ECOPERSIA
Volume:9 Issue: 3, Summer 2021

The fast-growing rangeland plant species, which could be grown in many different climatic conditions, are the best plants for remediation agents of heavy metals from contaminated soils.

The soil and plant sampling was performed based on the systematic randomized design in four different geographical directions around the Humalan Bitumin mine. The concentration of the elements was measured using the inductive plasma spectroscopy (ICP-OES) spectroscopic analytical method. The quantities values of contaminants were analyzed statistically by SPSS 22 software. Also, the dominant plant species, H. bulbosum, was selected to evaluate heavy metal uptake in plant species.

The highest Mn level in shoots parts of H. bulbosum (155.34mg/kg) was seen in 100 m distance of the mine. According to biogeochemical indices, the highest amount of heavy metals was observed in the plants grown at a 100-meter distance from the mine. The highest accumulation factor was observed in the cadmium (as 1.15mg/kg), and the maximum enrichment factor was seen in the Mn element as 0.82mg/kg in 100m distance of the mine.

H. bulbosum represents an important interest in their potential use to remediate toxic metals of soils. H. bulbosum enables an important substance for explore the tolerance strategies of heavy metals accumulation in plant cells and has high application value in remediation of heavy metal-contaminated sites. Our results also indicate that TF values of H. bulbosum were more than 1 for the Cd metal. So, these species potentially could be used for phytoremediation and phytostabilization application in Cd-contaminated areas.

The global need for water-conserving increasing in arid and semi-arid areas and water preserving by improving vegetative cover in rangelands by reducing the erosion effects is a rational justification for the performance of underground dams. This research aimed to locate underground dams using GIS integrated with the fuzzy algorithm.

The data layers included geology, LU/LC, streams, villages, water resources, and slopes of the Sarakhs region, Iran, were prepared and standardized by the sigmoidal membership function.

Almost 98% of the final maps were in the fuzzy range of 0 to 0.5. This means that suitable locations for constructing underground dams with the fuzzy range of 0.5 to 1 found in less than 2% of the Sarakhs basin.

The superiority of fuzzy method for more scalability from other overlaying methods comes from this fact that in the second step of site selection and in the different management scenarios, we can take advantage from multiple fuzzy ranges.

Increasing the wood demands at the global level and reducing supply resources for wood industries is one of the most challenges for industrial managers. Considering the limitations of wood production resources, it is necessary to specify the wooden raw material resources by logical plans. In this study, for the first time, network analysis was used to prioritize wood supply alternatives in the Iranian wood industries.

In this study, we used Analytic Network Process (ANP) to Priority of Supplying Wood Material in Wood Factories. In the Mazandaran Wood and Paper factory, the wood materials are supplied through four

forest, ligniculture (wood farming), wood importation, and purchase wood from local markets. In order to conduct this research, the questionnaires were prepared and distributed among 23 specialist experts. After completing the questionnaires and organizing the model in the super decision software (version 1.6) (Analytic Network Process), the inputs and prioritization of the alternatives were done.

The most important resources for supplying wood raw materials in Mazandaran Wood and Paper Factory includes wood harvested from the forest, ligniculture, wood importation, and wood supplies from local markets. The results indicated that among the four alternatives for wood supplying, ligniculture (1.000), wood importation (0.885), forests (0.695), and supplying wood from local markets (0.419) were prioritized as the best alternatives, respectively.

Considering the new policies of forest organization, the best approach for wood supplying are ligniculture with fast-growing tree species and wood importation.

Trend analysis of climatic variables has got a great deal of notice from researchers recently. This study aimed to investigate the Spatio-temporal variability of extreme temperature indices based on the station data and gridded dataset analyses over the Bakhtegan-Maharloo basin in Iran from 1980 to 2010.

Climatic data related to the Bakhtegan-Maharloo basin was extracted from AgMERRA dataset for the study period (1980-2010) using R software. Daily temperature data were also extracted from the Meteorological Archive of meteorological stations located in the basin during the study period. Warm nights (TN90p), maximum monthly value of daily minimum temperature (TNx), cold nights (TN10p), and cold spell duration indicator (CSDI) indices had been chosen from the indices recommended by the Expert Team for Climate Change Detection Monitoring and Indices (ETCCDMI) and calculated by RClimDex software package.

The results of AgMERRA and stations data revealed an increasing trend in warm extremes including TN90p and TNx with the trend changes ranging from 0.135 to 0.721 and 0.061 to 0.139, respectively, but a declining trend in cold extremes including TN10p and CSDI with the trend changes ranging from -0.517 to -0.125 and -0.987 to -0.167, respectively.

The results of this study may contribute to a better understanding of regional temperature behavior in the study area. The results indicated that the frequency and intensity of cold extremes have declined, though warm extremes increased. Due to the intensive impacts of temperature extremes on human life, it is essential to speculate the effects of these extreme climatic events in future plannings in various sections.

The present study aimed to use the WEPP model to simulate the impact of various conservation interventions on runoff and sediment yield and determine the optimum areal extent of a watershed to be treated economically.

The study watershed (located in the Shivalik region of North-West India) was divided into various hillslopes and channels. The input files required to run the WEPP model were prepared for each hillslope and channel. The WEPP model was calibrated and validated by using monitored hydrological data (2015-2019). The impact of check dams and sedimentation basins, individually and in combination, on runoff, sediment yield, and sediment delivery ratio was simulated.

The simulation results indicated that channel erosion is predominant in the watershed, and check dams are more efficient in controlling runoff and sediment yield than sedimentation basins. However, the coupled implementation of both interventions was much more effective than the individual implementation of each intervention. The simulated runoff and sediment yield decreased by 72% and 90%, respectively, with a significant reduction of about 95% in sediment delivery ratio (SDR) compared to the untreated watershed. The results further revealed that treating 66% of the watershed area with both the interventions can be considered as an optimum area that should be treated.

In the absence of any recommendations for implementing management interventions in the Shivalik region of India, the results of the present study would serve as guidelines for treating degraded watersheds for their rehabilitation under limited financial resources.

Most parts of the pastoralistchr('39')s livelihood depend on income from livestock in the rangelands, but drought in rangelands has negative impacts on the ecosystem, cycle of nomadic pastoralists, livestock production, and their familychr('39')s living. Recognizing the signs of drought effects in the nomadic environment can play a significant role in rangeland management. The present study was conducted to identify and investigate drought signs in Gonbad-e Kavous County, Golestan Province, Iran.

The studychr('39')s statistical population consisted of 183 nomadic pastoralists in 10 customary systems, 100 of them were sampled and classified by random method. The data gathering tool was a researcher-made questionnaire. Drought signs were investigated in three dimensions: vegetation, soil, livestock, and herd. In order to ensure the validity of the questionnaire, the views of the experts of the Natural Resources Bureau and Cronbachchr('39')s alpha method were used for more reliability with an average of 0.717.

The results showed that nomadic pastoralists assessed three factors forage quality degradation, increasing bare land, and livestock production as the most important indicators of drought effects in pastureland. Findings indicate a positive and significant relationship between the pastoralistchr('39')s viewpoints about the signs of drought effect in the pasture with the variable of the people who depend on them. The results showed a significant difference between respondentschr('39') views on gender and education level in the context of drought effects.

According to the results of the research, it is suggested that future policies of rangelands can be used in plans for identifying drought signs

In this study, sediment size distribution and its statistical properties are studied in the rip channel, and its surroundings in the Royan marine ecosystem lied in the southern part of the Caspian Sea.  

Three rip current channels were selected every eight investigating months. Sediment samples were collected from inside each rip channel and its surrounding areas. The statistical indices, viz., D50, mean, skewness, and sorting, have been calculated for sediment grain size parameters. Finally, a general linear model and unpaired t-test were used to perform statistical comparisons of grain size characteristics between the rip channel and its surrounding area.

In May, June, and July, the medians of sediment grain size were significantly higher in the rip channel (202.7, 168.9, and 174.5mm, respectively) compared with its surrounding areas. In general, the mean sediment grain size was significantly higher in the rip channel (193.1mm) than the control area (176.3mm). In May, June, and July, the highest values of the mean grain size of sediments were related to the rip channel (226.9, 178.5, and 183.2mm, respectively).

The rip channel contains sediments with coarser grains than the surrounding area. The rip current leads the median and mean of sediment size distribution in the rip channel to move toward the larger sizes. Moreover, the skewness is a more sensitive factor to environmental changes of the channel and its surrounding area than the other sediment properties, emphasizing consideration in the studies.