Zoning of Golestan national park using multi-criteria decision-making methods

The present study aims to identify areas with the highest ecological sensitivity and high priority in protection. In this context, Golestan national park was zoned using spatial indicators and multi-criteria decision-making methods based on linear relationships. Based on the characteristics (level of sensitivity, vulnerability and development capacity), the type of use and management goals, the region has six main zones, including Zone 1, Zone 2, Zone 3, Zone 4, Zone 7, and Zone 8. Additionally, Zone 9 was considered a biosphere reserve for this national park. The results of weighting and prioritization of indicators also indicate that in zone 1, the indicators of "habitat integrity" and "uniqueness of the habitat", in zone 2, the indicators of "representativeness of the habitat", "presence or dependence", “protected species," and "habitat importance" have the highest weight and priority. In zones 3 and 4, the focus is on the "recreational resources" index, and in zone 7, it is on the "facilities and infrastructures" index. Finally, the results of combining zones and zoning of the region showed that in Golestan National Park, the largest area of ​​the region is allocated to zone 1 (29% of the park), while the smallest area is allocated to zone 7 (1% of the park). The results of this study showed that national parks and protected areas can be zoned based on three categories. In this area, the safe zone (zones 1 and 2) includes 55%, the non-physical development zone (3 and 8) encompasses 41%, and physical development zone (4 and 7) comprises 4% of the park area.