Cropping Pattern Management of Crops with Emphasis on Environmental Considerations (Case Study: Amol Tonship)

Planning for optimal use of soil and water, in addition to preserving these resources, results in production and income growth for farmers and enhancement of rural economy as a whole. Due to limited resources, optimization of cropping pattern in each region should be done properly and efficiently.
Goal programming approach is used to determine the optimal cropping pattern in Amol Township at Mazandaran province. In this study, the objectives were oriented to the on 5 year plan of the 5th Development Plan of Islamic Republic of Iran to make 7% reduction in chemical fertilizers usage, 1% reduction in pesticides usage to preserve the environment, and 0.93% reduction in water usage to preserve water resources in order to achieve sustainable agricultural development. Also, a 10% increase in gross margin was considered according to the view of the local farmers.
High yielding high quality Paddy, rainfed Barley, Clover, irrigated Lentils, rainfed Rapeseed and irrigated Alfalfa were eliminated in optimal cropping model, and the area under cultivation of Parsley, and irrigated Potato was increased. The results showed that applying the optimal model could lead to an increase of nearly 240 billion Rials as compared to present model.
Application of goal programming method in optimization. The objectives and resource allocation has a relative superiority to the current cropping pattern and linear pattern.