GIS Multi-criteria Analysis Research Articles

Uncovering COVID-19 infection determinants in Portugal: towards an evidence-based spatial susceptibility index to support epidemiological containment policies

BackgroundCOVID-19 caused the largest pandemic of the twenty-first century forcing the adoption of containment policies all over the world. Many studies on COVID-19 health determinants have been conducted, mainly using multivariate methods and geographic information systems (GIS), but few attempted to demonstrate how knowing social, economic, mobility, behavioural, and other spatial determinants and their effects can help to contain the disease. For example, in mainland Portugal, non-pharmacological interventions (NPI) were primarily dependent on epidemiological indicators and ignored the spatial variation of susceptibility to infection.MethodsWe present a data-driven GIS-multicriteria analysis to derive a spatial-based susceptibility index to COVID-19 infection in Portugal. The cumulative incidence over 14 days was used in a stepwise multiple linear regression as the target variable along potential determinants at the municipal scale. To infer the existence of thresholds in the relationships between determinants and incidence the most relevant factors were examined using a bivariate Bayesian change point analysis. The susceptibility index was mapped based on these thresholds using a weighted linear combination.ResultsRegression results support that COVID-19 spread in mainland Portugal had strong associations with factors related to socio-territorial specificities, namely sociodemographic, economic and mobility. Change point analysis revealed evidence of nonlinearity, and the susceptibility classes reflect spatial dependency. The spatial index of susceptibility to infection explains with accuracy previous and posterior infections. Assessing the NPI levels in relation to the susceptibility map points towards a disagreement between the severity of restrictions and the actual propensity for transmission, highlighting the need for more tailored interventions.ConclusionsThis article argues that NPI to contain COVID-19 spread should consider the spatial variation of the susceptibility to infection. The findings highlight the importance of customising interventions to specific geographical contexts due to the uneven distribution of COVID-19 infection determinants. The methodology has the potential for replication at other geographical scales and regions to better understand the role of health determinants in explaining spatiotemporal patterns of diseases and promoting evidence-based public health policies.

Planning for groundwater management using visual MODFLOW model and multi-criteria decision analysis, West–West Minya, Egypt

This study presents a planning model to assist decision-makers in implementing proposed sustainable development policies based on the government's development schemes. It focuses on the exploitation of groundwater from the Eocene aquifer in the West–West Minya region in the Western Desert of Egypt as one of the new development areas. The visual MODFLOW model is applied to serve as a base model for the study area's local modeling and assess the impact of operating scenarios on the groundwater aquifer. An optimal scenario for groundwater sustainability is achieved by considering the water meter consumption in the newly reclaimed area with a value of 6 m3/d for each acre to irrigate 3953.68 acres; the maximum drawdown of about 60 m is formed after 9700 days of simulation. The GIS multi-criteria analysis model is used to assess the impact of groundwater deficiency as a result of reclamation. Results of the groundwater model are merged as input layers in multi-criteria decision analysis, which include groundwater salinity, groundwater levels, aquifer transmissivity, and aquifer storativity. The prospective groundwater zones are categorized into most suitable (1584 km2, 9.9%), suitable (4592 km2, 28.7%), good (4784 km2, 29.9%), moderate (1488 km2, 9.3%), and unsuitable (3552 km2, 22.2%). It is recommended to optimize levels of groundwater withdrawal from the current or future drilling wells to achieve a balance between the use and the protection of water potential.

A methodology to determine suitable locations for regional shared mobility hubs

As a solution to the high greenhouse gas emissions and declining quality of life caused by private vehicles, the shared mobility hub is introduced. The shared mobility hub is a place where multiple modalities come together, including public transport and shared private mobility. As the shared mobility hub is a relatively new solution, limited research is available on the topic, especially on finding potentially suitable locations for allocating them. In this research, this knowledge gap is addressed by developing and testing a generic methodology to determine suitable locations for a specific type: the regional shared mobility hub. The regional shared mobility hub is located outside a city center being able to act as an intermodal point of transfer. The developed methodology is a combination of two existing methods: the GIS Multi-Criteria Analysis (MCA) and Multi-Actor Multi-Criteria Analysis (MAMCA) available in the literature. The method is able to score and weight different criteria which determine regional shared mobility hub suitability, taking the end-user (traveler), operator, and government perspectives into account in the weighting. Results are presented in multiple heat maps based on scenarios with varying stakeholder weight importance. The methodology developed consists of five criteria that measure location suitability (potential demand at a certain location, hub implementation costs, generalized travel costs from and to the hub, link to surroundings, and societal impact) measured by nine attributes. In this method, the choice is made for the Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) to determine the criteria weights. The developed methodology is applied to the region of Rotterdam (The Netherlands) to analyse if the methodology produces useful results for policy implementation. From multiple analyses, it appears that the methodology is suitable for tackling the location suitability determination problem, as it produces intuitive results.

Defining Priority Areas for the Sustainable Development of the Desalination Industry in Chile: A GIS Multi-Criteria Analysis Approach

The climate crisis is rapidly provoking water scarcity in several areas of the planet, where an exponential growth of the seawater desalination industry is expected. In this context, multiple efforts are currently under development to reduce potential impacts and promote the sustainability of this industry. The selection of a suitable site for a desalination plant is critical to ensure operational continuity and the environmental sustainability of its processes, optimizing the plant’s productive performance and thus safeguarding water security for final users. In this study, we apply a GIS-based Multi-Criteria Analysis (GIS-MCA) approach to explore and assess potential areas suitable for the construction and operation of desalination plants in Chile. Different environmental, social, and technical criteria were evaluated and weighted by expert criteria using the Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) methodology. From a total of 114,450 km2 analyzed, only 4.54% of the territory was classified as highly suitable, demonstrating the scarcity of space available to meet the growth expectations for the industry. These results suggest that GIS-based analysis provides a practical solution to determine suitable areas for developing desalination plants, highlighting the need to define priority areas for the sustainable development of the desalination industry in Chile with the required capacity to reach the national water security goals for the following decades.

Potential Use of Treated Wastewater as Groundwater Recharge Using GIS Techniques and Modeling Tools in Dhuleil-Halabat Well-Field/Jordan

Due to limited rainfall and precipitations, different developing countries depend on groundwater (G.W.) resources to challenge water scarcity. This practice of continuous and excessive G.W. pumping has led to severe water shortages and deteriorated water quality in different countries. Recharging of treated wastewater (TWW) into G.W. provides a critical solution for solving water scarcity, extending the well’s service life, and maintaining the G.W. supply. However, effective injection practice requires accurate tools and methods to determine the best location for groundwater recharge (GWRC). This work offers a new tool based on GIS–Multi-Criteria Analysis to identify the potential site and locations for GWRC with TWW. The developed methodology was applied to one of the most used well-field areas in Jordan (Dhuleil-Halabat). The G.W. flow for the B-B2/A7 formation system in the area of study was simulated using Processing Modflow (version 8.0). The analysis combined six thematic maps produced following the environmental, technical, and economic criteria to draw conclusions and recommendations. Both steady and transient conditions were used to predict the future changes that might occur under different stresses and after continuous GWR. The study evaluated three possible scenarios of artificial GWRC to evaluate the process efficiency and determine the effect on the water table level. The results revealed that only 0.05% (0.14 Km2) of the total surface area of 450 Km2 is suitable for GWRC. A GWRC with TWW at a rate of 3.65 Mm3/year (MCMY) would provide a good G.W. table recovery to 39.68 m in the year 2025, maintain a steady-state water table ≥ of 50.77 m for up to six years, and secure water supply for future generations. The proposed methodology can be used as a useful tool that can be applied to regulate the GWRC practice worldwide.

Application of GIS multi-criteria analysis and cartographic data presentation methods for public transportation optimization: the case of the town of Mińsk Mazowiecki

Abstract The author attempts to apply a multi-criteria spatial analysis of issues related to urban public transport in terms of optimizing its usage and accessibility. Publicly available spatial and statistical data were used. Desktop GIS computer software was the primary tool and work environment – due to its popularity and wide interdisciplinary application in studying geospatial phenomena, processes, and dependencies. The article consists of two parts. The first identifies the research area, indicates the data used and the methodology of the conducted analysis, while the second presents the results of analyses in optimizing the functioning of public transport in Mińsk Mazowiecki (Mazowieckie Voivodeship, Poland) and recommendations that may contribute to disseminating the use of multi-criteria analyses in medium-sized cities.

Landfill Site Suitability Selection Using Geospatial Technology for the Yaounde Metropolitan City and its Environs: Case of Soa Subdivision, Cameroon

The inappropriate location of landfill sites is a major call for concern in most urban and peri-urban areas in Africa and Cameroon in particular. Rapid and uncontrolled urbanization, scarcity and skyrocketing prices of urban land as well as lack of proper law enforcement due to high corruption causes the population to extend their settlements rapidly into areas where landfill sites are implanted. The objective of this paper is to propose a new landfill site for the Yaounde metropolitan city and its environs based on accepted norms. To attain this, 110 questionnaires were randomly administered to 99 households; satellite image processing, GIS multi criteria analysis with weighted overlay and the analytical hierarchy process were used to produce a suitability map. The outcome shows that human implantation covers 29% of the total surface area within 500m radius around the landfill with 85% of its households affected health wise. Results also portray that the suitable and most suitable areas cover 56.6% and 16.9% whereas the unsuitable and less suitable areas cover 4.5% and 22%. The environmentally healthy suitable and most suitable sites were selected along the eastern and northern parts of Soa which is relatively accessible to the Yaounde central town.

Derivation of demographic depression index using GIS analysis - an example from Medjimurje county

Over the past three decades, Croatia has been experiencing a process of depopulation and population aging. This is the result of demographic changes in the past, especially in the second half of the 20th century. In this paper, the index of demographic-depressed areas (iddp) for the settlements of Croatia was derived using GIS multicriteria analysis (GIS-MCDA). An iddp was derived for all Croatian counties (21) and detailed analysis of demographic-depressed and vital areas was conducted for the settlements of Medjimurje County (131). This is recognised as the county with the highest achieved level of socio-economic development. A new methodological framework for deriving an iddp based on eight selected demographic variables has been proposed. The iddp was derived with GIS based on eight selected criteria using data from 2011 census results. The degree of demographic depression was divided into five classes: (A) distinctly depressed area, (B) less depressed area, (C) area at the edge of demographic depression, (D) vital area, and (E) distinctly vital area. The accuracy of the derived index was verified by analysing age-sex pyramids of the most depressed and vital settlements. The distinctly depressed demographic (A) is the predominant form of demographic settlement development in the six counties. These are areas that have been affected by rural exodus and depopulation, both of which were further intensified by the war from 1991 to 1995. Medjimurje County was categorised as a (D) vital area. However, of the 131 settlements in the county, 28 were identified as demographic-depressed and 72 as vital. More than half of these 72 settlements (42) have the characteristics of a distinctly vital area, which is the highest proportion among all counties. The most vital settlements were Parag, Kursanec, and Piskorovec. Their main feature is that a significant proportion of their population belongs to the Roma demographic. Derived population pyramids confirm the consistency of the generated index. Medjimurje County is characterised by high variability among results (from extremely depressed to extremely non-depressed spaces), which indicates the impossibility of adopting uniform measures and policies throughout the county. In the future, the identified vital settlements have the potential to become the county's primary demographic resource. The proposed classification of settlements according to the derived index (iddp) could serve as a useful instrument in designing development policies or measures for this specific administrative-territorial unit.

Food Security Assessment Based on GIS Spatial Analysis in the Rural Area of East Azerbaijan Province, Iran

GIS is an exploration tool into the use of spatial reasoning methods, to identify regions at risk, due to inadequate food and water resources, which are a result of inherent environmental scarcity. The purpose of this study is to lay an evidentiary foundation to assess food security in rural area of East Azerbaijan Province. We estimate vulnerability of food availability by approximating local food supply. Food availability was estimated by determining local supply through agricultural and industrial activities. For this to happen, relevant criteria were considered for food security assessment, and GIS multi-criteria analysis was employed for producing food security maps. Based on the obtained food security map, very high and highly secure zones include 544 villages (22.15% of rural area), while 1,905 villages (57% of rural area) were classified as being in insecure zones. The results of this research are of great importance to decision makers, and, in particular, to government departments such as the Ministry of Agriculture, the Ministry of Water Resource Management, and the Ministry of Natural Resources for the East Azerbaijan Province of Iran.

GIS Based Multicrteria Analysis in Integration of SEA Process Into Planning, Case Study: South West Region, Republic of Ireland

Strategic Environmental Assessment can be viewed as a process to integrate the concept ofsustainable development into planning. In this context, SEA can be regarded as a method that regulates theplanning process to a state of sustainable development. However, to reach that goal it is necessary to achieve full integration of planning and the SEA process.Therefore this paper considers the integration of SEA into the planning process based on GIS multicriteria analysis. The paper is an attempt to introduce the concept of environmental protection in the planning process on the principle of dynamic modelling with the aim of identifying potential impacts of planned activities on the environment and determining the optimal alternative development. Moreover, the paper will introduce the model of integration of SEA process into planning as one approach to reach the goal of full integration of the two processes and therefore will assist the planner and decision maker to achieve a more sustainable decision.

Evaluation of rapeseed cultivation suitability in Apulia with GIS-multicriteria analysis

The potential of land for energy crops is determined by an evaluation of biophysical and economical variables. From this respect, climate, soil and geomorphologic environmental components are the most important agro-ecological variables to conduct this kind of evaluation. In this study, Geographic Information System (GIS) has been used to identify the most suitable areas for rapeseed crop production in the Apulia region. Environmental components such as climate (precipitation, temperature), soil (chemical and physical characteristics including texture, gravel percentage, pH, electrical conductivity (EC), soil depth, etc.), topography (slope) and economical components (farm-useful surface, mechanization, percentage of land covered by cereals and horticulture, irrigated surface, set-aside surface) were considered. Biophysical parameters (climate, geomorphology and soil) were used to draw a map of agronomic suitability of rapeseed according to the Agronomic Classification of the Territory II (CAT II) classification system; a map of general suitability of rapeseed in the Apulia region has been drawn with the support of multicriteria analysis, which also takes into account the economical parameters. The results from overlay maps for agronomic evaluation in the Apulia region showed that 38% (189,983 ha) of the arable land area is highly suitable (S1), 43.4% (21,6642 ha) is moderately suitable (S2), 11.9% (59,487 ha) is marginally suitable (S3) and 6.7% (33,210 ha) is and not suitable (N) for rapeseed cultivation.

LAND SUITABILITY SCENARIOS FOR ARID COASTAL PLAINS USING GIS MODELING: SOUTHWESTERN SINAI COASTAL PLAIN, EGYPT (doi: 10.4090/juee.2009.v3n2.073083)

Site selection analysis was carried out to find the best suitable lands for development activities in an example of promising coastal plains, southwestern Sinai, Egypt. Two GIS models were developed to represent two scenarios of landuse suitability in the study area using GIS Multi Criteria Analysis Modeling. The factors contributed in the analysis are the Topography, Land cover, Existing Land use, Flash flood index, Drainage lines and Water points. The first scenario was to classify the area according to various gradual ranges of suitability. According to this scenario, the area is classified into five classes of suitability. The percentage of suitability values are, 51.16%, 6.13%, 22.32 %, 18.49% and 1.89% for unsuitable, least suitable, low suitable, suitable and high suitable, respectively. The second scenario is developed for a particular kind of landuse planning; tourism and recreation projects. The suitability map of this scenario was classified intoto five values. Unsuitable areas represent (51.18%) of the study area, least suitable (16.67%), low suitable (22.85%), suitable (8.61%), and high suitable (0.68%). The best area for locating development projects is the area surrounding El-Tor City and close to the coast. This area could be an urban extension of El-Tor City with more economical and environmental management.

LAND SUITABILITY SCENARIOS FOR ARID COASTAL PLAINS USING GIS MODELING: SOUTHWESTERN SINAI COASTAL PLAIN, EGYPT

Site selection analysis was carried out to find the best suitable lands for development activities in an example of promising coastal plains, southwestern Sinai, Egypt. Two GIS models were developed to represent two scenarios of land use suitability in the study area using GIS Multi Criteria Analysis Modeling. The factors contributed in the analysis are the Topography, Land cover, Existing Land use, Flash flood index, Drainage lines and Water points. The first scenario was to classify the area according to various gradual ranges of suitability. According to this scenario, the area is classified into five classes of suitability. The percentage of suitability values are 51.16, 6.13, 22.32, 18.49 and 1.89% for unsuitable, least suitable, low suitable, suitable and high suitable, respectively. The second scenario is developed for a particular kind of land use planning; tourism and recreation projects. The suitability map of this scenario was classified into five values. Unsuitable areas represent 51.18% of the study area, least suitable 16.67%, low suitable 22.85%, suitable 8.61%, and high suitable 0.68%. The best area for locating development projects is the area surrounding El-Tor City and close to the coast. This area could be an urban extension of El-Tor City with more economical and environmental management.

Exploitation of high-yields in hard-rock aquifers: downscaling methodology combining GIS and multicriteria analysis to delineate field prospecting zones.

Based on research work in the Truyère River catchment of the Massif Central (Lozère Department, France), a methodology has been developed for delineating favorable prospecting zones of a few square kilometers within basement areas of several hundred, if not thousand, square kilometers for the purpose of sitting high-yield water wells. The methodology adopts a functional approach to hard-rock aquifers using a conceptual model of the aquifer structure and of the functioning of the main aquifer compartments: the alterites (weathered and decayed rock), the underlying weathered-fissured zone, and the fractured bedrock. It involves an economically feasible method of mapping the thickness and spatial distribution of the alterites and the weathered-fissured zone, on which the long-term exploitation of the water resource chiefly depends. This method is used for the first time in hydrogeology. The potential ground water resources were mapped by GIS multicriteria analysis using parameters characterizing the structure and functioning of the aquifer, i.e., lithology and hydrogeological properties of the substratum, nature and thickness of the alterites and weathered-fissured zone, depth of the water table, slope, fracture networks and present-day tectonic stresses, and forecasted ground water quality. The methodology involves a coherent process of downscaling that, through applying methods that are increasingly precise but also increasingly costly, enables the selection of sites with diminishing surface areas as the work advances. The resulting documents are used for ground water exploration, although they can also be applied to the broader domain of land-use management.