Identifying Karstic Areas Exposed to Hazards Caused by Pollution (Case Study: Ravansar Basin)

In addition to their importance and role in providing water resources, karstic water resources also have a high potential for vulnerability, which is why these resources are always exposed to pollution. Given the importance of the issue, this study identifies vulnerable areas in Ravansar basin. The research data includes 1:50,000 topographic maps, 1:100,000 geological maps, a 10-meter-high digital model, and digital layers from various organizations like soil layer. After collecting the required data, using COP and EPIK methods, the areas vulnerable to contamination were identified and then the results were compared and evaluated. The results estimated by COP and EPIK methods showed that Ravansar basin has a high potential for vulnerability, so that based on the results of both methods, many parts of the region are vulnerable. Based on COP method, 27.8% of the area has a very high vulnerability potential, and based on EPIK method, 29.5% of the region has a high vulnerability potential. Moreover, in terms of spatial distribution of vulnerabilities, based on the results obtained from both methods, the northern regions have the highest vulnerability potential and the southern regions have the lowest vulnerability potential.