ali reza amobeigy

Social interactions of people create a link between them that is called social capital. Without these links, the possibility of cooperation between individuals and institutions is impeded. Therefore, the social capital is the main platform for the formation of economic relations in society. The main objective of this study was to investigate factors affecting the bonding social capital of Talayedaran cooperative’s members of Natural Resources and Watershed Management Project in west part of Shiraz County. For implementation of this study, a survey research was used. The questionnaire faces validity and the reliability was also verified. The study population included members of Talayedaran cooperative from three villages (Mokhtarabad, Bisotton and Tolekarei). The stratified random sampling method was used for the sample selection and finally 146 members were selected as sample group. Some research findings revealed that the average bonding social capital of Talayedaran cooperative’s members was at satisfactorily strong level. The correlation test showed that there is a significant and positive relationship between the variables of age and the years of education with bonding social capital. But no significant relation was observed between the variables of number of years of residence in the village, agricultural work experience, household size and amount of owned arable land with bonding social capital. In addition, correlation test showed that there is a synergetic effect between components of bonding social capital. The mean comparison test showed no significant difference between the average women’s bonding social capital and that of men, but women, in relation to components of trust, information exchange rate and network of informal relationship had higher score compared to men. The amount of bonding social capital and its components was lower in farmers compared to in non- farmers. Finally, some recommendations have been presented according to research findings at the end of article.

Environmental impact assessment is a planning tool that estimates the environmental impact of projects on the environment. This research was conducted to assess the environmental impact of the Natural Resources and Watershed Management Comprehensive Project in the west of Shiraz county (Bunrode Zangeneh sub watershed) from its users’ viewpoint. The results are intended to provide solutions to enhance the appropriateness of the project, in the aspect mentioned, using qualitative and quantitative research methods, survey techniques and semi-structured interviews. The sample group in this study included 268 members of the local Natural Resources and Watershed Management Cooperative. Stratified random sampling was used to select cooperative members. In the qualitative section of the research, according to the users’ viewpoint, internal and external factors affecting the project were recognized and classified using SWOT analysis. Twenty members of the cooperative were selected as the sample group for the qualitative part of the research. The findings of the quantitative part of the research revealed that the project did have an affect on environmental factors (soil quality, water and vegetation), based on the users’ viewpoint. Internal analysis of the project, based on the users’ viewpoint, revealed that the following factors were recognized as the important environmental strengths of the project: Reduction in surface flow, nutrient leaching and soil erosion, whereas, the important environmental weakness of the project included an inability to determine the precise boundaries between areas. External analysis of the project from the users’ viewpoint revealed that an important opportunity provided by the project included determination of the limits of national territories and the separation of private land, whereas, important environmental threats of the project included the shortage and poor distribution of rainfall. Several recommendations have been presented at the end of the paper for better project management in the future.