Urban River Regulation: Assessing Environmental Impacts on Ecosystem Sustainability (Case Study: Gorganrud River)
Subject Areas : Environmental impact assessment
Mojtaba Farhadzadeh
1
,
Heydar Davoudian
2
,
Seyed Mohammad Mousavi
3
,
Raziyeh Shamshirgaran
4
,
Parisa Maleki
5
1 - Mazandaran Regional Water Company, Iran Water Resources Management Company, Ministry of Energy, Iran
2 - Mazandaran Regional Water Company, Iran Water Resources Management Company, Ministry of Energy, Iran
3 - Mazandaran Regional Water Company, Iran Water Resources Management Company, Ministry of Energy, Iran
4 - Ph.D. Student in Civil Engineering – Water Resources Engineering and Management, University of Birjand, Birjand, Iran
5 - Mazandaran Regional Water Company, Iran Water Resources Management Company, Ministry of Energy, Iran
Keywords: Checklist, Environmental Impact, Gorgrud River, River Engineering Interventions,
Abstract :
Environmental studies are considered key pillars of river regulation plans, especially in urban and rural areas. This paper has been prepared with the aim of quantitatively and qualitatively assessing the environmental impacts of constructing a riverbank wall on the Gorganrud River, located in the south of Tonekabon County, Mazandaran Province. In this study, using the standard checklist method, the environmental impacts were evaluated across three main components including physical, biological, and socio-economic-cultural environments during both the construction and operation phases. The checklists were developed based on quantitative indicators such as impact intensity, duration, spatial extent, and reversibility. In total, three types of checklists were completed. The results showed that, during the construction phase, 80% of the negative impacts are related to the physical environment, and that all of them are short-term, direct in their effects, and reversible. After the completion of the construction activities, the intensity of the negative impacts decreases significantly, and positive impacts begin to emerge. In the operational phase, positive impacts predominate in the physical, biological, and socio-economic and cultural environments, such that 80%, 75%, and 66.6% of the total impacts are assessed as positive, respectively. Additionally, most of these impacts are long‑term. It is recommended that, to control negative impacts and enhance the positive effects of the project, management actions and monitoring plans with clear indicators be implemented. Accordingly, it is expected that the implementation of the Gorganrud River regulation plan will lead to quantitative and qualitative improvement of the region’s environmental indicators.
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