An efficient GIS-based approach for sustainability assessment of urban drinking water consumption patterns: A study in Tabriz city, Iran

Abstract

The importance of freshwater for human societies and sustainable urban development is paramount. This study presents a new approach and framework for spatial modelling of urban drinking water consumption patterns (UDWCP) in light of a drinking water sustainability assessment. The approach was developed based on the GIS multi-criteria decision analysis (MCDA) and its efficiency was evaluated for spatial UDWPC mapping in Tabriz city, Iran. To achieve this goal, we identified the main water consumption indicators (WCI) (e.g. urban fields, population, land use/cover and their related sub-spatial factors), and determined their significance using the analytical network process. In addition, the sensitivity and uncertainty analyses was applied to reduce the inherent error in criteria weights. A GIS-based aggregation function was applied to discern the UDWCP map. Finally, regression analysis was used to determine the spatial correlation of the water consumption with different urban fields as well as the ratio of each WCI for the sustainability assessment objects were computed. According to results, urban fields, texture and demographic properties have a significant impact on the water consumption ratio. In the context of the urban texture, this study revealed that water consumption rates in both run-down and slums/informal settlements are relatively high. Results of this research provide a comprehensive understanding of UDWCP and their contribution to urban water consumption in Tabriz city. The importance of fresh water for human societies and the numerous issues related to water scarcity around the world is undisputed, and our proposed approach can be employed to efficiently model UDWCP and provide critical information for decision-makers and authorities worldwide to assist with the sustainable development of urban environments.