An integrated object-based image analysis and CA-Markov model approach for modeling land use/land cover trends in the Sarab plain

The present paper is an attempt to integrate a semi-automated object-based image analysis (OBIA) classification framework and a cellular automata-Markov model to study land use/land cover (LULC) changes. Land use maps for the Sarab plain in Iran for the years 2000, 2006, and 2014 were created from Landsat satellite data, by applying an OBIA classification using the normalized difference vegetation index, salinity index, moisture stress index, soil-adjusted vegetation index, and elevation and slope indicators. The classifications yielded overall accuracies of 91, 93, and 94% for 2000, 2006, and 2014, respectively. Finally, using the transition matrix, the spatial distribution of land use was simulated for 2020. The results of the study revealed that the number of orchards with irrigated agriculture and dry-farm agriculture in the Sarab plain is increasing, while the amount of bare land is decreasing. The results of this research are of great importance for regional authorities and decision makers in strategic land use planning.     

Ressi experimental catchment: Ecohydrological research in the Italian pre-Alps

Ressi is a small (2.4 ha) forested catchment located in the Italian pre-Alps. The site became an experimental catchment to investigate the water fluxes in the soil–plant–atmosphere continuum and the impact of vegetation on runoff generation in 2012. The elevation of the catchment ranges from 598 to 721 m a.s.l. and the climate is humid temperate. The bedrock consists of rhyolites and dacites; the soil is a Cambisol. The catchment is covered by a dense forest, dominated by beech, chestnut, maple, and hazel trees. The field set up includes measurements of the rainfall in an open area, streamflow at the outlet, soil moisture at various depths and locations, and depth to water table in six piezometers at a 5- or 10-min interval. Samples of precipitation, stream water, shallow groundwater and soil water are collected monthly for tracer analysis (stable isotopes (²H and ¹⁸O), electrical conductivity and major ions), and during selected rainfall–runoff events to determine the contribution of the various sources to runoff. Since 2017, soil and plant water samples have been collected to determine the sources of tree transpiration. Data collected in the period 2012–2016 are publicly available. Data collection is ongoing, and the data set is expected to be updated on an annual basis to include the most recent measurements.     

Gondwana-Derived Terranes Structural Mapping Using PALSAR Remote Sensing Data

Gondwana-derived terranes are now separated by major faults or suture zone, which are rarely simple and easily recognizable lineaments. Different association of ore mineral systems such as deposits of sediment-hosted/orogenic gold and granite-related minerals is discovered in collision and subduction zones of the Gondwana-derived terranes. They are associated with large-scale, terrane-bounding fault systems and broad areas of deformation. Mineralization mostly associated with structurally-controlled complex lodes, veins, sheeted veins and veinlets in diverse orientations. Recognizing the structural significance of lineaments and curvilinear is very difficult in tropical, arid and Antarctic regions due to environmental obstacles. Remote sensing data could be used to detect geological structures associated with suture zones between Gondwana-derived terranes especially for large inaccessible regions where fieldwork is limited or nonexistent. In this investigation, the Phased Array type L-band Synthetic Aperture Radar (PALSAR) satellite remote sensing data were used to map major geological structures in the Bentong-Raub Suture Zone of Peninsular Malaysia. It is one of the major structural zones in Sundaland, Southeast Asia, which forms the boundary between the Gondwana-derived the Sibumasu terrane and Sukhothai-Indochina arc. Structural features associated with sediment-hosted/orogenic gold deposits in the Central Gold Belt and tin mineralization in S-type granites in the Main Range were investigated using PALSAR data and comprehensive fieldwork. Results indicate that main faults strike along 340° to 350° that are intersected by many shear or lateral fault zones are high potential zone for gold mineralization in the Central Gold Belt. Hydrothermally alteration mineral zones and cataclastic rocks are also the other indicators of gold mineralized veins in the gold belt. High potential zones for tin mineralization are N–S strike-slip faults, fault zones and shear zones trending E–W, NE–SW and WNW–ESE in dissected crystalline granitic rocks that are associated with hydrothermal alteration zones in the Western Tin Belt. Lineament analysis using PALSAR satellite remote sensing data is a useful tool for mapping major geological structural features and detection of the boundary between the Gondwana-derived terranes and detailed structural analysis of fault systems and deformation with high potential for a variety of mineral resources, especially in tropical, arid and Antarctic regions.     

Geological and geophysical exploration of the groundwater aquifers of As Suqah area, Makkah district, Western Arabian Shield, Saudi Arabia

As Suqah area is a NW–SE trending wadi present in the west central part of the Arabian Shield. It comprises Precambrian–Cambrian basement rocks, Cretaceous–Tertiary sedimentary succession, Tertiary–Quaternary basaltic lava flows, and Quaternary–Recent alluvial deposits. The magnetic anomalies indicated the presence of many recent local buried faults. These affected the distribution of the clastic sedimentary succession and seem to have controlled the deep groundwater aquifers. Groundwater movement is towards the west and northwest, following in general the surface drainage system. Hydraulic gradient varies greatly from one point to another depending on the pumping rates and cross-sectional area of the aquifer in addition to its transmissivity. The detailed results of the resistivity and seismic measurements were integrated with those obtained from test holes drilled in the study area. Groundwater occurs mainly in two water-bearing horizons, the alluvial deposits and within the clastic sedimentary rocks of Haddat Ash Sham and Ash Shumaysi formations. The shallow zone is characterized with a saturated thickness of 3–20 m and water is found under confined to semi-confined conditions. Water levels were encountered at depths varying from 3 to 16 m in the alluvial wadi deposits and from 18 to 62 m in the sedimentary succession. The combinations of vertical electrical sounding, horizontal electrical profiling, and drilling led to the identification of groundwater resources in the study area. Resistivity soundings clearly identified the nature of the lithological depth and proved useful at identifying water-bearing zones. Significantly, the majority of the groundwater was found within the deep confined aquifer gravelly sandstone, rather than in the shallow unconfined aquifer.     

Adaptation of climate variability/extreme in arid environment of the Arabian peninsula by rainwater harvesting and management

Water management in Saudi Arabia is facing major challenges due to the limited water resources and increasing uncertainties caused by climate change. The rainfall and temperature records of the Saudi meteorological data for more than three decades were analyzed for policy suggestions in water sectors based on the changing rainfall patterns. The trends in the annual aridity and rain indices were also examined to define the changing climate conditions and for determining the dry months in different cities of the Kingdom. An increased annual and maximum rainfall was observed for six cities while a decreasing trend in both annual and maximum rainfall was observed for the same number of cities highlighting the variability of rainfall in the whole region. An increasing maximum rainfall with decreasing annual rainfall was observed for the rest of the cities signifying the more extreme rainfall evens and resulting floods of short durations. The changing rainfall trends were also observed for different months during 31 years of the recorded period in addition to the varying climate pattern for different cities within the same district. Finally, these preliminary assessments of any systematic changes in view of the increased rain intensities and extreme climate events are viewed to demonstrate the value rainwater harvesting and management as a local adaptation to the climate variability and extreme in the Kingdom.     

Geotechnical Hazards Associated with Desert Environment

The aridity of the Arabian Peninsula's deserts ranges between arid to hyperarid with hot dry climate, scarce precipitation and sparse vegetation. These harsh environmental conditions enhance some geomorphologic processes more than others, cause specific geotechnical problems, and increase desertification.From west to east, the general physiography of Saudi Arabia shows the Red Sea coastal plains and the escarpment foothills called Tihama followed by the Arabian Shield mountains, the Arabian Shelf plateau and finally the Arabian Gulf coastal plains. Sand moves by wind either as drifting sand or migrating dunes in four major sand seas, over the Arabian Shelf, and in the inter-mountain valleys, in the Arabian Shield causing problems of erosion and deposition. Human activities in the deserts may cause more instability to the sand bodies, enlarging the magnitude of the problem. Fine silty soil particles also move by wind, depositing loess mainly in selected areas downwind in the Tihama. These loess deposits subside and may form earth fissures by the process of hydrocompaction upon wetting. The addition of water can be either natural through storms or man-made through human agricultural or civil activities. Extensive sabkhas exist along the coastal plains of both the Red Sea and Arabian Gulf. The sabkha soil may also heave by salt re-crystallization or collapse by wetting. The shallow groundwater brines present in sabkhas also attack and corrode civil structures. Urbanization and excessive groundwater pumping may also deplete the fresh groundwater resources and may cause subsidence, ground fissuring and surface faulting as observed in some locations in the Arabian Shield. Although the average annual precipitation is very low, rain usually falls in the form of torrential storms, collected by dry valley basins and causing floods to unprotected downstream areas on the coastal plains of the Red Sea.The desert environment, being a fragile echo system, needs to be treated with care. Intercommunications between different national and international agencies and education of the layman should help to keep the system balanced and reduce the resulting environmental hazards. In addition, any suggested remedial measures should be planned with nature and engineered with natural materials.     

Karst Hazard Assessment of Eastern Saudi Arabia

Karst phenomena exist in areas in the eastern part of Saudi Arabia, forming solution features such as sinkholes, collapsed dolines and solution caverns, as a result of the chemical leaching of the carbonate and evaporite formations by percolating water. The instability of these karst phenomena could produce land subsidence problems. This paper reviews the geology of documented karstic rock units in Saudi Arabia and proposes a simple engineering classification of the solution features characteristic of limestone. Two case histories in the Dhahran area, eastern Saudi Arabia, will be used as examples for the application of a modified engineering classification.     

Neogene and quaternary volcanism of the Bijar Area (Western Iran)

In the Bijar region (Western Iran) two distinct volcanic cycles have been recognized. The first, of Upper Miocene age, consists of high-K cale-alkaline volcanic rocks interpreted as final products of the cale-alkaline Tertiary phase of central Iran. The second volcanic cycle, mostly of Pleistocene age (0.5–1.3 m.v.) consists of undersaturated, mainly potassic, alkaline products. As the lavas of this last phase are slightly fractionated, the chemical differences shown by these rocks have been interpreted as primitive features related to the physical conditions governing the partial melting in the mantle and/or the mantle heterogeneity. In a volcanic center (Sarajukh volcano) contemporaneous basic and acid magmas have been found, and interpreted as derived from two different and independent sources. The alkaline basic volcanism is considered as an expression of disjunctive processes that have affected the western margin of the Iranian plate after the Pliocene.