Vulnerability assessment of groundwater study areas: Development a statistical model (The case of Fars province)

With the worldwide depletion of groundwater and the intensified use around the world, particularly in many arid and semi-arid regions for irrigation and municipal use, there is no satisfactory approach to groundwater sustainability. This study aimed to developing a statistical model to assess vulnerability of groundwater study areas in the mid-level and regional scale. Then, based on the proposed model, the vulnerability of Fars province groundwater study areas were evaluated from the perspective of groundwater sustainability. The results showed that the amount of damage on aquifer in Fars province is different. Highest vulnerability was caused by quntitative changes in groundwater. Negative rates of annual decline in groundwater level was in all of study areas. Ranking the study areas based on the degree of vulnerability by using multi-criteria decision making – Topsis technique was another aspect of this research. Results showed the Farashband study area was in higher bound of the spectrum of vulnerability, the Darian study area of Shiraz Township was in middle of vulnerability spectrum and the Sadegh-Abad study area of Abadeh Township was in the lower bound of the agricultural groundwater vulnerability spectrum. Given the diversity of climatic, environmental and especially psychological, cultural, social and economic properties of groundwater users in each of the study areas, the integration of hydrogeology and social sciences suggested to define and implementing preventive and treating programs for groundwater conservation.