An assessment of the impacts of land-use changes on groundwater quality in Yazd-Ardakan plain

Optimum water resources management requires a deep understanding of the impacts of land-use changes on the hydrological cycle of the region of interest. This study set out to make an illustration of land-use changes and its consequents on groundwater quality in Yazd-Ardakan plain. The data series on EC and SAR along with satellite imageries for 1997and 20015 were used to achieve this goal. The NDVI index was used to prepare land-use map for the study area. The results suggested a reduction of 300 Km2 in the area of rangelands during the time, which has been converted to residential and urban areas. It has also been shown that the groundwater quality of the southern parts is of suitable quality for agricultural purposes, and a major reduction could be trended further towards the north. Yet, signs of groundwater quality deterioration are evident especially in the northern and eastern sections. This could be attributed to the expansion of urban areas along with the intensification of industrial activities in Meybod and Ardakan counties, as well as illegal drillings and establishment of Pistachio orchards. The outcome has been shrinking rangeland areas with dwindling groundwater resources which are on the process of heavy salinization. These could be regarded as the symptoms of an alarming situation as the land is being rearranged for the activities which heavily depend on groundwater resource.