Iranian Water Research Journal

Iranian Water Research Journal

Sustainable management of Shahrekord wastewater using integrated model of fuzzy Shannon entropy and fuzzy multi-Morray

Document Type : Original Article

Authors
akbar Nikkhah 1
mahdi Karami Dehkordi 2
1 Graduated M.Sc. Student, Management and Rural Development Department, Faculty of Agriculture, University of Shahrekord, Shahrekord, Iran.
2 Associate Professor in Management and Rural Development Department, Faculty of Agriculture, University of Shahrekord, Shahrekord, Iran.
10.22034/IWRJ.2024.14923.2635
Abstract
Extended Abstract

Using unconventional water and reuse of wastewater is inevitable due to lack of available water resources. The scarcity of water resources particularly insufficient surface water can lead to several problems including instability in crop production, environmental negative impacts, and a decline in underground water levels that can result in the advance of sea water and mix with fresh water in coastal areas. In integrated water management approach, both surface and underground sources are utilized to meet water demands. Within this framework, treated wastewater plays a crucial role as a water resource, particularly in the countries which suffer from water scarcity such as Iran. Comparing surface water acquisition through building dams, withdrawal of underground water has several advantages, such as lower costs, reduced sedimentation and evaporation losses, less environmental quality concerns, and fewer significant environmental, social, and cultural impacts. The primary focuses of the current research included reuse of urban and agricultural wastewater for industrial purposes, construction, meeting demands of an eco-parks and cultivating non-fruit-bearing timber trees, among the sustainable approaches to manage the water resources and demands.
The current research was a survey through gathering necessary information and field visits. Various sources were reviewed, including articles, existed projects and plans, and theses. The interviews were conducted with experts and practitioners from related organizations included the Organization of Industry, Mining and Trade, the Industrial Settlements Company, Jihad Agriculture, The Regional Water Organization, and practitioners, experts and academic professionals. To identify and extract relevant indicators to the research topic, both national and international sources were reviewed for high-frequency factors. These factors were organized according to the conceptual framework of the research, which included three main dimensions of sustainable development: economic, social, and environmental. Also, nine sub-dimensions corresponding to these categories were defined. The stability, reliability, and accuracy of the indicators were evaluated and validated by Delphi technique and approved by the experts. The Delphi technique is used to identify and screen the most important decision indicators. Although this method is not a multi-criteria decision-making method, it is used in many cases to screen indicators or reach an agreement on the importance of decision indicators before applying multi-criteria decision-making techniques.‏ Regarding that the main goal of this research was to achieve sustainable management of Shahrekord's wastewater, scenarios were determined to the reuse of wastewater for non-productive trees, industrial demands, and eco-parks. To facilitate this purpose, fuzzy Shannon entropy and fuzzy multi-Morray techniques were employed. The sampling method of the statistical community in the present study was of a non-probable type. Snowball technique were applied to identify the targeted sampling and it was continued to reach the saturation point of 10 people of the experts of the field.
Investigations revealed that opinions regarding environmental quality variables varied significantly among experts, leading to different interpretations of what constitutes low or high quality. Given that experts possess unique characteristics and mentalities, their responses can differ based on these perspectives, which could undermine the analysis of variables. To standardize these responses, environmental quality variables were defined as triangular fuzzy numbers: Very Low: (0, 0, 0.25), Low: (0, 0.25, 0.5), Medium: (0.25, 0.5, 0.75), High: (0.5, 0.75, 1), Very High: (0.75, 1, 1). After identifying the relevant criteria, the relative weighting of the indicators were determined based on expert opinions. A questionnaire was developed for each project, utilizing a 5-point Likert scale, and distributed to 10 experts and observers in the field. Each expert evaluated the criteria based on the effective indicators identified in the previous phase. Shannon's fuzzy entropy technique was used to weight the indicators according to the scores.
After that the definitive and normalized weights for the 10 research indicators were established using the fuzzy Shannon entropy method, three options were ranked through the fuzzy ARAS method. Then the decision matrix and the ideal values were determined. Afterward, negative indicators were converted to positive values and normalized. Ultimately, the weighted matrix was formed and the score for each option were calculated. Consequently, the first priority for reuse of Shahrekors waste water is applying in industry; the second priority is to develop an eco-park in Shahrekord plain, regarding the benefits for environment and society as well as economic advantages; and the third priority is cultivation of non-fruit-bearing timber trees.
Keywords
Fuzzy Shannon entropy
Wastewater
Unfruitful trees
Industry
Ecopark utilization
Sustainable development
Multimora
Shahrekord Plain
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