mohammad hassan sadeghi ravesh

Considering the spread of desertification and the emergence of its extensive and long-term effects on the environment and human activities, appropriate management methods can reduce the intensity and spread of this phenomenon. Therefore, executive actions in this field should be based on knowledge of the current state of land desertification and its future development. Therefore, this research was conducted to evaluate the risk of desertification using VPM and WASPAS scoring models and a geographic information system as a case study in the Yazd-Khizrabad Plain from 2021 to 2022. In the framework of these models, effective indicators are identified based on field and library studies. The working units were then determined by the geomorphology method and the importance of the indicators in each unit was obtained in the form of pairwise comparisons based on the Delphi method. Next, the importance of the indices was estimated using the Shannon entropy method, and a decision matrix was formed. After balancing, zoning of the desertification intensity potential was performed by calculating the desirability coefficient using the VPM and WASPAS scoring methods in the ArcGIS software environment. results obtained showed that the land units of the Mountain Agriculture Ground (MAG) and Plain Agriculture Ground (PAG) have the highest desertification potential, which covers 7335.86 ha (35.9%) of the entire study area. Most of the land in the region is under the influence of desertification with a relatively moderate intensity (III). The quantitative value of the desertification potential for the whole region based on all the indicators was placed in the middle class (IV). The results of this study indicate the efficiency and ease of application of the VPM and WASPAS point approach techniques in evaluating the intensity of desertification.

Desertification is a complex socio-economic issue resulting from the interaction of several factors. This phenomenon is always in uncertain environments and is strongly influenced by vague and implicit judgments. Therefore, the use of multi-criteria fuzzy decision-making mechanisms seems necessary in evaluating desertification strategies. On the other hand, often the input data to these devices are inaccurate and variable. So, performing sensitivity analysis on output data is an important step in such evaluations. The aim of this study was to analyze the sensitivity of priority strategies in the Yazd-Khezrabad sub-catchment in central Iran.

In order to achieve this goal, first in the framework of fuzzy multi-criteria decision-making method and with using triangular number, fuzzy pairwise comparison decision matrix was formed and the initial priority of strategies was estimated. Then the sensitivity analysis process was performed separately on the criteria and strategies in the framework of the Triantaphyllou-sensitivity analysis model. Following the determination of the most sensitive criteria and strategy, new weights of criteria and strategies were replaced based on the most sensitive criteria and strategy in the decision matrix. By calculating the weighted average of each row of the modified normalized matrix, the degree of preference or final weight of the strategies was estimated.

The results showed that the adjustment strategy in groundwater abstraction (A31) is still considered as the most important strategy as the initial results with a degree of preference of 92.9%. While the ranking of other strategies has undergone serious changes.

It is concluded that according to the mentioned macro strategy, the process of desertification can be slowed down and the destroyed areas revived by implementing aquifer projects, improving irrigation methods, land improvement, controlling the growth of industries and aquaculture crops.

As desertification is growing rapidly, adopting appropriate managerial strategies could help reduce its extension and prevent its development and spread. Otherwise, the loss of resources such as time, energy, etc., would bring about destructive consequences for the efforts made to combat desertification. On the other hand, the process of land desertification results from the interactions between various factors that always operate under uncertain conditions, being strongly influenced by vague and implicit judgments. However, no comprehensive method has been introduced yet to offer operational and reliable solutions for evaluating the strategies used for combating desertification based on a systematic collective fuzzy approach. Therefore, this study sought to combine the fuzzy theory with multi-criteria decision-making methods to evaluate the strategies used in combating desertification, using the Fuzzy DEMATEL method.

The fuzzy DEMATEL technique is a comprehensive method for creating and analyzing a structural model made out of causal relationships between a variety of complex factors under uncertain conditions. Accordingly, after determining the prioritized criteria and strategies via the fuzzy Delphi method and creating a fuzzy mean pair-wise comparison matrix, the matrix was changed to the normalized initial direct-relation matrix  according to equation 1:xij=zijr=lijr,mijr,uijr  (1) Then the mass communication matrix was formed by Eq. 2 (Table 1), showing the relative effect of direct and indirect relationships in a system.T=limk→∞X+X2+…+XK(2) Table (1): Fuzzy Mass Communication Matrix Di     D1 t k1nk-1… t k12 t K11 Tij = D2    t k2nk-1… t k22 t k21 ׃ ׃ ׃ ׃ ׃ Dn t knknk-1… t knk2 t knk1 Rn… R2 R1 Ri tij=lij",mij",uij" In the fuzzy mass communication matrix, the sum line (Di) indicates the extent of that factor's influence on other system's factors and its corresponding sum column (Ri) suggests the intensity of the influence of other system's factors on that factor. Therefore, Di+Ri  determines the total mutual impact of the desired factor and other system's factors on each other, and Di-Ri  shows the extent of each factor's final effect (only the effect) on all other system's factors. Then, the Di+Ri  and Di-Ri  were de-fuzzed according to Eq.3 to facilitate the analysis of the findings. (3)   BNP=lij+uij-lij+mij-lij3  Finally, a causal diagram (cause and effect) including a Cartesian coordinate system was drawn, with its horizontal and vertical axes being graded based on Di+Ridef  and Di-Ridef  values, respectively. Di+Ridef is the total de-fuzzed cause and effect, and Di-Ridef is the extent of the de-fuzzed effect. Moreover, the position of each existing strategy was determined within the system according to a point whose coordinates were (A: Di+Ridef , Di-Ridef). In this system, the points above the horizontal line indicate the effect strategies and vice versa, and the points to the right of the vertical line suggest the cause strategies and vice versa (Fig. 1). Figure (1): The causal diagram and the display of strategies

According to the related literature, first, the matrix of the order of criteria's influence on each other, and the matrices of the order of strategies' influence on each other were created in terms of the goal and each criterion, respectively, finding that that the effective strategies differed based on each criterion. Therefore, to select final strategies and grade their impact, the matrix of the order of strategies' influence on each other was formed in terms of total criteria within the group. Table (2): The matrix of the order of influence of strategies on each other in terms of total criteria Di-Ridef Di+Ridef Di-Ri Di+Ri Di    Ri Alternatives -1.252 -0.098 -1.887, -0.956, -0.912 -0.480, -0.31, 0.496 -0.625, -0.633, -0.767 0.145, 0.323, 1.262 A23 1.646 0.903 1.110, 1.515, 2.313 0.406, 0.695, 1.607 0.776, 1.105, 1.942 -0.371, -0.410, -0.335 A18 -1.011 -0.444 -0.548, 1.058, -1.427 -0.075, -0.305, -0.954 -0.421, -0.681, -1.081 0.346, 0.376, 0.127 A33 -0.271 -0.078 -0.186, -0.264, -0.364 0.034, -0.123, -0.145 -0.121, -0.194, -0.209 0.155, 0.070, 0.064 A20 0.889 0.367 0.480, 0.763, 1.421 -0.019, 0.197, 0.922 0.324, 0.480, 1.078 -0.343, -0.283, -0.156 A31 Finally, the causal diagram (cause and effect) was drawn based on Table 2 (Fig. 2) to better interpret the results. Figure (2): The diagram of cause and effect (causal) strategies to combat desertification based on total criteria.

According to the study's results, "appropriateness and compatibility with the environment" (C7) with the intensity effect of Di-Ridef=0.874  were the most important criteria based on the Fuzzy DEMATEL perspective, followed by "Destruction of resources, and environmental and human damages" (C16), "Specialized human resources" (C6), "Scientific and technological tools" (C5), and "time”, with their effect intensity  Di-Ridef being 0.802 , -132 , -630, and -0.914, respectively, indicating the experts' concerns for the environmental issues and the existing challenges in terms of the destruction of the environment. Based on the above-mentioned criteria, "preventing inappropriate land-use change" (A18) with the intensity effect of Di+Ridef=0.903  is definitely the most effective strategy to achieve the goal. Moreover, in terms of increasing cause and decreasing effect, other strategies were found to be "Reduction in extracting water from groundwater resources"(A31), " Controlling livestock grazing "(A20), "Developing and restoring the vegetation" (A23), "Changing the irrigation pattern and implementing less water-consuming methods "(A33), whose intensity effect Di+Ridefwas 0.903 , -0.078, -0.098 , and -0.444, respectively . Therefore, it is suggested that the results of this study be considered in the plans devised to control and reduce the consequences of desertification and land restoration in the study area. In fact, the current study's findings enable the managers working in desert areas to use limited facilities and assets available to them to effectively control the desertification process, prevent the loss of national assets, and achieve better results.

Addressing the issue of desertification due to the multi-criteria nature, increasing development, extensive and long-term, and the simultaneous impact of land resources and human populations is necessary to achieve sustainable development. On the other hand, despite the implementation of various plans to combat desertification in the country, due to the existence of numerous obstacles and interaction between these obstacles, these programs have not been able to make much progress in this area. Therefore, this study was conducted as a case study in Yazd province to analyze obstacles to combating desertification.

For this purpose, the interpretive structural modeling (ISM) method was used. In this method, effective obstacles were first identified through the study of theoretical foundations and the Delphi technique with the participation of 30 field experts. Then, using interpretive structural modeling (ISM) analysis, the relationships between obstacles were determined and analyzed in an integrated manner. Finally, using the MICMAC method, effective obstacles were analyzed according to the impact and effectiveness on other obstacles.

The results of the analysis showed that there are no obstacles in the link group that indicates strong influence and dependence. At the same time, it was observed that the obstacles of "inappropriate conversion and change of land use" (C31) with a driving force of 10 and "multiplicity of policy centers and lack of interaction between them" (C6) with a driving force of 9, have a highest influence. and three obstacles of " general ignorance about the destruction of environment, new methods and knowledge of day " (C1), " absence of comprehensive desertification control schemes " (C2) and "lack of specialized and trained manpower" (C11) are also jointly located in the stimulus or Influential area with the driving force of 8 and are among the main obstacles to achieving the goals of the implementation of combating desertification projects.

Therefore, paying attention to the analysis of effective obstacles among a wide range of obstacles to combat desertification can quickly improve the unfavorable conditions and create sustainable structural changes in the process of combat desertification. accordingly, it is suggested that the obtained results be taken into consideration in the plans of combating desertification to preventing the waste of national capital.

Desertification is the process of ecological and biological reduction of land potential in a natural or unnatural way, mainly affecting arid regions. Moreover, it decreases land efficiency with increasing acceleration. Land resources and human populations exposed to desertification and land destruction are prone to various threats, including loss of land productivity, food insecurity, water scarcity, economic problems, social deprivation, and health risks. Therefore, the complex and important dimensions of this issue prompted the international community to state at the Rio Environment and Development Conference that one of the goals of sustainable development is to fight against desertification, and to stop and reverse land degradation.   Subsequently, the important role of appropriate and appropriate local measures in dealing with global threats, desertification, and land degradation was emphasized at the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD). Therefore, considering the limited resources and inputs, the sensitivity of ecosystems in desert areas, increasing success in implementing control plans and reducing the effects of desertification and restoration of destroyed lands, today the evaluation of desertification alternatives is considered as a determining factor in executive projects. Thus, it is necessary to design optimal methods for controlling and reducing this process. Therefore, this case study which was carried out in the Ardekan-Khezrabad plain sought to systematically evaluate optimal alternatives via a group decision model.  

To analyze and present effective alternatives, this study used Delphi method within the framework of multi-criteria decision-making method so that it can consolidate group opinions and use a pairwise comparison questionnaire, followed by a qualitative identification of the most important and prioritized criteria and alternatives. Then the significance of the criteria was estimated via special vector method. Finally, Bernardochr('39')s decision-making method was applied to finalize the alternatives and prioritize them. In the framework of this model, a ranking/criterion matrix was formed for each strategy in order to influence the weight of criteria in the selection of alternatives. The weights of the criteria were multiplied in these matrices based on the relation (1), and an agreement line matrix was formed for each strategy.  (1)  Then, the consensus matrix of the total alternatives was created from the sum of the consecutive line matrices of each strategy. After the formation of the agreement matrix, the total number of times that each strategy ranked in position 1 to k was estimated in the form of a compression agreement matrix according to the relationship 2. (2)     Finally, after influencing the weights of the criteria in the alternatives in the form of a consensual consensus matrix and the formation of an allocation model (Equation 3) for each strategy, the models were solved and the final priority of the alternatives was determined, using Lingo software.    (3)

According to the research literature, the importance of criteria in the desertification process was estimated from a special vector method. The results showed that the criteria of "Proportionality and compatibility with environment" (C7) was at the highest level of importance with a coefficient significance of 0.33877, followed by  "Destruction of Resources and Environmental and Human Damages" (C16) with a coefficient significance of 0.3111, "Expert Human Resources" (C6) with a coefficient significance of 0.1571, " Scientific tools and technology available" (C5) with a coefficient significance of 0.1039, and "time" (C2) with a coefficient significance of 0.9090, respectively, indicating the attention of experts and specialists to environmental issues and challenges in the field of environmental degradation. In general, according to the results of the final prioritization of alternatives, the highest value of the objective functions was found to be 6.7. Therefore, "Prevention of unsuitable land-use changes" (A18), "Modification of groundwater harvesting" (A31), and "Vegetation cover development and reclamation" (A23) were selected as the most appropriate subsets of current alternatives.  

The results of the application of the final prioritization of alternatives based on Bernardochr('39')s method showed that this method was catheterized by flexibility, high efficiency, ease of use, the possibility of using software such as Lingo and EC, and evaluation of alternatives based on a set of effective quantitative and quantitative criteria in-group format. In addition to using multiple criteria for decision making, it considers resource constraints in implementing alternatives or projects, providing an opportunity for decision-makers in the field of natural resources to use the limited facilities and capital allocated to control the desertification process in the right and efficient ways for better results while preventing the waste of national capital.

In order to increase efficiency and prevent the waste of limited capitals of combating desertification projects, there is always no a way that could consider different criteria, strategies and among them, based on a systematic structure and group perspective, offers the optimal solution. The aim of this study was to present a method to rank the optimal strategies to combat desertification in the Yazd-Khezrabad plain based on Multiple Attribute Decision Making model (MADM) using Linear Programming Techniques for Multidimensional Analysis of Preferences (LINMAP) model. In this method, by finding the Euclidean distance of the strategies with the best strategy, the most preferred strategy was selected. In this regard, the problem was transformed into a linear mathematical model, which after running the model in the LINGO software environment, the weight of each strategy, the distance from the ideal strategy and the ideal strategy were estimated. From a LINMAP evaluation model perspective, based on the preference results of five criteria surveyed including Environmental compatibility (C7), environmental and human resource degradation (C16), specialized human resources (C6), scientific and technological tools (C5) and time (C2), the strategies of vegetation regeneration and rehabilitation " (A23), "prevention of inappropriate land uses change" (A18) and "adjustment in groundwater abstraction" (A31) with a distance of 16.20, 16.22 and 16.35 were selected as the most important strategies to combat desertification in the region, respectively. The results of present study enable the desert managers to utilize limited resources and budget dedicated to control desertification process in a correct and efficient manner. Therefore, the results of the mentioned ranking can increase the success rate of combating desertification and land reclamation projects in the study area.

Different decision-making models are applied for assessing the combating desertification alternatives and providing optimal alternatives through taking into account the total effective measures that sometimes the results of the prioritization of these models are not consistent. This issue depends on the nature of the model, the considered criteria, and the way of weighing the criteria as a group by the experts. So, there is need for presenting some functions in some groups to prioritize the alternatives offered in each region by the different models on the basis of logic and strong principles and theoretical foundations. In this paper, it has been tried to do so by using the social welfare functions. The function of Group Ranking Value (GRV) was used in this study and the combating desertification alternatives resulted from the 13 decision-making models in the Khezrabad Region of Yazd were analyzed. In this regard, after the formation of coordinated and uncoordinated sets, different solutions were estimated in each set and finally, the objective function (Tobj) was calculated for any of the resulted solutions in order to achieve the final solution. The solution with the highest T value was presented as the final and collective alternative. The obtained results indicated that the first solution or in other words, the alternative order of A18>A23>A31>A20>A23 is the best order for the presented alternatives.

Desertification is defined as land degradation in arid, semi-arid and dry sub-humid that caused as a result of various factors including climatic variations and human activities. Desertification causes many restrictions in terms of agriculture, food security, livestock rising, industry and providing service costs. This phenomenon is a process that gradually developed and accelerated and adjustment costs are increasing exponentially, so according to resource constraints and the desert area sensitivity, providing optimal Combat desertification alternatives natively is necessary to achieve success in controlling and reducing the effects of this phenomenon among different regions. Therefore, this study was performed to provide a systematic and optimal alternative in a group decision-making model. To this aim, at the first in the framework of Multiple Attribute Decision-making (MADM), indices priority was determined using the Eigenvector model. Then, alternatives priority was evaluated by the VIKOR model. Assessing selecting conditions of optimal alternatives in the context of the mentioned model showed that  Prevention of unsuitable land use changes (A18), vegetation cover development and reclamation (A23) and modification of groundwater harvesting (A31) with VIKOR index of =0, 0.3083 and 0.6241were selected as the main desertification hazards control alternative in the study area​​, respectively. Therefore, it is suggested that the obtained results and ranking should be considered in projects of controlling and reducing the effects of desertification and rehabilitation of degraded land plans.

Different decision-making models are applied for assessing and providing the desertification optimal strategies through taking into account the total effective measures that sometimes the results of the prioritization of these models are not consistent. This issue depends on the nature of the model, the considered criteria, and the way of weighing the criteria as a group by the experts. So, there is need for presenting some functions in some groups to prioritize the strategies offered in each region by the different models on the basis of logic and strong principles and theoretical foundations.

In this paper, it has been tried to do so by using the Social Choice functions. The Social Choice functions are a counting method from a set of given alternatives to resolve the voting paradox and the inconsistency of prioritizing. Therefore, for the final selection from the Nanson, Kemeny and Gopeland functions are used and the desertification strategies were analyzed.

The obtained results from functions indicated that, the alternatives of prevention of unsuitable land use changes (A18), vegetation cover development and reclamation (A23) and modification of ground water harvesting (A31) respectively were identified as the most important alternatives for combating desertification in the region.

The results of the evaluation of the strategies showed that the obtained rankings are somewhat different from each other, which is mainly due to the structure of the methods. The results of this study enable the managers of desert areas to use the limited facilities and funds allocated to control the desertification process in correct and efficient ways in order to achieve better results, to avoid wastage. Prevent the outflow of national funds. Therefore, it was suggested that in the plans to control and reduce the effects of desertification and rehabilitation of degraded lands, the results and rankings obtained should be considered.

One of the main goals of de-desertification projects are reducing poverty and removing discrimination between different regions. Determination and analysis of current status of desertification in different regions is the first step in processing of regional sustainable development, and determination of deficiencies and problems. For this aim this analytical study was conducted to determine the development levels of desertification indices of Yazd province using Scalogram model. And after the formation of the matrix of terrain mapping units and estimate the ultimate value, the first, layers were provided by ArcView, and the results of ranking of cities were presented in the form of development map. The results showed that the cities of Abarkooh, Bafgh have almost the best condition respectively, and Yazd, Taft, Mehriz and Khatam are the poorest cities. With regard to the distribution of effective potential sources there is a large gap between cities of Yazd province from view point of planning and implementation of desertification projects. Therefore, it is suggested that the obtained results and ranking should be considered in budgeting and planning process for future cities development in terms of desertification.

Today, desertification is considered as a severe problem in most countries of the world, including the developing ones. Despite the serious environmental, social and economical impact of desertification phenomenon, few studies have been done to provide optimal alternatives. The aim of this study was to evaluate the alternatives for combating desertification in order to achieve optimal alternatives in the context of the sustainable management of deserts.

To achieve this goal, the Multi-Attribute Utility Theory (MAUT) has been applied in the context of Multi-Attribute Decision-making (MADM) models. In order to determine the weights of criteria and alternatives, it was used the modified Delphi and Shannon entropy techniques, while the final rating of alternatives was performed using the Multi-Attribute Utility Theory (MAUT) function. The model was applied to evaluate the efficiency in providing the optimal alternatives in Khezerabad Region of Yazd Province.

The results showed that, the alternatives of prevention of unsuitable land use changes (A18) by a utility factor of 0.7429, vegetation cover development and reclamation (A23) by a utility factor of 0.6573 and modification of ground water harvesting (A31) by a utility factor of 0.3184 respectively were identified as the most important alternatives for combating desertification in the region.

These results might able the managers to properly and efficiently use the limited available facilities and funds in order to control the desertification. In addition, achieveing better results, this might prevent the waste of national resources.

Nowadays, Desertification is one of the greatest environmental challenges. It is a global issue and its serious consequences affect on biodiversity, environmental safety, poverty eradication, economic and social stability and sustainable development around the world. Despite the serious environmental, social and economic impact of desertification phenomenon, few studies have been done in providing optimal alternatives. This paper tries to provide systematic and optimal alternatives in a group decision-making model. At the first in the framework of Multiple Attribute Decision-making (MADM), indices preference was determined using shannon entropy, then alternatives priority was evaluated by ORESTE model. The results showed that alternative of vegetation cover development and reclamation (A23) with general rating of = 46.5 is the most important alternative in de-desertification prosess in the study area, and alternatives of prevention of unsuitable land use changes (A18) and Livestock grazing Control (A20) were in the next priority with general rating of 53.5 and 69, respectively. Therefore, it is suggested that the obtained results and ranking should be considered in projects of controlling and reducing the effects of desertification and rehabilitatyion of degraded lands plans.

Desertification is one the main problems of arid and semi-arid ecosystems in the world. The rapid growth of human population and excessive exploitation of resources have exacerbated the negative consequences of this phenomenon, such as poverty, diseases and human growth inequalities. So, In order to control and reduce desertification, presenting important strategies based on all the effective factors is necessary. This paper aims to provide a systematic and optimal de-desertification approach in a group decision-making model. For this aim, within the framework of multi-attribute decision-making procedure, a decision matrix was obtained by Delphi method. Then, the approach priority was determined by principal factor analysis. Based on the results, among 40 investigated strategies and 16 criteria, the strategies of development and reclamation of plant cover (A23), change of irrigation patterns (A33), prevention of improper change in land use (A18), and control of using groundwater sources (A31) were selected with the priority rates of 0.6122, 0.5102 and 0.4391 respectively. Thereby, they were introduced as the most important strategies to deal with desertification in the study area. The results and the ranks obtained in this study can be considered in projects of controlling or reducing the effects of desertification and in the plans for rehabilitation of degraded lands.

Desert ecosystem management includes a set of multiple management measures taken with the aim of optimal control of desertification phenomenon and reducing the economical, social and environmental losses. The issues related to the management of desert areas are complex matters because of the existence of multiple decision-making criteria and indices and there are several solutions to achieve a specific objective, each of which provides different preferences for the various environmental, social, political, economical, and organizational issues. These requirements necessitate using the Multi-Attribute Decision Making (MADM) methods which aim to choose the best answer from among the different solutions. By reviewing the literature, it can be found that the use of the decision-making models in providing the optimal strategies in the management of the desert areas is only limited to some studies such as Grau, Sadeghi Ravesh and Sepehr and Peroyan.
The obtained results from the prioritization of strategies indicated that the conclusions made by the models of AHP, TOPSIS, Electra, Weighted Sum, permutation, BORDA, and etc. are largely similar. However, the obtained numerical values vary from each other due to the structure of these models. Therefore, it is necessary to offer some functions to prioritize the strategies offered in each region by using different models on the basis of logic and strong principles and theoretical foundations. In this paper, it has been tried to achieve this goal using the Social Welfare Functions. In this regard, the function of B&C was used in the present study and the desertification strategies derived from the 13 decision-making models were analyzed in the Khezrabad Rigion of Yazd.
The assessment method of B&C was first introduced by Asgharpour to provide the best view from the different options. The B & C function is a social welfare function that uses the majority method in priority, in such a way that transferability will be achieved in the process of prioritizing options. In this way, the objective function dn (P,L) reflects the sum of the "missed opportunity" of choosing the priority-ranking, or, in other words, indicating the total "disagreement with the prioritization with existing privileges" that should be minimized as a result.
In summary, the procedures for using this method are as follows: - Formation of the matrix P according to Eq.1
(1)
- Formation of the matrix L according to Eq.2
(2)
-Convex Multidimensional Formation according to Eq.3
(3)
-Formation of the decision- making function of the majority d (P, L) according to Eq.4
(4)
-Prioritize the desired options (strategy) according to Eq.5
(5)
In order to comparative compare, prioritizing the strategies was done in the form of 13 multi-criteria models for decision-making in the plains of Khezrabad in Yazd. The results of evaluating the strategies based on the decision-making models showed that although about 70 percent of the results are similar, the rankings obtained are somewhat different, that these results are due to the method's structures. Therefore, in order to achieve strategic priority as a group and the final solution of the total results of decision-making models, the Social Welfare Functions of B&C was used according to the literature.
Taking in to account the totality of criteria and alternatives and with analysis, in general, that alternative of prevention of unsuitable land use changes (A18), alternative of vegetation cover development and reclamation (A23), modification of ground water harvesting (A31), Livestock grazing Control (A20) and Change of irrigation patterns (A33) are the most important alternative in de-desertification prosess in the study area, respectively. Therefore , we accept this ranking as a final and collective ranking. So, by the use of these alternatives in de-desertification projects, we can prevent desertification phenomenon in this area and do something for reclamation of degraded land.
Discussion and Detailed assessment of the strategies and choosing the optimal strategies are important factors in increasing the effectiveness of desertification plans, otherwise, wasting the resources such as time, energy and other inputs have serious and destructive impacts on achieving the results. In the meantime, decision-making models are used to achieve the optimal strategies, that for different reasons their results are somewhat different in each region. In order to achieve the group and final strategies, in the present study we used the social welfare function of GRV and the desertification strategies resulted from 13 decision-making models were analyzed in the region of Khezrabad in Yazd. The results showed that the strategy order of A18> A23> A31> A20> A23 is the best presented strategy order.
Finally, it is recommended that the desertification programs in the study regions should emphasize on these strategies to prevent wasting the limit capitals and increase the output of the control, rehabilitation and reconstruction programs.
The results of the present study enable the managers of the desert areas to use the limited funds allocated to control the desertification process in a Correct and efficient manner to in addition to achieve better results, prevent wasting national wealth.

Wind erosion has high potential for damage, especially in arid region due to continuity and extent of erosion in time and space. Therefore, the damage to economic resources is impressive especially soil and vegetation. So, a comprehensive understanding of its formation, function, effects and affected areas is essential. This study was implemented for finding the source of wind erosion and sand movement direction in Khezrabad region, Yazd Province. In this study, Yazd synoptic station anemometer data was analyzed over a period of 15 years (2001-2015) using Sand Rose Graph 3.0, WD convert and Wrplot View. The results of the spatial analysis of data from the anemometer (wind rose) showed that the dominant wind direction of Khezrabad Plain is Western with 18.77 percentage of calm wind with speed less than a knots (0.54 meters per second). The results of the calculation and drawing Storm Rose provided based on wind erosion threshold velocity of 6.5 meters per second showed that erosive winds mainly blow from the West-North West (WNW) and North West (NW) and West winds (W) less frequency. According to Storm Rose drawn, the frequency of calm winds (less than 6.5 m/s) in the region is about 96%. This indicates that erosive wind include only about 4 percent of views. Storm Rose provided based on speed threshold showed that North-West (NW), South-West (SW) winds have the most Drift Potential (DP) respectively. The Resultant Drift Direction (RDD) is around 74 degree (Northeast).

One of the main goals of de-desertification projects are reducing poverty and removing discrimination between different regions. Determination and analysis of current status of desertification in different regions is the first step in processing of regional sustainable development, and determination of deficiencies and problems.
For this aim this analytical study was conducted to determine the development levels of desertification indices of Yazd province using Scalogram model. And after the formation of the matrix of terrain mapping units and estimate the ultimate value, the first, layers were provided by ArcView, and the results of ranking of cities were presented in the form of development map.
Findings: The results showed that the cities of Abarkooh, Bafgh have almost the best condition respectively, and Yazd, Taft, Mehriz and Khatam are the poorest cities. With regard to the distribution of effective potential sources there is a large gap between cities of Yazd province from view point of planning and implementation of desertification projects.
Therefore, it is suggested that the obtained results and ranking should be considered in budgeting and planning process for future cities development in terms of desertification.

Desertification is a global problem in most arid and semiarid countries including Iran are facing with this problem. Desertification causes many restrictions in terms of agriculture, food security, livestock rising, industry and providing service costs. This phenomenon is a process which gradually developed and accelerated and adjustment costs is increasing exponentially, so according to resource constraints and the desert area sensitivity, providing optimal combat desertification alternatives natively is necessary to achieve success in controlling and reducing the effects of this phenomenon among different regions. This paper tries to provide systematic and optimal alternatives in a group decision-making model. At the first in the framework of Multiple Attribute Decision-making (MADM), indices preference was determined using Eigenvector model. Alternatives priority was evaluated by Borda model. The results showed that the alternative of prevention of unsuitable land use changes (A18) is the most important alternative in combat desertification prosess in the study area and alternatives of vegetation cover development and reclamation (A23) and modification of ground water harvesting (A31) were in the next priority, respectively. Therefore, it is suggested that the obtained results and ranking should be considered in projects of controlling and reducing the effects of desertification and rehabilitatyion of degraded lands plans.

One of the main goals of sustainable agriculture projects is poverty reduction, discrimination among different regions in the context of environmental protection. Land capability assessment is the first step in the process of sustainable development. Due to the physiological properties of saffron, its resistance to drought and high temperatures, its role in socio-economic status and considering the vast dry climate area in the country, this analytical study was conducted to determine the land capability for saffron cultivation. For this aim, in the form of fuzzy multi-criteria decision-making methods, Bonissone method was used to determine land capability in every land use. In this method, the required information layers were provided in ArcGIS software. Then the data was fuzzed using Chen and Huang method. Following the procedure fuzzy analysis was performed on data and finally fuzzy data were become to no fuzzy and estimation of potential land capability was conducted. The obtained results showed that that a total of 785 km2, 365 km2 (46.56%), 321 km2 (40.9%) and 98.4 km2 (12.54%) have suitable, average and relatively unsuitable ability for Saffron cultivation respectively. The results showed the efficiency of fuzzy logic to assessment land capability. The results of this study provide better planning to minimize the effects of the destruction caused by culture development projects and can create condition that provide balance among development and environment projects according to the priorities and zonation of land capability.

According to desert habitation sensitivity and for optimum management of these areas and zone, it is essential that all effective factors in the habitation situation are investigated. Therefore in this research the relationship between wind erosion as a climatic-anthropogenic common phenomenon in desert area and under protected areas is studied in Yazd Province. By estimating the rate of wind erosion in such area, the capability of environment for providing appropriate conditions for animal species subsistence can also be estimated. This research has two parts: first, using of iso-erosion map and under protected areas map in order to determine of affected regions in every zone. Second, determination of habitation value of four under protected areas on the basis of food, water and security as three variable factors. Finally the correlation of the value of each habitation with the area of the regions was determined. The results showed there is strong correlation between two mentioned factors (r = -0.87). It means that effective factors of the increase of wind erosion amount affect on the quality of protected habitation and habitation value reduce proportional with the increase of the area of affected regions.

Interoduction: Desertification is defined as land degradation in arid, semi-arid and dry sub-humid that happens as a result of various factors including climatic variations and human activities. Based on United Nations Conference of Desertification report desertification will threat more than 750 million peoples equivalent to 17.7% of the total world population living in arid area. Also in Iran 16 provinces with an area of 57.5 million ha have been located in desert conditions. Therefore, detection, control and management of desertification in a sustainable and balanced way seems essential. Necessary to achieve sustainable development is determining the degree of development of desertification criteria to provided ideal condition of appropriate framework in the distribution of facilities and services for arid land managers which can be determined and analyzed by the distance from them. This in addition to the protection of ecosystems fringe, also prevents the loss of national wealth. In the field of desert management except Sadeghiravesh researches which apply taxonomy and Morris model to study the development of regions from perspective of desertification, so far neither at international-level nor at national-level, have been conducted, and the assignment of resources and alternatives, only based on expert opinion and sometimes downward influence has been done.
It should be noted that these models have fundamental flaw while in evaluating of effective indexes, just the absolute value of each index in each region was considered and their priority relative to each other in the process of desertification was not considered which led to unrealistic results. Hence, first we decided to estimate the priority of indexes using Shannon Entropy Model, and assess the development of working units from the perspective of desertification activities.
The purpose of this study is to assess the degree of desertification development in regions, which was carried out in Yazd province by using the Shannon Entropy Model. The results of this study can be considered in planning for the sustainable development in desertification processes and the pattern of this model can be applicable in other parts of the country.
Material and The research was carried out by practical and analytical method. In this study, ten cities of Yazd province were analyzed by entropy Shannon method from viewpoint of desertification criteria development.
After determining indices (desertification activities), performance rate was determined for each index and in each city frim the relevant organization performance statistics. Data matrix was formed based on entropy model framework (Xij), and the data matrix values were normalized (Zij). In addition to estimate entropy indices (Ej) the importance of indices to each other (Wj) was determined. After determining coefficient of important indices, the final priority of strategies was obtained by multiplying normalized decision matrix component (Zij) in indices of importance (WJ); and priority coefficient matrix of units to each indices (Aij) was
formed. Finally from total row of the priority coefficient of each unit ( ∑ ij A ) , the
final priority of units was estimated.
For the ease and accuracy in analyzing the data and achieveing results based on the
relative convergence of working units from de-desertification ideal working units and
by using Arc View we attempted to prepare the map of developed cities.
With regard to the total criteria, conducted analyses and combining results, the cities of Bafgh, Ardaghan and Sadough have the most appropriate status with the degree of development of 0.7679, 0.5957 and 0.5389 respectively. The cities of Tabas, Maybod and Abarkooh with development degree of 0.4749, 0.2279 and 0.1583 were on the next level in terms of desertification development activities, while Khatam city had improper status with development degree of –o.4156 and the cities of Yazd, Taft and Mehriz together with zero preference coefficient had the most unfavorable and unstable conditions.
Achieving sustainability in the units of study needs to balance the developed area from the perspective of de-desertification which requires identifying the level of development. As in the research literature said, no systematic studies have been done and the only study was assessing the developed area by using numerical taxonomy model and Morris models. Also by considering the both; value of each index in each working unit and preference of indexes towards each other more accurate results were preferred compared to others models.According to the subjects that were discussed in brief, it is necessary to consider these three following issues; the results of the current development of de-desertification indexes, potential resources under threat of desertification and area of desert lands; for future planning and investments in order to achieve sustainable development.

Selecting appropriate alternatives considering effective criteria are useful to decision making for arid areas managers. The present study tries to present the main desertification strategies based on quantitative method. Other methods of the assessment of desertification strategies do not study the dependency and the relationship between criteria and alternatives in decision-making level. These methods only rank criteria and alternatives with the hierarchical structure, from up to down, and specify their weights. But complex internal relations between criteria and alternatives and their effects to achieve the ultimate goal requires a network analyzer. So in this study network analysis process (ANP) model were used. For modeling and analysis the data, internal and external dependencies matrix between alternatives and criteria were calculated. Alternatives were weighted using the designed network model and the main alternatives were evaluated and prioritized. The results showed that among 16 criteria and 40 final alternative surveyed, the results showed that the alternative of vegetation cover development and reclamation (A23) with general rating (Di= 0.2249) is the most important alternative in combating desertification process in the study area, and alternatives of prevention of unsuitable land use changes (A18) and modification of ground water harvesting (A31) were in the next priority with general rating of 0.2245 and 0.1852, respectively. Therefore, it was suggested that the results and ranking obtained should be considered in controlling and reducing the effects of desertification and rehabilitating degraded lands plans.

The assessment of de-desertification alternatives can be effective in controlling the reclamation of disturbed land and avoiding destruction of areas at risk. Until now, there has been no method to consider different criteria and alternatives, or to present the optimum alternatives based on systematic structures and experts’ perspectives. Desertification is a complex process resulting from various factors, including anthropogenic activities; the selection of optimum alternatives is a very difficult task. This paper attempts to represent the optimum alternatives based on the Multiple Attribute Decision-Making Model (MADM). For this purpose, the initial priorities for alternatives were determined by Expert Choice (EC) software via Elimination and Choice Translating Reality (known as ELECTRE). Then, the final priorities for alternatives were assessed using the Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP). This model was tested in the Khezr Abad region, Yazd Province, to evaluate the determination of optimum alternatives. The results indicated that prevention of unsuitable land use changes, vegetation cover development and reclamation, and changes in groundwater harvesting, with weight averages of 22.9, 21.8 and 19.1 %, respectively, are the most important desertification alternatives in the study area.

In order to enhance the efficiency of control plans, reclamation and restoration of destroyed lands and prevention of limited capitals loss are necessary. Absence of a method for covering various criteria and alternatives and proposing the optimal solutions based on a systematic structure and collective view has been always noticed in de-desertification plans. It has been always observed that the alternatives are proposed based on the expert’s partial, nonsystematic and non-holistic view while he or she has no experience in application of systematic models, such as Multiple Attribute Decision Making (MADM), in de-desertification. Therefore, in this study, the systematic Fuzzy Analytical Hierarchy Process (FAHP) model has been used for proposing optimal solutions to de desertification. In this study, opinions of experts about the priority of criteria and alternatives were assessed by Fuzzy Delphi method and Pirewise comparisons. Then, the final priority of alternatives was obtained by using fuzzy decision making matrix and FAHP model. This model was employed for assessing the efficiency of proposing optimal alternatives in Khezrabad region in Yazd province. According to the obtained results, modification of groundwater withdrawal, with an average weight of 93, was identified as the optimal de-desertification alternative in the study area, and other alternatives were found to have an insignificant role in control of desertification.

Surface contaminants entering into groundwater resources, especially in arid and semi-arid regions that faced with quality and quantity restrictions on water resources, is a serious problem. Therefore, identifying vulnerable areas and driven development programs to low-risk areas is essential to achieving sustainable development in water resources management. Hence, this paper tries to zoning aquifer vulnerability to contaminant factors based on hydrological and hydrogeological features of the study area. For this aim drastic model and geographical information system has been used for processing and analysis of groundwater quality. Drastic model is used from effective characteristics in aquifer vulnerability assessment including: aquifer depth, aquifer recharge, aquifer type, soil type, slope, topography, Ingredients unsaturated zone and electrical conductivity that provided in Arcview software as 7 layers. Finally the Map of aquifer contaminant was provided according to ranking, weighting and combining layers and drastic index for the whole area was estimated at 45 to 142. The result showed that 11.75% of the study areas in South and South West are highly vulnerable and 42.99% are moderate vulnerability.