جستجوی مقالات مرتبط با کلیدواژه « استان خوزستان » در نشریات گروه « آبخیزداری، بیابان، محیط زیست، مرتع »

Limiting bioclimatic conditions, destructing natural tourist attractions, displacing the tourism calendar, climate change, and global warming may also displace tourism territories to different degrees (Xiu Xia et al., 2023). The findings of various studies assert that due to the increase in temperature, heat stress, and the deterioration of the bioclimatic conditions in the Mediterranean, Malaysia, and America, favorable areas for tourism have been moved to northern latitudes (Jong et al., 2023; Matzarakis & Amelung, 2008). The assessment of the effects of climate change on Iran's tourism also indicates an increase in the locational changes of favorable tourism sites and the shift of tourism classes from excellent or ideal to desirable and suitable due to the increase in temperature and droughts (Sobhani & Esmaeilzadeh, 2020; Moradjani, 2022; Abedi & Sedaghat, 2022; Farajzadeh & Ahmadabadi, 2010).Located in southwestern Iran, Khuzestan Province is regarded as a region with extensive and concentrated tourism capabilities, whose geographical features have led to the formation of mountain, plain, sea, desert, and even desert landscapes. Moreover,Khuzestan plain is known as the cradle of ancient and historical civilizations that continue to the coast of the Persian Gulf, where the cold months of the year (November to April) make the site a suitable place to visit (Borna, 2018, Rahimi et al., 2019). However, the temperature rate has been increasing by one to three degrees from 2017 on (Mohammadi et al., 2024), placing some restrictions on the tourism calendar. Therefore, climate change (2020–2080) may exert an adverse influence on tourism territories in their golden visiting time. Considering the status of tourism in the prospective development of Khuzestan province and the high sensitivity of such potential to climate change, this study sought to investigate the effect of climate change on tourism in Khuzestan province through a temporal-spatial comparative study using the thermal comfort index coefficient.Study Area: Covering an area of approximately 64236 square meters, Khuzestan province is located in southwestern Iran, whose average annual temperature varies from 15 °C in its northern regions to 26 °C in its southern regions. Moreover, more than 85% of the province’s area measures less than 500 square meters, and 15% of the province falls within the north and northeast mountainous regions. As the province possesses great tourism potential, special tourism development plans have been incorporated into the policy documents of the province to prepare the grounds for its sustainable development. However, increasing chances of climate risks such as heat waves, dust, and floods pose a potential threat to the advancement of the tourism industry in the province. In this regard, the current study set out to investigate the change in the thermal comfort index and its territories until 2050.

Method and Data:

 To investigate the effects of climate change on the tourism calendar and its territories in Khuzestan Province, this study examined the thermal comfort index in terms of two periods: the historic period (1985–2020) and the future period (2021–2050). The index considers such climatic elements as air temperature, precipitation, humidity, radiation, and wind. As for the time periods investigated, the study collected the required data regarding the climate variables recorded in the meteorological stations of Ahvaz, Omidiyeh, Aghajari, Abadan, Behbahan, Dezful, Safiabad, Ramhormoz, Mahshahr, and Masjed Suleiman. Moreover, to calculate the thermal comfort index for the future period, the study used downscaled climate data based on CMIP6 scenarios under the SSP 4.5 scenario.

Climate change and global warming have changed climatic comfort conditions and the displaced territories in Khuzestan province. Comparing the maps prepared for the 1985–2020 period with the ones prepared for the future period (2021–2050), the study found that the thermal comfort index territories have been changed in different classes and months of the year. In other words, it could be said that global warming will create a longer summer in Iranian southern regions, leading to the reduction of the geographical territories’ rank from ideal and excellent to lower classes and the movement of tourism territories. In the historical period (1985–2020), March was found to be the most ideal time for tourism. However, the findings revealed that November would be the best time for tourism in the future (2021–2050) when the province would experience the best thermal comfort index conditions. These findings are consistent with the results reported by Matzarakis & Amelung (2008), Xio Xia et al. (2023), Gössling et al. (2023), Rastegar & Ruhanen (2023), Bakhtiari et al. (2018), Shamsipour et al. (2014), Moradjani (2022), Abedi and Sedaqat (2022), and Farajzadeh and Ahmadabadi (2010).

The findings indicated that Khuzestan province will experience great changes in the future in terms of tourism thermal comfort index. In this regard, the province's thermal comfort index rank will, in the future period (2021–2050), decrease in the months of January, February, March, April, and October compared to the one found for the historic period (1985–2020), suggesting that no part of the province will have ideal conditions to attract tourists. Moreover, the conditions will be quite unfavorable in May, June, July, August, and September. However, compared to the historic period, the conditions will improve in November and December of the future period. Furthermore,  the tourism territories of the province will be limited to northern latitudes and mountainous areas in the future.The prospective changes in the monthly tourism calendar and its territories will exert a great influence on the province's tourism economy. Currently, tourism infrastructure such as accommodation, welfare services, transportation networks, and private sector investment have been prepared and developed based on the historical conditions of the climate. Therefore, the relocation of tourism territories, the weakness of facilities in new areas, and the neocolonialization of previously suitable areas will bring about great economic and social losses. Thus, it is recommended that various aspects of tourism development plans be considered based on uncertainties.

This research was carried out with the general purpose of developing strategies for the development of friendly (green) businesses in the agricultural sector of Khuzestan province. In this research, the four points of SWOT, i.e. strength, weakness, opportunity, and threat, were investigated using analytical studies and literature, and they were prioritized using the AHP technique. The statistical population of the research was knowledgeable experts and subject specialists in relevant organizations who were purposefully selected for the study. SWOT-AHP technique was used to process information using Expert Choice software. The findings of the research showed that in evaluating the criteria, weaknesses, threats, opportunities, and strengths were assigned the first to fourth priorities, which indicates the predominance of the risky environment over the useful environment. In addition, in prioritizing strategic areas, the results showed that the first strategy WT means defensive strategy (minimum-minimum), the second strategy WO means adaptive strategy (minimum-maximum strategy), the third strategy ST strategy means contingent strategy (maximum-minimum). And finally, the last strategy in the subject under consideration is the SO strategy, that is, the offensive strategy (maximum-maximum).

Gillnets are one of the most considerable passive fishing gears that are set vertically in the water, and the fish that swim towards them are caught. The process of catching through the net is mainly by stuck their operculum into the meshes. The principal mechanism of these nets is deception, based on making the fish indifferent to the danger (fishing gear). If these gears stay in one place for a certain period, they are called set gillnets and are the most remarkable tools in coastal (inshore) fishing. Anchored (set) gillnets are usually fixed in the seabed through massive metal anchors or set near the bottom and other water surfaces via a buoy and weight retention system. Due to the shallow water depth in the fishing grounds of Khuzestan Province, the use of anchored gillnets in the different deepness of setting the nets for catching various fish species, such as epipelagic (narrow-barred mackerel), benthopelagic (silver pomfret), demersal (fourfinger threadfin), and littoral (Liza) has long been customary. The most important results of replacing anchored gillnets with trawling for fishing will include improving the environmental situation, preserving commercial fish stocks, and the economic prosperity of the fishing community.

Tidal waves are one of the most effective factors in nutrients transferring in sea ecosystems, and following that, on the production of aquatic stocks and their exploitation. Various lunar cycles highly impact the amount of capture, behavior, movement, feeding, reproduction, and migration of different groups of fish. This effect is especially considerable for fish that live at shallow depths, such as fishing grounds in Khuzestan Province in the Persian Gulf. Hence, in this analytical article, the effect of lunar months and tidal waves on the exploitation of aquatic stocks along with other influential factors such as seasonal variations, fishing gears, socio-cultural relations of fishermen, wind blow, food and their habitat preferences has been studied. This information can be beneficial for fisheries cooperative societies, especially in Khuzestan province, to have better efficiency by spending less money and energy; and in the field of fishing administration, the issuance of maritime licenses should be done more purposefully.

Increasing population and consequently demand for water needs, food supplies are among the limitations that the current world faces. The existence of such a process with limited natural resources needs to improve the optimal and continuous exploitation of available resources. Watershed management is one of the suitable ways to meet nutritional needs and prevent economic consequences. It is important to be aware of the effectiveness of any type of project, including water management, for project executives. The economic evaluation of these activities is essential in order to know the ratio of profit to project costs. To this end, we have investigated and evaluated the economics of multifunctional plots and flood control in Khuzestan province.

Soil moisture is one of the key parameters in watershed and water resources studies. Field measurement of this parameter is extremely difficult, time-consuming and costly. Hence, in recent years, numerous satellite-based methods for estimating and modeling soil moisture have been developed and presented. Among proposed methods, surface energy models performed better and have a higher degree of accuracy because of their physical nature. But, due to their particular complexity, they have been used rarely. Therefore, this research was carried out to estimate soil moisture using Landsat 8 Satellite imagery and Surface Energy Balance System (SEBS) near the Shadegan Wetland, located in the south-west of Iran. For this purpose, volumetric soil moisture content was measured at 39 points on 27 June 2016, simultaneous with the overpass of Landsat 8 Satellite over the study area. After necessary image processing, the was calculated using the applying the SEBS on satellite image. Then, the evaporation fraction was used as the main input in an experimental model (saturation ratio model) for estimating the soil moisture. Results showed the good ability of the model for estimating soil moisture with the coefficient of determination of 0.69 and the RMSE error value of 0.03 . It can be concluded that combination of remote sensing data, surface energy balance system and the experimental model of soil moisture can be used for modeling soil moisture in a large scale.