A volunteered geographic information system for managing environmental pollution of coastal zones: A case study in Nowshahr, Iran

Recent incremental trends in environmental pollutants alongside garbage disposals and wastes have undoubtedly affected the global visage of coastal areas. High population density, in conjunction with numerous tourists who visit coastal regions along with wastewater from factories, industrial centers, cities, agricultural activities, especially oil contaminants, are amongst major contributors to pollution in coastal areas. Fortunately, developing countries have recently instigated developmental procedures with the participation of the general public in an effort to protect the environment. Thus, one can perceive the importance of creating an appropriate system, which facilitates public participation in monitoring coastal environments. Such a system would notably provide solutions for many issues of pollution management in coastal regions. The purpose of this study is to design and implement a Volunteered Geographic Information (VGI)-based system through integration of concepts and methods from three areas of Geographic Information System (GIS), coastal pollution management, and public participation in order to monitor coastal pollution. After the implementation phase, Nowshahr port city, Mazandaran Province, Iran, was selected as the study area, wherein tourists, residents, and other present individuals were asked to report observable pollutants at their location. After a 3 day monitoring of coastal regions, 98 reports were registered in the system, indicating high amounts of contamination within the respective coastal area. 86% of the total recorded reports were accounts of accumulation of garbage and other dispersed solid material such as foliage and tree trunks, which were somehow the main source of pollution. 10% and 4% of the remaining reports were related to the wastewater pollution and oil contaminants, respectively. According to survey results, 74% of users were satisfied with ease of use and performance of system (26% voted very good and 48% voted good) amongst whom 67% noted the system as an advantageous and effective tool for monitoring the coastal pollution (31% cases of very good and 36% cases of good).