## 5 Conclusions  
Whether it is the increasing human population or the impacts of climate change, sustainable management of water resources is proving to be more challenging than ever before. One of the frontiers of this continuous struggle is the preservation of inland water bodies such as saline lakes. Understanding the nature of lakes' depletion could help decision-makers cope with the problem by implementing a lake recovery and protection strategy, mitigating the adverse impacts of the loss of the lakes, and/or adapting to the new situation. This study presents a comprehensive analytical framework that can reveal depletion patterns using RS, statistical analysis, and data mining techniques. Maharlou Lake, Iran, was used as a case study to demonstrate the application of the proposed framework.  
The results reveal specific depletion patterns in Maharlou's surface area. The shrinking pattern of Maharlou Lake occurred in two different ways: a sharp reduction in 2007/2008 and a gradual decline that was more pronounced during dry seasons and less noticeable during wet seasons. Hydro-climatic variables (i.e., rainfall, temperature, and streamflow) were tested for any statistically significant patterns of change. This revealed that there were both abrupt and gradual changes in these variables' time series, and the changes could be signaling the impacts of climate change and anthropogenic drought. The analysis of the relationships between the hydro-climatic patterns and the surface area patterns indicated that the correlations were complicated. The magnitude of the lake's depletion was determined in part by the season. For instance, when the lake's storage was low in the dry season, the recharge components (i.e., rainfall and streamflow) were virtually nonexistent, and temperatures were at their highest. During this time, depletion is more pronounced. The obtained results from data mining models show that Maharlou Lake is undergoing a permanent morphological change. If preventive measures are not taken soon, the lake could potentially pass a point of no return, after which recovery of the lake and preservation of the associated ecosystems and dependent economic activities would  
Figure 8: Prediction results of lake’s surface area based on MLP model II.  
be next to impossible. Preventive measures such as incorporating long-term watershed strategies may provide a remedy to mitigate these observed patterns.  
It should be noted, however, that the temporal depletion patterns of Maharlou Lake are somewhat different from the temporal depletion patterns of Urmia Lake, a similar saline lake in Iran. Urmia's deterioration arose primarily from anthropogenic causes that upset the region's water budget. While one cannot dismiss the direct adverse impact of human activities, the changes in the hydro-climatic variables in the Maharlou Basin have also led to the deterioration of the lake. The complex nature of the causes makes the management of this case more challenging.  
All authors contributed to the study conception and design. Material preparation, data collection, and analysis were performed by [PERSON], [PERSON]. ([PERSON]), [PERSON], [PERSON] and [PERSON]. ([PERSON]) The first draft of the manuscript was written by [PERSON] and all authors commented on previous versions of the manuscript. All authors have read and agreed to the published version of the manuscript.  
The authors thank the University of Exeter for providing the required funding to publish this open access paper.  
The authors declare all data and materials, as well as software applications or custom codes, are in line with published claims and comply with field standards. Furthermore, the research data supporting this publication are provided within this paper.  
The authors declare no conflict of interest.