number = {4}, pages = {44-57}, publisher = {University of Hormozgan}, url = {http://magazine.hormozgan.ac.ir/article-1-392-en.html}, eprint = {http://magazine.hormozgan.ac.ir/article-1-392-en.pdf}, journal = {Environmental Erosion Research Journal}, issn = {2251-7812}, eissn = {2717-3968}, year = {2018} } @article{ author = {Akbarinasab, Mohammad and Safarrad, Taher and Akbarzadeh, Mehdi}, title = {Detection of Coastline Using Satellite Image-Processing Technique}, abstract ={Extended abstract 1- Introduction  Coasts maintain their natural sustainability without human intervention and in spite of short-term changes, we are ultimately confronted with a coastal healthy environment, i.e. natural, rocky beaches, sandy beaches and so on. Today's use of remote sensing in most natural sciences is widespread. Due to the fact that fieldwork is costly and time-consuming, using image processing techniques can detect the phenomenon of these images. With regard to the advancement of computer sciences, various algorithms are being updated, which increases the detection magnitude of the phenomenon to be considered. The purpose of this study was to apply a number of edge detection methods, compare them and optimize the edge detection results for coastline detection based on the remote sensing data in the study area. 2- Methodology Edge detection is an image processing technique for finding the boundaries of the objects inside the image due to the difference in pixels brightness. In Matlab software, filters such as Sobel, Prewitt and Zerocross are used to find edges in the images of varying intensity (brightness) and in binary images. The data processed at Level-1 in Landsat sensor included DN. Due to the Sentinel-2A sensor data file name, the data were generated at Level-1C and included the reflection of each bands. Landsat imagery was used for the coastline detection process. Sentinel-2A data (reflectivity) was used in the process of evaluating the results. In this paper, three edge detection filters were implemented with Matlab software to detect the coastline on the image of NDVI more than zero (NDVI > 0) made of Landsat 8 bands that showed non-water sections in the image. To find the accuracy of the filter, a reference image was needed to calculate the result of each filter based on it. The reference image should be binary and indicate the location of water and non-water. For this purpose, a NDVI image was constructed from the Sentinel-2A bands. Pixel values more than zero were calculated from NDVI made of Sentinel-2A bands (NDVI > 0) to create a binary image. This image was used as a reference image. The best filter was also applied for NDVI > 0 images of two other Landsat sensors. The data processed at Level-1 on Landsats satellites were digital numbers (DN). Since these data were processed in the Pre-Collection and at the L1T level, they were calibrated radiographically, and were geometrically corrected, and did not need to be corrected. Sentinel-2A satellite data were generated at Level-1C containing high reflectivity images of each bar. Since these data were processed at Level-C1, they were calibrated radiometrically, and were geometrically corrected, and did not need to be corrected. Peak signal to noise ratio (PSNR) was defined by the MSE statistical index. If the PSNR was higher and MSE was lower, the corresponding filter was better. The PSNR was used as a quality scale between the reference image (signal) and the processed image. With this scale, between the three-edge detector filter, the best filter was selected. For PSNR, the reference image was used to compare the result of each filter. In this research, the signal was NDVI > 0 image made from the Sentinel-2A satellite data. A comparison between the reference image and the tested image was based on the location and pixel value from the peer-to-peer array between the two images in the orthogonal coordinate system similar to Cartesian. The evaluated image, representing the features of a location (in this study used map coordinate) was identical to the reference image, and the evaluation of the image with a location or different range of under cover with the reference image was not correct. In this study, the subsets with the same map coordinates were obtained, and then, after running some more processing on them, they were still at the same map coordinate. 3- Results Detection of various features of coastal zones is one of the important factors in the implementation and management of natural resources and the implementation of coastal projects. The purpose of this paper was to reveal the coastline and their changes in the Miankaleh region between 2001, 2009, and 2016. Three-edge detector filters were used on the processed images to gain the coastlines. The results of image processing and signal-to-noise calculations as well as the mean square error, comparing the image of NDVI > 0 from Sentinel-2 sensor and the filtered images, showed that the Zerocross filter was better than the rest. 4- Conclusions & Suggestions The results showed tangible changes with varying ranges on coasts and coastlines. These changes may be due to factors such as (1) the change in the level of the Caspian Sea during the study period, (2) the change in the coastal area, assuming that the Caspian Sea level was constant, etc. From 2001 to 2016, the changes observed on the northeastern coast of the Miankale peninsula was less. Coastal vulnerability from the factors such as rapid change in the sea level may vary from East to West of this area. This article provided some background information for future research on coastal conservation and management.  }, Keywords = {Coastline, Edge detector, Landsat, NDVI, PSNR, Sentinel-2A}, volume = {7}, Number = {4}, pages = {58-81}, publisher = {University of Hormozgan}, url = {http://magazine.hormozgan.ac.ir/article-1-406-en.html}, eprint = {http://magazine.hormozgan.ac.ir/article-1-406-en.pdf}, journal = {Environmental Erosion Research Journal}, issn = {2251-7812}, eissn = {2717-3968}, year = {2018} } @article{ author = {Motamedi, Razieh and Azari, Mahmoo}, title = {The Relationship between Geomorphic Characteristics and Watershed Sediment Yield: A Case of Selected Subwatersheds of Khorasan Razavi}, abstract ={Extended abstract 1- Introduction Soil erosion by water is a dominant geomorphic process which threatens food security in most parts of the world .The geomorphic characteristics of a watershed play an important role in watershed hydrology, soil erosion processes and sediment yield. Geomorphic characteristics can be an indicator of soil erosion and sedimentation of a watershed. Geomorphic characteristics of watersheds are classified into linear, relief, and areal categories. Linear characteristics include stream number, bifurcation ratio, stream length and streams order. Relief characteristics include three-dimensional features of the watershed such as hypsometric integral, ruggedness number, and relative relief. Areal characteristics encompass morphological characteristics such as drainage density, stream frequency and watershed shape parameters. Accessibility to Digital Elevation Models and remote sensing data as sediment yield predictors simplify the calculation of the watershed geomorphic characteristics. The purpose of this study was to use the latest capabilities of geographic information system to extract the watershed geomorphic characteristics and determine their relationship with sedimentation in the subwatersheds of Khorasan Razavi province. 2- Methodology This study was conducted in 22 subwatersheds in Mashhad, Neyshabour and Fariman watersheds in Khorasan Razavi province. In order to select appropriate subwatersheds, the hydrometric and rainfall data for hydrometric and meteorological stations were obtained from Khorasan Razavi Regional Water authority for the selected watersheds. Annual sediment load was calculated using sediment rating curve method. Physiographic and geomorphic characteristics including 30 geomorphic parameters were calculated for each subwatershed using Digital Elevation Model with spatial resolution of 30 m. In order to determine the relationship between geomorphic characteristics and sediment yield of the subwatersheds, a multivariate regression stepwise analysis was used. In the multivariate regression, the important geomorphic characteristics which affected watershed sedimentation were identified and based on those parameters, the best annual sediment yield and geomorphic characteristics equation were presented. 3- Results The subwatershed areas under study vary from 40 square kilometers for the Chakaneh Olya to 9339 square kilometers for the Hossein Abad subwatershed. The average annual sediment yield for the studied subwatersheds during the period of 30 years varied from 1026 tons per year in the Jang subwatershed to 274572 tons per year at Hossein Abad watershed. The subwatersheds of Kalateh Rahman and Jang had the highest and lowest sediment yield, respectively, with 317 and 5 tons per square kilometers. The relationship between geomorphic characteristics and sediment yield of subwatersheds showed that the annual sediment yield had a positive correlation at the 5% confidence level with form factor and annual rainfall. The results of this study showed that the watershed shape parameters including form factor, elongation ratio and shape index had high correlations with sediment yield with the pertaining coefficients of 76.8, 76.5 and 72 percent, respectively. Also, the correlation coefficient of annual rainfall with annual sediment yield was 73.9 percent. After rainfall and form factor, elongation ratio was the third parameter that had a high correlation coefficient (76%) with sediment yield. In addition, watershed shape index which was a function of form factor was correlated with sediment yield at 72%.  Among these characteristics, the annual rainfall and watershed form factor were used in the stepwise regression in the final model and were selected as predictor variables for sediment yield. Study results showed that the annual rainfall and watershed form factor variables could predict 64% of the annual sediment yield of the studied watersheds. 4- Discussion & Conclusions The results of this study indicated that there was a significant relationship between the geomorphic characteristics of the studied watersheds and annual sediment yield. Watershed form factor was a dimensionless index for flood flow and movement, erosion severity and sediment transport capacity of watersheds. This factor was a function of watershed area and length. The runoff and the amount of flood peak in bigger watersheds will increase the sediment yield. Many researches have reported a high correlation between rainfall and sediment yield. Arid climate and poor vegetation coverage in the selected watersheds were the main reasons for the high correlation of rainfall and sediment yield. Soil erosion and sediment yield would increase due to the high intensity and low duration of rainfall along with the scarcity of vegetation coverage and erodible soils in this region. Overall, the study results indicated that with the development of new technologies and the possibility of extracting different physiographic and geomorphic parameters of watersheds from a Digital Elevation Model, it is possible to present regional equations for the prediction of sediment yield using geomorphic characteristics that can be used in sediment control and Watershed Management Programs.}, Keywords = {GIS, Khorasan Razavi, Multivariate regression, Quantitative Geomorphology, Sediment yield}, volume = {7}, Number = {4}, pages = {82-101}, publisher = {University of Hormozgan}, url = {http://magazine.hormozgan.ac.ir/article-1-423-en.html}, eprint = {http://magazine.hormozgan.ac.ir/article-1-423-en.pdf}, journal = {Environmental Erosion Research Journal}, issn = {2251-7812}, eissn = {2717-3968}, year = {2018} } @article{ author = {nematolahi, mohamad javad and kaboli, hasan and yazdani, mohamad reza and mohamadi, yaser}, title = {The Role of Microfinance Intermediation in Empowering Rural Women and Reducing the Socio-Economic Impacts of Dust Storm: A Case of South Khorasan International Carbon Project}, abstract ={Extended abstract 1- Introduction Today, dust storms are one of the natural hazards that affect the comfort and life of the inhabitants of the areas exposed to them. Hussein Abad Ghaynab, the site of the International Carbon Sourcing Project, located near the Afghanistan border, has a dry and fragile climate exposed to 120-day winds of Sistan. Due to the presence of Afghan refugees in the region in the 1360s who were planting for cooking, along with the livelihoods of the livestock, the desert meadows of this plain were severely degraded, which caused the decay of vegetation to exacerbate the wind erosion caused by the wind 120-day old Sistan. Carbon Sequestration Project (CSP) is a joint initiative of Iran’s Forest, Range and Watershed Organization, the Global Environment Facility (GEF) and Unit Nation Development Program (UNDP). The project aims to reduce global greenhouse gas emissions and climate change, the national goal of reducing desertification and dust as well as the regional goal of mobilizing local communities and empowering rural communities to improve their social, economic and poverty alleviation. Accordingly, rural immigration began to work. The project has been instrumental in empowering the local community to manage pastures and economic activities, and by relying on specific strategies such as engaging participatory rural women, it used this community as a permanent associate in the management and rehabilitation of pastures in the region. The main objective of this project is the sustainability of natural resources, especially in the areas rehabilitated by reducing the village's dependence on natural resources by skill and non-skill training, creating alternative livelihoods with job empowerment and addressing villagers in the region, especially rural women. The purpose of this study is to examine the role of micro-credit intermediation on the empowerment of rural women and to reduce the socio-economic impacts of dust storms.     2- Methodology The present research has an applied objective which has been done by descriptive-analytical method. The sampling method is the census or the whole number of women receiving the credits. The data gathering tool in this research is a researcher-made questionnaire. The sampling method is the census or the total number of women receiving the credits. The data gathering tool in this research is a researcher-made questionnaire. The first part of the questionnaire is related to the information related to trusted credit funds, such as the duration of membership in trusted funds, how to get acquainted with micro-funds, and the amount of loans received. The cost of borrowing, the satisfaction of the loan repayment period, and the individual characteristics of respondents such as age, education, family members, source of family income before membership, and family income. The second part of the questionnaire consists of each dimension of empowerment (impact on family decision-making, situation in society, political, economic and effect on self-esteem), which were designed in Likert scale. In order to ensure the validity of the questionnaire, the research committee examined and verified the various dimensions of the questionnaire. The reliability level of the questionnaire was obtained using Cronbach alpha (0.952), indicating a high index.   3 – Results   Two variables such as age of the members and loan adequacy in all dimensions of empowerment were significant and positive. The results of this study showed that the granted micro-credits improved the socio-economic conditions of rural women, so that the granted credits had the most significant impact on the rural dimension of rural empowerment. It showed that with the variables such as monthly income, age, membership in microfinance, the adequacy of the loan, the amount of loans and the level of education of rural women had a positive and significant relationship. In other words, the greatest impact of these credits on the economic empowerment of rural women indicated that rural women were able to provide new income for their families and reduce the dependence of their households on rangeland and contribute to the rehabilitation of pastures, resulting in dust reduction. 4- Discussion & Conclusions Based on the results, the most significant impact of these credits on the economic empowerment of rural women was that rural women were able to provide new revenues for their households and reduce the dependence of their households on rangeland and contribute to the rehabilitation of rangelands. The results of the research indicated the rural livelihood dependency on the rangeland, so that the occupation included 70% of the rural women's livestock spouses. Therefore, the necessity of empowerment of rural women and increasing income of rural households and consequently the reduction of pasture dependency and carbon sequestration were felt more. The average age of members trusting microfinance indicated that young rural women belonging to microfinance funds acknowledged that they were looking for decent jobs and income for their households. Based on the results, rural women by using microfinance funds were able to provide new income for their families and reduce their dependence on rangeland and contribute to the rehabilitation of pastures, which resulted in a reduction of dust.}, Keywords = {Microfinance, rural women, dust storm}, volume = {7}, Number = {4}, pages = {102-116}, publisher = {University of Hormozgan}, url = {http://magazine.hormozgan.ac.ir/article-1-429-en.html}, eprint = {http://magazine.hormozgan.ac.ir/article-1-429-en.pdf}, journal = {Environmental Erosion Research Journal}, issn = {2251-7812}, eissn = {2717-3968}, year = {2018} }