This study was conducted to identify environmental and human health risks caused by Balarood Dam, in construction phrase. The first step, all risk-generating factors were identified using a Delphi Questionnaire. Afterwards, the identified criteria were prioritized once using the Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP) method and then by the Technique for Order of Preference by Similarity to Ideal Solution (TOPSIS). Due to the complex and uncertain nature of decision-making in times of risk, it was necessary to use more than one weighting method to ensure accuracy of weights. The results from AHP and TOPSIS revealed a mismatch in priorities; therefore, an integration method was presented blending Mean-Rank, Borda, and Copeland methods. According to the TOPSIS results, factors including cut and fill, explosion, and transportation, were first to third highest-priority risk-generating factors, respectively. Considering the results from the AHP method, factors cut and fill, drilling, and explosion were identified as first to third top-priority risk-generating factors, respectively. The results obtained from the integration method suggested that cut and fill, explosion, and drilling are the most important environmental risks at construction phase. As a general conclusion, different weighting methods can lead to different results by which the fate of a decision may be changed and it is essential to control final scores by applying more than one weighting method.

The maintenance of natural and virgin ecosystems against an unnecessary influx of humans requires a modern and efficient model such as the carrying capacity model to optimize the management and development of ecotourism in these areas. The model is one of the key tools for conservation and sustainability of these areas. The present research attempts to formulate a framework for the ecotourism carrying capacity model for sustainable development of Karkheh protected area in Iran. The information was collected using a citation method as well as, interviews with experts, and visitors, and director of the region with 24 key indicators being regulated by field surveys and library studies. In this study, the network analysis process model, the Pressure-State-Response conceptual model, and Arc GIS_10.5 software were used to determine the potential for the establishment of ecotourism performance in the scale of 1: 50,000. In this research, 70 questionnaires were completed by experts in the field of environment and ecotourism to determine the relative importance of effective pressures. According to the results, the highest values belonged to physical carrying capacity (13,425,681 persons per day), ecological carrying capacity (2,482,226 persons per day), and social and culture (985,706 people per day), respectively. Based on the regional carrying capacity, the physical, ecological, and social carrying capacity index was calculated as 3356, 621, and 246 (greater than one), respectively. According to the results, the region has a high carrying capacity, which can accept visitors.

Background: Phytoremediation is one of the available and simple techniques for removing benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene, and xylene (BTEX) from indoor air. This study aimed to evaluate phytoremediation of low concentrations of BTEX by Hyrcanian plants including Ruscus hyrcanus and Danae racemosa. Methods: The test chamber was used to evaluate the removal of BTEX. Benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene, and xylene were injected into the chamber using Gastight syringes (Hamilton) to generate the concentration of 10 (benzene), 20 (toluene), 20 (ethylbenzene), and 50 (xylene) µL/L Results: Ruscus hyrcanus was able to remove BTEX (10, 20, 20, and 50 µL/L) from air after 3 days. D. racemosa could uptake BTEX (10, 20, 20, and 50 µL/L) from air after 4 days. Removal efficiency was calculated based on leaf area and volume of the chamber. R. hyrcanus showed the highest removal efficiency ranged from 8.5075 mg/m3 /h.cm2 for benzene to 86.66 mg/m3 /h.cm2 for xylene. The increase in BTEX phytoremediation was assessed after repeated exposures. A significant phytoremediation efficiency was obtained after the third injection of BTEX to the chamber. Afterwards, the effects of BTEX on anatomical and morphological structure of plants were studied. The results of Photomicrography showed that tissue structures of leaves and stems changed. Study of D. racemosa and R. hyrcanus stems showed that vascular bundles also changed. The development of crystal in vacuole of spongy parenchyma was the main anatomical change of R. hyrcanus and D. racemose compared to the control samples. Conclusion: It can be concluded that R. hyrcanus and D. racemosa can be used for phytoremediation of indoor air pollution.

The purpose of this study was to assess the environmental risk of Balarood Dam in Iran at constructional phase. The scientific methods used in this research were the Environmental Failure Mode and Effects Analysis (EFMEA) and VIKOR. In the process of environmental risk assessment, the EFMEA method was used first to calculate the risk priority number (RPN) for each environmental aspect. The identified risks were ranked based on RPN values in the next stage. Comparison of the RPN values showed that the risk of pollution of Balarood River, with a RPN of 125, is in the first priority. In addition, the environmental risks, identified during the follow-up phase, were weighted by entropy method based on severity, occurrence probability, and extent of pollution.Then, the VIKOR method, as one of the multicriteria decision-making (MCDM) methods, was run to evaluate and prioritize the potential environmental risks. The risk of water pollution under high, medium and low conditions, with a weight of 1,300, 1,000 and 700, was identified as the most important risk of dam construction. Accordingly, the most important corrective action, proposed to mitigate the high priority environmental risks, is to prevent the discharge of sanitary and industrial wastewater into the river.