University of Guilan Caspian Journal of Environmental Sciences 1735-3033 9 2 2011 04 01 Effects of Caspian Sea water level fluctuations on existing drains 169 180 1067 EN GH. Aghajanee Mazandarani College of Agricultural Engineering, Sari Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources University, Iran. A. Shahnazari College of Agricultural Engineering, Sari Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources University, Iran. R. Fazoula College of Agricultural Engineering, Sari Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources University, Iran. M. Nemati Kutenaee College of Agricultural Engineering, Sari Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources University, Iran. E. Perraton IDMSC. SNC-Lavalin International Inc. and Hydrosult Inc., * Corresponding author’s E-mail: Aliponh@yahoo.com Journal Article 1970 01 01 This study is an attempt to develop an integrated methodology to predict the impact of the Caspian Sea on flooding using Geographic Information Systems (GIS) and hydrodynamic modeling. A rise in the sea level might lead to major flooding events, and have a severe impact on the spatial development of cities and regions. The feasibility of simulating a flood event along a drain channel is evaluated near residential development areas along the Chapakroud drain. The results of the study show that about 2 km of the drain embankments would be influenced by changes in sea water levels. For elevations of -23 m and -24 m, the maximum depths of water in the drain are 3.95 m and 2.94 m. The tail of the backwater reaches 3465 m and 2390 m, respectively, leading to flooded areas of 35.97 ha and 12.88 ha. The study shows that at these elevations environmental and social problems arise with regards to the drain. The results also indicate that GIS is an effective tool for floodplain visualization and analysis. It should be noted that the mixture of salt and soft water, as a result of rising sea water level, is a problem that was not investigated in this study and should be examined in the future.   <strong>REFERENCES</strong>  Church, J.A. et al. (2001) Changes in Sea Level.Climate Change. The Scientific Basis, Contribution of Working Group 1 to the Third Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change Houghton Tech, 881 p. Chuan, T. and Jing, Z. (2006) Torrent risk zonation in the UpstreamRedriverBasin based on GIS, (J. Geogr). Sci. 16: 479- 486. Earles, TA. et al. (2004) Los alamos forest fire impact modeling. J. Am. Water. Resour. Assoc. (JAWRA) (DOI: 10.1111/j.1752- 1688. 2004.tb01036.x.). 40: 371-384. Hatipoglu, A. and Keskin, F. (2007) Floodplain delineation, Mugla-Dalaman Plan Using GIS Based River Analysis System.State Hydraulic Works. Practices on River Basin Management, 11 p. U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. (2000) User Manual of HEC-RAS.Hydrologic Engineering Center, 747 p.  U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Hydrologic Engineering Center. (1997) HEC-RAS river Analysis System: Hydraulic Reference Manual. Hydrologic Engineering Center, Davis, 240 p. Malkin, Ch. (2009) Climate Change and Rising Sea Levels.A Geographic Information Systems Analysis of the Potential Impact on Railroad Corridors in New Castle County, Delaware. REUProgram. Disaster Research Center University Transportation Center, 15 p. Mazandaran Regional Water Company (MRWC). (2007) Reports of Complementary Studies Related to the First Phase of Alborz Dam are I&D System, 397 p. MahabGhodss Consulting Engineers (MGCE)(2007) Midterm Report of Alborz Dam Project, 10 p. Noman,NS. and Nelson, EJ. (2003) Improved process for floodplain delineation from digital terrain models. J. Water Res. 129: 427-436. Suareza, P. et al. (2005) Impacts of Flooding and Climate Change on Urban Transportation. A System wide Performance Assessment of the Boston Metro Area. Transportation Research Part D: Transport and Environment 10: 231-244. Walker, WS. AndMaidment, DR. (2006) Geodatabase Design for FEMA Flood Hazard Studies, CRWR Online Report 06-10, Center for Research in Water Resources, University of Texas at Austin, 197 p. Yang, j.R.D. et al. (2006) Appling the HECRAS Model and GIS Techniques in River Network Floodplain Delineation.Can. J. Civ. Eng., 33: 19-29.   https://cjes.guilan.ac.ir/article_1067_05d71aa09f8906685ccdf7fbae23e1e4.pdf