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Title: Application of TABU Search Algorithm with a Coupled ANNAGNPS-CCHE1D Model to Optimize Agricultural Land Use

Author
item QI, HONGHAI - UNIV. OF MISSISSIPPI
item ALTINAKAR, MUSTAFA - UNIV. OF MISSISSIPPI
item VIEIRA, DALMO - UNIV. OF MISSISSIPPI
item ALIDAEE, BAHRAM - UNIV. OF MISSISSIPPI

Submitted to: Journal of the American Water Resources Association
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 2/1/2008
Publication Date: 8/1/2008
Citation: Qi, H., Altinakar, M.S., Vieira, D.A., Alidaee, B. 2008. Application of TABU Search Algorithm with a Coupled ANNAGNPS-CCHE1D Model to Optimize Agricultural Land Use. Journal of the American Water Resources Association. 44(4): DOI: 10.1111/j.1752-1688.2008.00209.x

Interpretive Summary: Water quality degradation caused by sedimentation, nitrogen, phosphorus, and pesticides can be partly attributes to agricultural operations. One of the integrated watershed management approaches, which effectively link agricultural land-use planning including BMPs with environment protection and economic development, is a promising direction for long-term sustainable development of the region. However, studying all possible land management strategies on a field-by-field basis for the entire watershed to arrive an optimal solution is a daunting task. Developing an efficient optimization technique which can be used to select optimal land-use designs from a large pool of feasible ones then becomes necessary. This study established a new conceptual framework which incorporates an integrated modeling system with an optimization technique for agricultural land-use planning with BMPs placement at watershed level. It demonstrated that the proposed framework can successfully accommodate a set of agricultural land-use planning problems, and provide a participatory decision making platform for multiple stakeholders of various background to formulate their own objectives and constraints. The results of the case study of Goodwin Creek watershed in Mississippi indicate that the methodology proposed is valid, and can produce optimal land-use plans that not only improve the environmental quality but also prompt the economic development under certain constraints such as policy, social, and land owner’s preferences.

Technical Abstract: A principal contributor to soil erosion and nonpoint source pollution, agricultural activities have a major influence on the environmental quality of a watershed. Impact of agricultural activities on the quality of water resources can be minimized by implementing suitable agriculture land-use types. Currently, land uses are designed (location, type, and operational schedule) based on field study results, and do not involve a science-based approach to ensure their efficiency under particular regional, climatic, geological, and economical conditions. At present, there is a real need for new methodologies that can optimize the selection, design, and operation of agricultural land uses at the watershed scale by taking into account environmental, technical, and economical considerations, based on realistic simulations of watershed response. In this respect, the present study proposes a new approach, which integrates computational modeling of watershed processes, fluvial processes in the drainage network, and modern heuristic optimization techniques to design cost effective land-use plans. The watershed model AnnAGNPS and the channel network model CCHE1D are linked together to simulate the sediment and pollutant transport processes. Based on the computational results, a multi-objective function is set up to minimize soil losses, nutrient yields, and total associated costs, while the production profits from agriculture are maximized. The selected iterative optimization algorithm uses adaptive Tabu Search heuristic to flip (switching from one alternative to another) land-change variables. USDA’s Goodwin Creek experimental watershed, located in Northern Mississippi, is used to demonstrate the capabilities of the proposed approach. The results show that the optimized land-use design with BMPs using an integrated approach at the watershed level can provide efficient and cost-effective conservation of the environmental quality by taking into account both productivity and profitability.