Developing Resources Management Responses in the Gorganroud Watershed Using the Driving Force, Pressure, State, Impact, Response (DPSIR) Software

Recognizing watershed problems and investigating the causes which arose them is the most fundamental step in watershed management plans, which results in identifying key management responses in each watershed. Therefore, it is necessary to thoroughly analyze the problems and determine management strategies before developing operational plans to solve them. The aim of this study was to analyze the environmental problems of the Gorganrood Basin to determine the main managerial responses. Identifying and analyzing the main environmental problems resulted in developing management responses for the region. To prioritize different components of the DPSIR, a Likert questionnaire filled with expert opinions and the Friedman test were used. The results indicated that four driving forces, namely climate change, population growth, management structure, and rules have caused 25 pressures on the Gorganrood Basin resources. The most important pressures were part-thinking organizations, incorrect agricultural expansion and excessive exploitation of water resources. These pressures, in turn, have caused 10 disturbed states, the most important of which are water resources depletion, flooding and soil erosion. These situations have 13 adverse impacts, the most important of which are flood damages, reduced downstream water rights and reduced public confidence in the government agencies. To improve the situation, 28 management responses were presented, of which the most important are integrated watershed management, land use planning and proper organizational structure. The overall result is that cause and effect analysis using the DPSIR framework provides an appropriate conceptual infrastructure, which is a prerequisite for developing the Basin's operational management plan. Therefore, it is suggested that executive organizations identify suitable responses by using this approach before developing operational plans for each watershed.