Economic Driven Reallocation of Water for Supplying Environmental Demand

Due to increasing population growth, water demands for domestic, agricultural, and industrial sectors are increasing at the expense of maintaining a minimum environmental demand. A driving force for societies to rethink the value of providing water for ecological and social benefits is planning for ecotourism. Ecotourism is important for increasing employment and income. Significant in-stream values may be found in the recreational aspects of water use. As water allocation is mostly done based on economic criteria, reallocation of supply is essential to take advantages of new challenges in value-driven environmental economics. From ecotourism point of view, rivers flowing in a city increase esthetic as well as a pleasant environment which tend to become appealing for local people and play an important role in attracting tourists. Improper water allocation influences socioeconomic aspect so that people are deprived of this income opportunity. Proposing a reallocation scheme by comparing the economic value of providing water for domestic, agricultural, and industrial demands with environmental requirements utilizing GWP (global water partnership) principles is the aim of this study. For this purpose, a procedure which regards coordinated development in water, land, and related sources for maximizing economic and social welfare are specified to reach to a more sustainable environment without eruption in supplying other demands. The case study is Zayandeh-Rud River in Isfahan, Iran. This city with attractive structures, Zayandeh-Rud River, and its bridges is one of the main sources of tourism in Iran. However, Zanyandeh-Rud River drought in recent years has caused a reduction in tourism income and has affected local people’ s morale mainly through the river’ s appearance in the city. The water allocation scenarios are tested in a water balance model. The result shows the significant value of utilizing economic consideration in justifying the value of supplying environmental demand in general and ecotourism in particular.