JWSS - Journal of Water and Soil Science

Optimizing the water resources operation, especially in the agricultural sector, which has the largest share in the water resources operation, is extremely important. Therefore, in this research, while introducing Whale, Gray Wolf and Crow Search Optimization Algorithms, their performance in the optimum operation of Golestan single-reservoir system Dam was evaluated with the aim of providing water demand for the downstream lands based on reliability, Reversibility, and vulnerability indices. In this optimization problem, the objective function was defined as the minimization of the total deficiency during the operation period. Meanwhile, the constraints of continuity equation, overflow, storage and reservoir release volume were applied to the objective function of the problem. Then, the results were compared with the absolute optimal value based on the nonlinear programming method obtained from GAMS software; finally, a multi-criteria decision-making model was developed to rank the optimization algorithms in terms of performance. The absolute optimal response obtained by the GAMS software based on the nonlinear programming method was 19.41. The results showed that the Gray Wolf algorithm performed better than the other algorithms in optimizing the objective function, so that the average responses in Gray Wolf, Crow Search and Whale algorithms were 92, 84 and 67% of the absolute optimal response, respectively. Furthermore, the Gray Wolf optimization algorithm performs better than the Whale and Crow Search algorithms in all parameters. In addition, the coefficient of variation of the responses obtained by the Gray Wolf algorithm is 2 and 1.43 times smaller than that in the Whale and Crow Search Algorithms, respectively. Finally, the results of the multi-criteria decision-making model showed that the gray wolf algorithm had the first rank, as compared to the other two algorithms studied in solving the problem of the optimal operation of the Golestan dam reservoir. 

This research was conducted with the aim of site selection and land capability evaluation for the development of pistachio cultivation in Sistan and Baluchestan province by integrating Geographic Information Systems (GIS), the Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP), and remote sensing data (Landsat 8 satellite imagery within the Google Earth Engine platform). Eight criteria, including distance from water canals, roads, and population centers, land use, slope, elevation, slope aspect, and soil characteristics (salinity, texture, and pH), were weighted based on the opinions of 15 experts (inconsistency ratio = 0.03). The highest weights were assigned to distance from water canals (0.32), soil characteristics (0.25), and distance from roads (0.14). Information layers with a spatial resolution of 30 m were prepared in the GIS environment and integrated using the weighted overlay method. The final map showed that 13.8 percent of the province is in the highly suitable class, 23.0 percent in the moderately suitable class, 33.5 percent in the marginally suitable class, 27.5 percent in the unsuitable class, and 2.2 percent has absolute limitations. The findings indicated that 36.8 percent of the province has significant potential for the development of pistachio cultivation; however, the main limitation is access to water resources. 65.5 percent of the province is located in the unsuitable category in terms of distance from water canals. Therefore, the sustainable development of pistachio cultivation in the province requires precise planning with a focus on suitable areas and the sustainable management of water resources. The novelty of this research lies in applying Boolean masks to eliminate ecological errors and using cloud computing (GEE) for the temporal consistency of data. Furthermore, comparative analysis revealed that crop development in some areas (such as Zahedan) relies more on groundwater extraction than on inherent land potential; the model classifies these areas as "unsuitable," providing a preventive warning regarding long-term sustainability