5:15 PM - 7:15 PM
[MIS12-P15] Geoecological Assessment of Mountain River Basins in the Caspian Region: Methodology and Preliminary Research Findings
Keywords:Geoecological Assessment, River Basin, Caspian Region, Assessment Criteria , Remote Sensing
Mountain river ecosystems exhibit heightened sensitivity to climate change, with anticipated alterations in glacier extent, snow cover, precipitation patterns, and runoff distribution across the Northeast Caucasus, Azerbaijan, and Iran. These changes, coupled with anthropogenic pressures from population growth, urbanization, industrial activities, and agriculture, pose significant threats to water resources, water quality, and biodiversity. This research investigates the interplay between climate change and anthropogenic forcing to identify key drivers influencing the geoecological state of these mountain river basins and inform the development of effective management strategies.
Recognizing the river basin as a holistic geoecological unit, this study posits that assessment criteria must be tailored to the specific landscape zones comprising the basin, reflecting the discrete-continuous nature of the Earth’s geographic shell. Therefore, a critical initial step involves the identification and detailed characterization of landscape zones within the river basin, ensuring scientific rigor and accuracy. Comprehensive geoecological evaluation necessitates adapting assessment criteria to the specificities of individual landscape zones, acknowledging the varying relevance of indicators across different zones. The temporal framework emphasizes operational-temporal units defined by socio-cultural discontinuities, providing a more nuanced understanding of the dynamic interplay between natural and social processes.
This ongoing investigation characterizes land use and socio-cultural processes within Caspian region mountain river basins. Land use patterns and socio-cultural processes serve as the foundation for constructing a geoecological assessment criteria matrix. A preliminary list of criteria for geoecological assessment is presented, derived from integrating remote sensing data, GIS modeling, and field survey results. These criteria are structured according to landscape contours, with differentiations based on contour-specific land use characteristics, enabling a more precise and detailed representation of the river basin’s geoecological status for enhanced assessment and prediction.
A range of criteria for assessing the geoecological status of the river basins were evaluated. Large-scale landscape surveys were conducted in the field. Data pertaining to the pollution of water, bottom sediments, soils, vegetation, and atmospheric air within the river basins were acquired. Furthermore, data on the degree of anthropogenic transformation and population density dynamics were obtained.
Recognizing the river basin as a holistic geoecological unit, this study posits that assessment criteria must be tailored to the specific landscape zones comprising the basin, reflecting the discrete-continuous nature of the Earth’s geographic shell. Therefore, a critical initial step involves the identification and detailed characterization of landscape zones within the river basin, ensuring scientific rigor and accuracy. Comprehensive geoecological evaluation necessitates adapting assessment criteria to the specificities of individual landscape zones, acknowledging the varying relevance of indicators across different zones. The temporal framework emphasizes operational-temporal units defined by socio-cultural discontinuities, providing a more nuanced understanding of the dynamic interplay between natural and social processes.
This ongoing investigation characterizes land use and socio-cultural processes within Caspian region mountain river basins. Land use patterns and socio-cultural processes serve as the foundation for constructing a geoecological assessment criteria matrix. A preliminary list of criteria for geoecological assessment is presented, derived from integrating remote sensing data, GIS modeling, and field survey results. These criteria are structured according to landscape contours, with differentiations based on contour-specific land use characteristics, enabling a more precise and detailed representation of the river basin’s geoecological status for enhanced assessment and prediction.
A range of criteria for assessing the geoecological status of the river basins were evaluated. Large-scale landscape surveys were conducted in the field. Data pertaining to the pollution of water, bottom sediments, soils, vegetation, and atmospheric air within the river basins were acquired. Furthermore, data on the degree of anthropogenic transformation and population density dynamics were obtained.