Consequences of Changing the Pattern of Saffron and Pistachio Cultivation and its Impact on the Development of Rural Areas (Case study: Rashtkhwar city)

During the past years, Iran is facing a severe water shortage crisis due to long droughts and mismanagement of its water resources. Changing the cultivation pattern in order to increase irrigation efficiency, not only saves valuable water, but also increases the income of agricultural activities. Based on this, considering the excessive lack of water resources in some parts of Iran, it seems absolutely necessary to investigate the effects of changing the cultivation pattern at the level of villages active in this field. Therefore, the aim of this research is to analyze the consequences of changing the pattern of saffron and pistachio cultivation and its impact on the development of rural areas in the villages of Rashtkhwara. This research has been done by descriptive-analytical method. In this regard, the change of cultivation pattern in 377 households living in these villages of the city was investigated. For this purpose, a wide range of indicators were determined along with documentary studies and initial field visits. Then, data collection has been done based on selected indicators and using village and household questionnaires. Statistical and spatial analysis and Expert choice, SPSS, Fazy-Topsis software were also used for data analysis. The findings of the research show that the annual income from pistachio production in 43.9% of the studied households is more than the income of other products. The results of this study show that the indicators of increasing the variety of job opportunities with a coefficient of 0.086 and creating employment opportunities with a coefficient of 0.078 have the highest degree of importance and the method of using poisons with a coefficient of 0.015 and the time and amount of irrigation with a coefficient of 0.010. 0, have the lowest degree of importance. Also, from the analysis of the studied data, it can be concluded that the change of the cultivation pattern has had a significant effect on the improvement of the socio-economic status of the residents of the studied villages.