Generation of spatial decision alternatives based on a planar subdivision of the study area

Abstract

Outranking methods, a family of multicriteria analysis tools, cope better with the ordinal aspects of spatial decision problems. However, it is recognized that these methods are subject to computational limitations with respect to the number of alternatives. This paper proposes an approach to generate these alternatives based on a planar subdivision of the study area. The planar subdivision is obtained by combining a set of criteria maps. The result is a set of non-overlapping polygons/ spatial units. Punctual, linear and areal decision alternatives, conventionally used in spatial multicriteria analysis, are then constructed as an individual, a collection of linearly adjacent or a collection of contiguous spatial units. This permits to reduce substantially the number of alternatives enabling the use of outranking methods. © Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg 2009.