Appropriate urban infrastructure management strategies against floods from the perspective of passive defense using SWOT and QSPM (Case study: Kashan City)

Due to urban development, it is necessary to provide management solutions to reduce the risk of flooding of urban facilities. Passive defense is a new approach aimed at minimizing and preventing financial and human losses and preventing potential crises based on the civilian methods. Among the various models proposed for strategic planning, the SWOT matrix is the most common. The main purpose of this study is to provide the best management strategies to reduce the risk of existing facilities and also to provide strategies for facilities that will be constructed in the future.

The infrastructure map of Kashan City (urban land use) was prepared via Kashan Municipality. Then, the infrastructures (applications) were divided into 14 general categories. In the next step, by carefully examining the area and field visit and examining each infrastructure, a list of internal factors (strengths, weaknesses) and external factors (opportunities and threats) was prepared and the final score of the weight multiplied by the rank for internal and external factors. Achieved and strategic position for the region was identified and management strategies for the region were developed. Finally, the developed strategies were prioritized using the Quantitative Planning Matrix (QSPM).

The final score of internal and external factors was equal to 1.931 and 2.03, respectively, which indicates the predominance of weaknesses in internal factors and the majority of threats in external factors. The strategic position for the study area is recognized as the defensive strategy (WT) type. three strategies include: 1- providing the necessary budget for strengthening urban infrastructure with a passive defense approach against floods and anti-flood action of urban facilities, 2- interacting with scientific centers for studies in the context of floods and the damages caused by it, and 3- principled constructions with the focus on sustainable development and passive defense were developed. The results showed that the strategy No. 3 with a final attractiveness score of 6.51 is the first management priority for urban infrastructure. The strategies 1 and 2 with the final attractiveness score of 4.59 and 4.15 are proposed as the next managerial priorities for the region.

According to the score of internal and external factors, the strategic position was obtained as defensive type. Passive defence tries to neutralize the weaknesses and threats in the region by relying on the strengths of internal factors and the opportunity of external factors. According to the result of the Quantitative Planning Matrix (QSPM), construction with a focus on sustainable development and passive defense with respect to the river area was selected as the initial strategy for the region.