Review Reports

Round 1

Reviewer 1 Report

Comments and Suggestions for Authors

The review "The impact of land use planning on water resources in the GCC region" is well written and can be interesting for the readers of the journal. However, I have a few comments that should be considered before publication:

- do not use an abbreviation in the title.

- The manuscript somehow describes the relationship between water resources and land use, but without any link to land use planning. This relationship should be analysed in more detail or the title should be changed.

- References are missing throughout the article.

- Fig. 1: Use capital letters in country names.

- Which databases were used to obtain the literature sources?

- It would be nice to see tables with land use changes described in the paragraphs.

- I suggest changing the chapter from Discussion to Conclusion.

Author Response

Reviewer 1 : (all the changes are highlighted with yellow color)

1. Do not use an abbreviation in the title. (page 1, lines 2-3)

Done.

 

2. The manuscript somehow describes the relationship between water resources and land use but without any link to land use planning. This relationship should be analysed in more detail or the title should be changed. (page 1, lines 2-3).

Done. The title has been changed.

 

3. References are missing throughout the article.

Done. All the references were revised, and they were cited in the text (highlighted in grey).

 

4. 1: Use capital letters in country names (page 3, line 120).

Done.

 

5. Which databases were used to obtain the literature sources (page 5, lines 132-133).

Done. The Names of the sources used are mentioned in the methodology section.

 

6. It would be nice to see tables with land use changes described in the paragraphs. (page 8, lines 18-20)

Done. All the tables without description (including the ones with land use change) have been described;

1. Table 1 description (page 3, lines 103-115).
2. Table 3 description (page 6, lines 152-159).
3. Table 4 description (page 6, lines 159-163).
4. Table 6 description (pages 7-8, lines 212-220).
5. Table 7 description (pages 13-14, lines 441- 447).
6. Table 8 description (page 14, lines 472- 479).
7. Table 9 description (page 17, lines 541- 549).

 

7. I suggest changing the chapter from Discussion to Conclusion. (page 18, line 571).

Done.

Reviewer 2 Report

Comments and Suggestions for Authors

 

This is an extensive review of literature, reports, and statistics about the relationship between land use practices and water resources in the GCC countries with relevance to the wider MENA region. I support publication as submitted, only pointing out relevance to the wider region also. The references are appropriate.

Authors could comment more on the tables, eg comparing between different jurisdictions. Figures are all diagrammatic maps of study areas. Some discussion of quality of data could be helpful.

Author Response

Reviewer 2 : (all the changes are highlighted with red color)

Authors could comment more on the tables, eg comparing between different jurisdictions. Figures are all diagrammatic maps of study areas.

Done. All of the reviewer comments points have been implemented;

1. All the tables without description  have been described;

• Table 1 description (page 3, lines 103-115).
• Table 3 description (page 6, lines 152-159).
• Table 4 description (page 6, lines 159-163).
• Table 6 description (pages 7-8, lines 212-220).
• Table 7 description (pages 13-14, lines 441- 447).
• Table 8 description (page 14, lines 472- 479).
• Table 9 description (page 17, lines 541- 549).

 

2. Some of the Digramatic maps have been added to the study area section (Page 3, Line 99)

The figures added are 2,3 & 4.

Reviewer 3 Report

Comments and Suggestions for Authors

The Impact of Land Use Planning on Water Resources in the GCC Region

This title is a very demanding one and obliges many components of the manuscript, from those of graphic origin, FIRST OF ALL, but thematic graphics, not representations of territorial administrative units of different levels and dry tables, which do not make the connection between the conditioning element and the affected one (land use and water resource).
Unfortunately, I think the authors did not understand how to respond to such a title, especially to a journal in the Territorial Planning category.
I will not reject the material (I rarely do this and I review positively and constructively, but the material should be rewritten and appropriate according to a scientific material, especially in the category of Review.

Even the title is not adequate to the intention of the body of the article, because the authors talk about a quantitative impact in its structure, or this specification is missing in the title.
I would also be afraid to talk about water resources in a desert region, with derisory precipitation, where the problem must be put in another way (e.g. the way in which a particular country in this area proceeds with cost-effective desalination of of water by using the electrical resource derived from the conversion of solar energy, water which, subsequently, is delivered either to surface or underground water bodies, to lend them minerals and those necessary to become usable water for the anthropic or natural environment).

When we talk about land use, we must come up with some appropriate thematic maps, which will educate the reader on the real situation on the ground or even on the evolution of this characteristic in time and space, which, according to the message sent by the authors, must be inversely proportional to the QUANTITATIVE and QUALITATIVE evolution of WATER RESOURCES. We cannot break away from each other. Correlations can be later derived from this information to demonstrate this impact reported by the authors.

Several statements in the abstract are not supported by the text body, requiring additional images or data (eg "This has resulted in limited water infiltration and groundwater recharge.").
It is necessary to rewrite and deepen the text with concrete thematic graphics and correlative graphics supporting the influence of land use on water resources.

ut let's go to more specific, effective observations throughout the material.
It is the first scientific content without citations of specialized literature in its structure, and hence ZERO REPORTING OF THE RESULTS OBTAINED TO THOSE IN THE LITERATURE. The addition of a huge volume of references at the end is struck with nullity, as long as it is not correlated by citations with the ideas in the text.

The Introduction chapter has no God if it is not confronted with literature or practical data bases (eg precipitation statistics, surface water and groundwater runoff, etc.).
Also, the objective of the material is superficially defined, without risking deep statements in technical terms, according to the wording in the title.

The Materials and Methods chapter is a joke without DATA and without a proper methodology to highlight the impact of land use on water resources.
Specific indicators, algorithms and calculation formulas, which should automatically be based on data, are missing and these are missing/not specified.
Under these conditions, the Results chapter becomes a structure based on general, dry statistics, without major scientific substance and without scientific novelty. Any serious undergraduate student has been doing such calculations since. the first years of study, as well as GIS techniques.
The Discussion chapter is a brief one and does not bring those details that lead to the increase of the originality of the study, and the Conclusions are completely missing from the configuration. the manuscript.
The bibliography has no value, if the text and, above all, the original, own elements are not related to it.
Impact of Land Use Planning on Water Resources

https://www.sciencedirect.com/search?qs=Impact%20of%20Land%20Use%20Planning%20on%20Water%20Resources

154,404 results
The conclusion: "nothing new under the sun", if the authors do not return with technical data and visual materials unique in the scientific landscape.

Good luck in remaking the structure.
Respectfully.

Author Response

Reviewer 3 : (all the changes are highlighted with green color)

1. This title is a very demanding one and obliges many components of the manuscript, from those of graphic origin, FIRST OF ALL, but thematic graphics, not representations of territorial administrative units of different levels and dry tables, which do not make the connection between the conditioning element and the affected one (land use and water resource).
   Unfortunately, I think the authors did not understand how to respond to such a title, especially to a journal in the Territorial Planning category.

Kindly note that the title has been changed to be more tied to the paper content.

2. 
   The material should be rewritten and appropriate according to scientific material, especially in the category of Review.

Done. The sources of the material's names are mentioned in the methodology section (page 5, lines 132-133).

 

1. When we talk about land use, we must come up with some appropriate thematic maps, which will educate the reader on the real situation on the ground.

Done. Land use and land cover maps were added to the case study area section to show the recent LULC situation in the region (Page 3, Figure 2).

 

2. Several statements in the abstract are not supported by the text body, requiring additional images or data (eg "This has resulted in limited water infiltration and groundwater recharge.").
   The abstract was revised, and made sure all of the statements were covered in the paper (page 1, lines 10-22).

 

3. It is the first scientific content without citations of specialized literature in its structure, and hence ZERO REPORTING OF THE RESULTS OBTAINED TO THOSE IN THE LITERATURE. The addition of a huge volume of references at the end is struck with nullity as long as it is not correlated by citations with the ideas in the text.

Done. All of the references are cited inside the text (highlighted in grey).

 

4. The Introduction chapter has no God if it is not confronted with literature or practical data bases (eg precipitation statistics, surface water and groundwater runoff, etc.).

Done. Percipitation rates were added based on GCC Statistics Center. Page 2 line 86.

5. The Materials and Methods chapter is a joke without DATA and without a proper methodology to highlight the impact of land use on water resources.
   Specific indicators, algorithms and calculation formulas, which should automatically be based on data, are missing and these are missing/not specified.
   Under these conditions, the Results chapter becomes a structure based on general, dry statistics, without major scientific substance and without scientific novelty. Any serious undergraduate student has been doing such calculations since. The first years of study, as well as GIS techniques.

Kindly note the paper is a review paper, not a technical paper. It is based on reviewing the relevant available literature. Doing a GIS analysis and calculations is out of our paper's scope. However, we made some analysis for the GCC region in the study area section (page 3) to make sure the paper reflects the natural settings for the region.

9. 
   The Conclusions are completely missing from the configuration. The manuscript.
   The bibliography has no value if the text and, above all, the original, own elements are not related to it.

Kindly note that the Conclusion section is not a required part of the Land Journal's review paper. However, we have changed the discussion section name to Conclusion according to the comment from reviewer 1.