Combining gis, fuzzy logic, and ahp models for solid waste disposal site selection in Nasiriyah, Iraq

Abstract

Finding locations suitable for disposal of solid waste is one of the fundamental challenges facing municipal cities and environmental stability. The present study aims to identify the most suitable solid waste disposal site using Geographic Information System (GIS), remote sensing, and the multi criteria decision-making (MCDM) technique. In addition, the study compares the proposed method for suitability with the traditional analytic hierarchy process (AHP) approach. A new validation approach was applied to evaluate the accuracy of the AHP and Fuzzy logic methods based on the selected solid waste locations. Remote sensing data (ASTER GDEM) and field/reference maps were used to derive 12 conditioning factors required to produce a suitable location for solid waste disposal. The result shows that the accuracy of AHP, based on the consistency index (CI), is acceptable (greater than 0.1). However, Fuzzy logic was shown to be more accurate than AHP. The total surface areas of suitable locations based on AHP and Fuzzy models are 4.4 km2 and 13.35 km2, respectively. This study showed that AHP, Fuzzy logic and GIS can be integrated for waste management decision issues related to site selection to reduce negative effects on the environment and inhabitants.