Abstract
Dams are designed for water storage and river conservation. To prevent environmental risks and preserve water quality, it is necessary to determine the environmental flow of rivers. Water release from reservoirs can determine the environmental flow and water quality downstream of any dam. Considering the quantitative (environmental flow demand, downstream demand, and reservoir reliability) and qualitative (mean concentration and contact length) objectives, the current study suggested water release from the Dez Dam as a solution to preserving the environment of the Dez River. In this study, the hydrological method of Tennant and the Game theory (The Nash function) were employed to evaluate the optimal environmental flow of the river. For this purpose, the range of environmental flow was first determined using the hydrological method of Tennant. Afterward, the environmental flow was evaluated in different qualitative and quantitative scenarios. The river flow was simulated using the Qual-2 K model and calculating the Nash function. In each scenario, different influence coefficients were designated for quantitative or qualitative objectives. For the first scenario, a similar impact factor was considered in both qualitative and quantitative objectives, and an optimal flow rate of 67.45 m3 s−1 was measured for the river. In the second scenario, the coefficients considered in quantitative objectives were 1.5 and 2 times greater than those considered in qualitative objectives. The optimal flow rates were obtained at 63.49 and 57.17 m3 s−1, respectively. In the third scenario, the coefficients of the qualitative objectives were 1.5 and 2 times greater than those of the quantitative objectives, and the optimal flow rates were calculated at 75.98 and 87.33 m3 s−1, respectively. As demonstrated by the obtained results, weight variations for the objectives represent an important issue in optimization and a key factor in decision-making by authorities based on the socio economic conditions of the area under study.
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Foroughian, A., Derikvand, E., Eslami, H. et al. Determination of Environmental Flow in the Dez River using Modern Optimization Methods to Release Flow from the Dez Dam. Iran J Sci Technol Trans Civ Eng 47, 3083–3094 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40996-022-01028-z
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s40996-022-01028-z