Author(s): Mehdi Ahmadi; Faranak Tootoonchi; Kayhan Gavahi; Kimia Motevalli
Linked Author(s):
Keywords: GIS; Iran; Urmia Watershed; Water Scarcity; Water Stress
Abstract: Water scarcity affects human life quality and causes irreversible damages to the environment. Climate change and population growth aggravate the negative effects of water scarcity thus result in compelling stress over water resources. As a semi-arid region, Iran is one of the countries facing eminent water shortage affecting different facets of human livelihood. Urmia watershed which is located at the northwest of Iran have faced many environmental and social issues due to water scarcity in this watershed as well. In this study it is aimed to evaluate water stress in Urmia watershed considering different environmental, industrial and agricultural water demands. Four water scarcity measures are utilized, afterwards advantages and shortcomes of each method are discussed and related suggestions are made for mitigating water shortage in the watershed. It is deduced that Urmia watershed is facing crucial amount of water scarcity but it varies in quantity, based on the employed water scarcity measurement methodology. Also it was concluded that water scarcity is exacerbated more rapidly due to agricultural activities and population growth in Urmia watershed.
Year: 2018