Remote Sensing and GIS Applications in Environmental Sciences

Estimating the area of land suitable for Populus euramericana planting in Golestan province using a geographic information system

Document Type : Original Article

Authors

1 Assistant Prof., Research Institute of Forests and Rangelands, Agricultural Research, Education and Extension Organization (AREEO), Tehran, I.R. Iran

2 Associate Prof., Forest Research Division, Research Institute of Forests and Rangelands, Agricultural Research, Education and Extension Organization, Tehran, I.R. Iran

10.22034/rsgi.2025.66847.1133

Abstract

In order to implement this project in Golestan province, initially, the ecological indices of Populus euramericana species including temperature, precipitation, soil and physiography were determined. Then, climatic and temperature data were collected from meteorological stations and climatic information layer, non-forest lands layer, agricultural and garden lands layer, texture, salinity and acidity of soil, physiographic, and current status of poplar plantation layer were prepared. By Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP) and layers weighted overlay methods and intersect command, and then weighting each of these ecological indices, according to the ability of P. euramericana species to cultivate, they were classified and prioritized in the Geographic Information System (GIS) into areas with suitable and unsuitable potential for development of poplar cultivation.
Results: The results showed that poplar development potential in Golestan province is 233.57 ha into two types of irrigation and rainfed with supplementary irrigation that 6.53 ha is rainfed with supplementary irrigation. The type of irrigation in Bandargaz County is 6.53 ha of rainfed land with supplementary irrigation in the summer, and in other counties, the potential for poplar cultivation is irrigation.
Conclusions: This potential for poplar cultivation in Golestan province is 63.61 percent higher than the current levels of wood farming in the province. In this province, poplar trees are cultivated in a strip from the west of the province to the center and to some extent to the east of the province, and their amount decreases towards the east of the province, so that the extreme eastern region of the province which has the least poplar cultivation, reaches Galikesh County.

Keywords

Main Subjects

هدف: با توجه به توقف بهره‌برداری از جنگل‌های صنعتی شمال ایران، توسعه زراعت چوب برای تأمین نیاز چوبی کشور ضروری است. یکی از راه‌های افزایش تولید در واحد سطح، شناسائی ظرفیت تولید اراضی و انتخاب کاربری متناسب با این ظرفیت اسـت. پتانسیل‌یابی اراضی برای زراعت چوب به‌منظور برنامه‌ریزی برای آینده امری ضروری است، لیکن با توجه به تغییرات اقلیمی و دینامیک بودن موضوع چه از‌نظر نیاز صنایع به چوب و چه از‌نظر اجتماعی و اقتصادی، این امر چالشی حساس است که باید به آن توجه شود.

روش پژوهش‌: برای اجرای این پژوهش در استان گلستان، اﺑﺘﺪا شاخص‌های نیازهای اکولوژیکی گونه‌ صنوبر اورامریکن شامل دما، بارندگی، خاک و فیزیوگرافی تعیین شد. سپس، داده‌های اقلیمی بارش و دما از ایستگاه‌های هواشناسی استان جمع‌آوری و لایه اطلاعات اقلیمی، لایه اراضی غیر‌جنگلی، لایه اراضی کشاورزی و باغی، لایه بافت، شوری و اسیدیته خاک، لایه فیزیوگرافی و لایه وضعیت موجود صنوبرکاری‌ها تهیه شد. با استفاده از فرآیند تحلیـل سلسـله مراتبـی (AHP) و دستور weighted overlay و با توجه به وزن هر یک از شاخص‌های اکولوژیک و با توجه به قابلیت زراعت گونه اورامریکن، مناطق با پتانسیل مناسب و نامناسب برای توسعه کشت صنوبر در سامانه اطلاعات جغرافیایی (GIS) طبقه‌بندی و اولویت‌بندی شدند.

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Remote Sensing and GIS Applications in Environmental Sciences
Volume 6, Issue 18
April 2026
Pages 57-36
  • Receive Date: 18 April 2025
  • Revise Date: 26 April 2025
  • Accept Date: 27 December 2025