Determining Water requirement of Anzali Wetland based on Eco-Tourism Indices within the Framework of IWRM

Wetlands as the most important aquatic ecosystems, in addition to include many ecological values, have provided many goods and services to local communities. Determining the amount of water required to simultaneously preserve the environmental and socio-economic values ​​of wetland stakeholders, is essential given the key role of water in functions dependent on aquatic ecosystems. Normally, socio-economic issues are less considered in calculating the water needs of wetland ecosystems, but in comprehensive approaches within the IWRM framework, in addition to hydrological and ecological issues, socio-economic issues related to the livelihood of human communities are also considered. In the present study, Anzali International Wetland was selected as a case study, and the required depth and volume of the wetland for tourism purposes was determined using a combined method that uses hydrological, ecological, and socio-economic methods. In this method, at first, all the services that the wetland provides to local stakeholders were identified through face-to-face interviews, observation, and review of resources, and it was shown that in socio-economic issues, boating tourism is one of the most important factors in determining the required water of the wetland. In the next step, the locations of cooperatives and boating docks were identified, and by selecting ecological-tourism indicators, the optimal routes for moving motorboats to these places were identified.  By estimating the depth of water required for the movement of boats, the volume of water required for the tourism water needs in Anzali Wetland was estimated to be 130 million cubic meters, which is 50 million cubic meters more than the current volume of the wetland and also less than the minimum ecological needs of the wetland.