Investigation of Qanats Discharge Reduction and Adaptive Strategy to It (Case Study: Khorasan Razavi Province)

To investigate the reason for decreasing Qanat’s discharge and providing technical and agricultural solutions, 15 limes of Qanats were selected in the Khorasan Razavi province. The discharge of Qanats in the years of 1386 and 1396 was measured together with filling of the questionnaires. The results show that the mean discharge of Qanats decreased by 21%. The reasons for this reduction include: technical issues (disregard for the technical nature of the Qanats), and management issues (disregard for proper utilisation of the Qanats and lack of credit). This research recommends some solutions in order to adapt to the decrease in Qanats’ discharge. The most important solutions include: cultivating products with less water requirements and improving drought tolerance, improving farm management by changing the pattern of crops, using modern technology, planning for proper use of Qanat water, and the integrity of the lower land of Qanats.