Objectives: After wheat, rice has the most important role in human nutrition. Despite the vital importance of its cultivation, high water consumption and water shortage crisis, the sustainability of the cultivation of this grain has faced many problems. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to investigate the water footprint and water use efficiency of rice among the provinces in order to move towards crop sustainability. Methods & Materials: In this study, water footprint index was used to calculate water use efficiency in rice production. For this purpose, first the water footprint components for the provinces of the country were calculated and then the water use efficiency was calculated. Results: The results of calculating water footprint showed that the lowest water footprint is related to Mazandaran and Gilan provinces and the highest water footprint is related to South Khorasan and Sistan & Baluchestan provinces. Also, the highest and lowest amount of green water footprint is related to Gilan and South Khorasan province, respectively. The results of water use efficiency calculation showed that Mazandaran (0. 511) and Gilan (0. 422) had the highest efficiency and South Khorasan (0. 135) and Sistan & Baluchestan (0. 171) had the lowest efficiency. Conclusion: By comparing the water footprint components among the provinces of the country, it is cleared that the ratio of blue, green and grey water footprint in total water footprint is 45-53%, 6-25% and 0-15%, respectively. Also, the total water footprint of the country was obtained in the range of 1958 and 2758 m3 per ton.

Iran is located in arid and semi-arid climates,Due to the fact such country is facing with the growing consumption of water that can be addressed to the water crisis audience in the coming years. Therefore, to tackle the problem we should be sensitive about all type of water consumption. The industry sector is one of the consumers of water resources in the country and optimization of water consumption in this sector is a crucial priority that must be considered. This plan could save water consumption and also, the water needs of industries will also be met in the future. The present study was conducted on one of the largest detergent factories in Qazvin province. A system boundary analysis is provided for a detergent plant and specifies the range of calculations of water use factors. Using data from the plant and related calculations, the total water footprint of the plant in 2019 is estimated to be 26. 64 𝑚, 3 for each product. Direct and indirect water footprints were estimated to be 0. 658 and 25. 9 𝑚, 3, respectively, indicating a high share of detergent production in water consumption. In this study, the amount of gray water footprint in the detergent industry was calculated and its rate for a detergent plant was calculated to be 14. 5 cubic meters per tonne of product per year.

The rapid growth of global population has placed an immense stress on the demand of natural resources and contributes to the destruction of the natural environment. As the planet is now consuming natural resources in the production of goods and services faster than the environment can regenerate, strategies are urgently required to manage the ecological assets in a more effective way. The planet has biophysical limits on natural resources production and waste absorption. Buildings are one of the main factors in energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions. Buildings consume about 40% of global energy consumption. All building services such as heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) systems consume more than 60% energy in buildings, which is mainly supplied by fossil resources. Today, because of the need for an effective method to achieve efficient energy and biocompatible architecture, the use of natural ventilation systems in buildings has become more significant. One of the methods to create comfortable conditions in the interior is a use of evaporative cooling in the cooling systems. Unlike air conditioners, evaporative cooling can be considered as an acceptable solution for sustainable construction, which reduces energy consumption and greenhouse gases. Evaporative cooling is widely used as a passive cooling method in the built environment. In the system, the movement of air on a wet surface causes the water evaporation through the air energy absorption, thereby reducing the temperature and increasing the amount of vapor contained in the air. We need indicators to demonstrate the current carrying capacity of the Earth so that decision makers are better informed to set goals, establish options for actions, and monitor progress regarding stated goals. Footprint is a quantitative measurement of natural resources and it is used to assess the extent of human activities impact on global sustainability. Ecological footprint was initially developed by Wackernagel and Rees in 1992, and is now widely used as an indicator for environmental sustainability. The international average water footprint is 7452(〖 Gm〗 ^3⁄ year) and this amount is reported to be 102/65(〖 Gm〗 ^3⁄ year) for Iran. The aim of this study is to design a Passive cooling system to provide comfortable conditions in residential Buildings. Also, with minimal water and electricity consumption, it will reduce ecological footprints and water footprints and also reduce the amount of electricity consumption in the building. This research was done experimentally-analytically. In order to calculate the efficiency of the proposed system, on August 4th to 7th, the temperature, humidity, and wind speed of the interior room were measured by considering the system. The Hybrid Passive Cooling System (HPCS) consisted of two distinctive systems: the Solar Chimney (SC) and Evaporative Cooling Cavity (ECC). The ECC system was connected to the northern view of the room and SC system was installed to the southern view of the room. The air entered the tower via the openings of the head tower in all directions and passed through the clay cylinders. In this section, the air is cooled and diverted downward. The SC system creates sufficient temperature difference between the interior and exterior by maximizing the solar energy gain and performed air ventilation in the SC and ECC systems. The proposed hybrid system was built in the campus of Azad University, Kermanshah branch in August and was tested from August 4th to 7th. In order to calculate the efficiency of the proposed system, on August 4th to 7th, the temperature, humidity, and wind speed of the interior room were measured by considering the HPCS. To evaluate the water consumption of the HPCS, two scenarios were considered and their results were compared with each other. Scenario (1): on August 4th-7th, the amount of water reduction inside the clay cylinders was measured from 9: 00 AM to 3: 00 PM. Scenario (2): On August 18, the room temperature and humidity were measured from 9: 00 AM to 3: 00 PM. Based on the results, Cool performance of HPCS: the lowest temperature was recorded 21. 1 ° C at 9: 00 AM on the 5th of August. The lowest temperature is noon on 22. 9℃ and on the 6th of August. At 3 PM, the lowest air temperature of 23. 72 was reached on the 5th of August. The highest difference between the temperature of the inlet windcatcher and the outside environment is 16. 3℃ , which is on the 7th of August and at 3: 00 PM. the ECC system can increase the RH of air by an average of 34 %. the highest outlet air velocity of the tower is 0. 72 m⁄ s, at 3: 00 PM on the 5th of August. The lowest air velocity is 0. 5 m⁄ s at 9: 00 AM on the 6th of August. Water and electricity consumption of evaporative cooler in scenario 2: To investigate scenario 2, on August 18, the temperature and humidity inside the room and the outside environment were measured from 9: 00 AM to 3: 00 PM. The lowest and highest levels of indoor humidity are 16% at 3 PM and 27% at Noon, respectively, while the outdoor humidity is 13% at 3 PM and 19% at 12 Noon. The evaporative cooler lowers the indoor ambient temperature by an average of 5% and increases the ambient humidity by an average of 7%. Comparison of electricity and water used in scenarios 1 and 2: The amount of electricity consumed in Scenario 1 is zero, but in Scenario 2, this value is 12112. 9 kJ per day. The environmental footprint of electricity consumed in Scenario 1 is zero, but in Scenario 2, it is 1. 05 Gigabits per year. The water used in Scenario 2 is 0. 04 m^3more than Scenario 1. The results showed that the chamber can provide comfort conditions with zero energy consumption by using a hybrid system during the hottest days of the year from 9: 00 AM to 3: 00 PM. The power consumption of the evaporative cooler in the 3 months of summer is 1. 13 GJ, while the power consumption of the designed hybrid system is zero. The ecological footprint of the power consumption of this system is zero, while the ecological footprint of the evaporative cooler is 1. 05(Gj⁄ year). From the data obtained, we conclude that the passive hybrid cooling system has the lowest ecological footprint of water and electricity compared to evaporative coolers. The system is also able to provide indoor comfort on the hottest days of the year.

maize as one of the most important crops has a significant strategic role in Iran, so it is cultivated as an important crop in all provinces of Iran and farmers earn profit from their cultivation. Therefore, in this study, economic benefits, environmental costs and, ultimately, social benefits of maize cultivation were calculated in different provinces of Iran. In order to calculate the environmental costs, the maize gray water was calculated. Results showed that all Iranian provinces have economic benefits, but by calculating the gray water and consequently the environmental cost, it was determined that the provinces of Mazandaran, Fars and North Khorasan have the highest environmental cost. This has led to social losses in some of these provinces. The results showed that the provinces of Kohkiluyeh and Boyer Ahmad, Qazvin and East Azarbaijan have the most social benefits in the cultivation of maize. However, the provinces of Khuzestan, Kermanshah and Fars, which have the most cultivated areas in different years, have lower social benefits, so that Kermanshah province has social losses.

While agricultural water footprint consist more than 90 percent of Iran’, s fresh water resources, about one third of it is used for animal and chicken husbandary. The aim of this study was to investigate the water footprint and water footprint in poultry sector using the Mekonnen and Hokkstra method in three provinces of Tehran, Alborz and Qazvin. In this study, the virtual water footprint in poultry products, in Tehran, Alborz and Qazvin provinces, was estimated. The values of water footprint for producing Chicken was estimated as much as 5. 8, 5. 81 and 6. 08 m3/kg, and it was estimated as much as 4. 26, 4. 66, 4. 22 m3/kg for egg, in Tehran, Alborz and Qazvin provinces, respectively. It is noteworthy that the global average water footprints for chicken and egg productions are 4. 3 and 3. 34 m3/kg, respectively. Comparing these values shows that the water footprint in poultry production in Iran is higher than the global average. Given the low water footprint for chicken and comparing with that of beef, it is recommended to focus on chicken products and for saving water and food security, simultaneously,the barriers to poultry should be eliminated. Considering the meaningful difference of water footprint between the two approaches of natural and industrial poultry husbandary, the last method is suggested.

Traditional patterns could be an effective solution for water consumption and pollution-related problems in the construction industry. However, the water footprint of traditional buildings in Iran has not been investigated. Iran has rich experience in constructing traditional buildings. This paper presents a comprehensive analysis of the grey and blue water footprints of the construction of traditional buildings in Iran with emphasis on different climate zones. The results are compared with modern buildings (concrete and steel). High-quality data related to 11 materials factories and 34 traditional buildings (stone, wood, clay, and brick) are presented. Blue and grey water footprints of building materialization are calculated using the water footprint network and life cycle assessment methods. The focus is on the structures of buildings. The grey and blue water footprints of modern structures are 327 times and 1.5 times larger than the grey and blue water footprints of traditional structures, respectively. Steel and cement production are influential parameters in the greywater footprint of modern structures. Employee meals have the greatest impact on the water footprint of traditional structures. The blue water footprint dominates the water footprint of traditional structures, which is 2.26 times larger than the greywater footprint. Stone structures have a blue water footprint of 0.85 m3/m2, which is dominated by the blue water footprint of employees' food (38.82%) at construction sites. They have a smaller blue water footprint than adobe and brick structures (1.41 - 1.42 m3/m2) and are close to the water footprint of wooden structures. The water footprint of brick structures is mainly influenced by the energy used (57.04%) for brick production. On the other hand, the greywater footprint dominates the blue water footprint of modern structures, which is 99.61 times larger than the blue water footprint. Steel structures have a blue water footprint of 1.86 m3/m2 and a greywater footprint of 208 m3/m2, the main pollutant of which is cadmium. Concrete structures have a blue water footprint of 1.60 m3/m2 and a greywater footprint of 137 m3/m2, with mercury as the main pollutant. From the water footprint viewpoint, it is better to use concrete structures than steel structures if both have suitable properties for the conditions they are used in. According to the results, the non-use of traditional buildings leads to an increase in water consumption and pollution.

Water governance has emerged to develop, allocate, and manage water resources efficiently to ensure environmental sustainability. Water governance in agriculture is essential due to the importance of sustainability and food security for a growing population, in the face of challenges such as climate change. Therefore, paying attention to the virtual water is one of the dimensions of optimal water governance. Groundwater resources mainly due to the agricultural development has been depleted in Chaharmahal-va-Bakhtiari province in Iran. This study examined virtual water and the ecological footprint of water in the province. The results of the annual net water requirements and virtual water of crops from 2011 to 2019 showed that Lordegan County is more suitable for wheat cultivation, Borujen and Lordegan for barley cultivation, and Ben County for potato cultivation and wheat has the highest internal ecological footprint. The external ecological footprint of these products is zero due to the lack of imports to the province. The water self-sufficiency index in the province is 100 percent with respect to major crops. The water consumption index of wheat, barley, and potatoes was calculated as 4.65, 8.16, and 6.17, respectively. Although the water resources of Chaharmahal-va-Bakhtiari province can be sufficient to produce and meet major agricultural needs, with low productivity and high ecological footprint, it is suggested to import some crops from other provinces. Finally, the study showed that the consequences of ignoring water and natural resource governance issues have resulted in reduced base flows, severe aquifer depletions and degradation of surface and groundwater quality in this province.

All energy scenarios show that the energy supply approach is shifting to renewable energy, in particular energy from biofuels. On the other hand, in the context of this type of energy, water which is a limiting factor in the discussion of agricultural products, arises. In this research, using the water footprint index, the amount of water consumed for the production of each energy unit was calculated from wheat biomass. In this regard, six provinces of the country with the highest production value were selected. The purpose of this study was to determine the most desirable province for producing bioenergy from wheat biomass from the perspective of the water footprint index. The results of this study showed that Golestan, Kermanshah, Ardebil, Khuzestan, Fars and Khorasan Razavi provinces devoted 25. 1, 33, 35. 5, 39. 4, 43. 9 and 83. 7 cubic meter of water per GJ, respectively and this values showed the priority to produce bioenergy from wheat biomass. In other words, from the perspective of the water footprint, the productivity of bioenergy production in Golestan province is more than other provinces. Therefore, this situation has created an advantage for the use of wheat biomass in the province.

Introduction: Water use and pollution have raised to a critical level in many parts of the world. If humankind is to meet the challenges over the coming fifty years, the agricultural share of water use has to be substantially reduced. In this study, a modern yet simple approach has been proposed through the introduction concept ‘Water Footprint’ (WF). This concept can be used to study the connection between each product and the water allocation to produce that product. This research estimates the green, blue and gray WF of wheat in Iran. Also a new WF part (white) is used that is related about irrigation water loss.Materials and Methods: The national green (Effective precipitation), blue (Net irrigation requirement), gray (For diluting chemical fertilizers) and white (Irrigation water losses) water footprints (WF) of wheat production were estimated for fifteen major wheat producing provinces of Iran. Evapotranspiration, irrigation requirement, gross irrigation requirement and effective rainfall were got using the AGWAT model. Yields of irrigated and rain-fed lands of each province were got from Iran Agricultural-Jihad Ministry. Another part of the wheat production WF is related about the volume of water required to assimilate the fertilizers leached in runoff (gray WF). Moreover, a new concept of white water footprint was proposed here and represents irrigation water losses, which was neglected in the original calculation framework. Finally, the national WF parts of wheat production were estimated by taking the average of each part over all the provinces weighted by the share of each province in total wheat production of the selected provinces.Results and Discussion: In 2006-2012, more than 67% of the national wheat production was irrigated and 32.3% were rain-fed, on average, while 37.9% of the total wheat-cultivated lands were irrigated and 62.1% was rain-fed from more than 6, 568 -ha. The total national WF of wheat production for this period was estimated as 42, 143 MCM/year, on average. Different parts of wheat WF were estimated for 236 plains in fifteen selected provinces. For irrigated areas, the green WFs ranged from 499 to 1, 023 m3/ton, the blue WFs from 521 to 1, 402 m3/ton, the gray WFs from 337 to 822 m3/ton, and the white WFs from 701 to 2, 301 m3/ton. The average total WF for irrigated areas among all the selected provinces is about 3, 188 m3/ton, with almost equal shares of blue and green water. For rain-fed areas, the green WFs ranged from 1, 282 to 4, 166 m3/ton and the gray WFs from 100 to 740 m3/ton. The average total WF for rainfed areas is about 3, 071 m3/ton with the share of green WF being nine times the gray WF. In irrigated areas, the percentages of green, blue, gray and white WFs are 23, 25, 17 and 35% of total WF, respectively in each province. The average total WF for irrigated areas is about 3, 188 m3/ton with comparable shares of blue and green water. In irrigated areas, Fars, Khorasan and Khuzestan provinces have the largest of the total WF with 5, 575, 5, 028 and 4, 123 MCM/year, respectively. In addition to large cultivated areas and high rates of potential evapotranspiration, high values of gray and white water is another reason for the high volume of total WF in these provinces.Conclusions: The results showed that the green WF related about wheat production in our country is about 2.3 times the blue WF. It confirmed the importance of green water in wheat production. Also the gray water footprint was assessed which is related about nitrogen application. Besides, the white water footprint was proposed here, which represents irrigation water losses. Results showed that the total water footprint in wheat production for the whole country is about 42, 143 MCM/year on average over the period of 2006-2012. The ratios of green, blue, gray and white water were 41, 18, 16 and 25%, respectively. Different parts of wheat WF were estimated for 236 plains over fifteen selected provinces. Total shares of gray and white water footprint were 41% of total wheat production water footprint. The average total WF for irrigated areas among all selected provinces is about 3, 188 m3/ton, with almost equal shares of blue and green water. The authors admit that the accuracy of these results is subject to the quality of the input data.

Background and aim: Anthropogenic water scarcity is among global concerns which threats the sustainability of the world in future. Overexploiting limited blue water resources for supplying human’, s growing food demand is the main root of such a scarcity. Being still in its infancy, water footprint (WF) benchmarking is a proper method to determine the inefficient fraction of water consumption. Hence, we assessed if achieving benchmark levels can limit agricultural WF to its sustainable cap in Khuzestan province, which is the agricultural backbone of Iran. Method: The research consists of three stages including WF accounting, and sustainability and efficiency assessment. First, consumptive and degradative WFs were accounted for 32 in counties of Khuzestan province over the period 1986-2016. Green and blue WFs were accounted by dividing green and blue evapotranspiration by crop’, s yield, respectively. The AquaCrop model was used to simulate daily evapotranspiration, and then, seasonal values were estimated by aggregating daily values. Grey WF was estimated for the applied nitrogen fertilizer in croplands. In the next stage, the sustainability status of water consumption pattern was assessed by dividing overall blue WF by blue water availability. The latter was estimated by subtracting environmental flow requirements from natural runoff. Thereafter, WF benchmarks were extracted for 10th, 25th, and 50th level of crop production, and based on which, the inefficient fractions of blue WFs were estimated for individual crops. Finally, inefficient blue WFs were compared with unsustainable ones to know if achieving benchmark levels can limit agricultural blue water consumption to its sustainable caps in the study area. A correlation assessment was also done to determine the main roots of inefficiency in Khuzestan province. Results: Along with a 63% increase in crop production and 53 increase in unit blue WF, the overall blue WF increased by 80% over the study period. Such an increasing pattern caused groundwater overexploitation with an annual average rate of 12 million m3 y-1. The contribution of green WF in consumptive WF decreased from 60% in 1986 to 48% in 2016. Overall grey WF, however, followed a decreasing trend, with an average annual decreasing slope of 140 m3 ha-1 y-1, which mainly occurred by a considerable reduction in cash crop’, s grey WF. In 2016, a total of 0. 98 billion m3 of blue water was consumed unsustainably, which was roughly 85% higher than one in 1986. The number of countries with unsustainable water consumption also increased from 2 counties in 1986, to 9 counties in 2016. Stable crops had the largest contribution in unsustainable WF. Based on the results of efficiency assessment, and considering WF benchmarks developed at 25th of crop production level, inefficient blue WF varies in the range of 0. 26 to 606 million m3 y-1 in different counties in 2016. Compared with 1986, the inefficiency increased by 10-3860 m3 ha-1 in 16 counties in 2016. While achieving benchmark levels can reduce blue WF to its sustainable level at provincial scale, unsustainable blue WFs in Andimeshk and Ramshir counties are still 6. 8 and 340. 9 million m3 higher than the inefficient blue WFs, respectively. The correlation assessment showed that inefficiency increase along with any increase in added value by agricultural production and/or export, unit blue WF, blue water scarcity level, and access to groundwater consumption,while it decreases with any increase in the number of employees per ha, crop yield, and cash crop’, s harvested area. Conclusion: WF assessment showed that crop production in Khuzestan province is done at the cost of deteriorating environment, which threats the stability of agricultural system in near future. While achieving benchmark levels helps with being limited to sustainable WF caps through removing inefficient blue WF fractions, there are still the risk of unsustainability in some regions, which indicates the importance of high-resolution assessments for determining hotspots. Hence, further research is required to determine temporal hotspots as well, in order to implement a proper sustainable development plans.