Urban Development Suitability Research Articles

The suitability assessment for land territorial spatial planning based on ANN-CA model and the Internet of Things

This work aims to utilize Internet of Things (IoT) technology and the Artificial Neural Network - Cellular Automaton (ANN-CA) model to analyze the construction of indicators for territorial spatial planning and urban development suitability assessment. Firstly, the IoT technology is introduced, and its application potential in land planning is explored. Using the IoT technology, various data related to land use are collected, and these data are transmitted and summarized through IoT equipment to form a data base. Based on the collected data, the ANN-CA model and the “dual assessment” concept are employed to establish an indicator system for urban development suitability assessment, encompassing permanent basic farmland, ecological redlines, and current built-up areas. Through the combination of these two models, the future land use situation can be predicted more accurately. The trained model is evaluated, including simulation accuracy, error analysis, Kappa coefficient and other indicators. Compared with the actual data, the accuracy and credibility of the model are verified. Finally, according to the prediction results of the model, the land use situation is analyzed and interpreted to provide decision support for urban planning and development. The research results show that the combination of IoT technology and ANN-CA model can effectively analyze the evolution law of land use and the suitability of urban development. Through the reasonable setting and processing of model parameters and data, people can get high accuracy land use prediction results, which provides important reference and support for urban planning and sustainable development. The suitability for urban development within County M exhibits noticeable spatial disparities, with the central region being more suitable for development while the peripheral regions are relatively less favorable. This work provides valuable guidance for decision-makers and researchers in the field of territorial planning, and promotes orderly urban development and sustainable prosperity.

Modeling urban expansion in Zahedan’s dry climate: insights from the SLEUTH model

IntroductionRapid uncontrolled growth of build-up areas has increasingly challenged the sustainable use of urban area simulating the growth patterns of fastest-growing cities is more necessary in dry climates, due to low ecological suitability for urban development and meeting the needs of citizens. Therefore, this research conducted aiming at predicting the expansion of urban land use in Zahedan City, Iran, which has a dry climate with an evenness landscape.MethodsUrban Expansion in Zahedan Modeled using SLEUTH (slope, land use, exclusion, urban extent, transportation and hillshade) in two historical and environmental scenarios until 2050. The input data were extracted from processing on DEM and remote sensing data and the SLEUTH model was calibrated in four stages from 1990 to 2020.Results and discussionThe results showed that the increase in Ahead extent in 2050 is more than twice as much as in 2020, and this increase was associated with a less dispersion of urban patches in the environmental scenario compared to the historical scenario. Also, the results clarified that the developable spaces are saturated in terms of slope in the east and there is the lack of urban green spaces. These results reveal the need for the attention of city managers in predicting the urban green space in the expected growth areas and compensating for the lack of vegetation cover in the former urban areas. Geographic extension of predicted urban land can be used in future environmental planning and urban developing strategies, as well as it is suggested to adopt this approach as a plan for urban planning in dry climates.

Evaluation of Urban Land Suitability under Multiple Sea Level Rise Scenarios

Anticipated sea level rises from global climate change pose a significant flood risk to urban land. Evaluating urban land suitability under sea level rise scenarios is crucial for promoting sustainable development. Recent research has advanced the application of artificial intelligence and the integration of GIS with models, yet the impact of climate change on land suitability has often been overlooked. This study focuses on Xihu District in Hangzhou, utilizing the entropy weight and matter-element model to evaluate land suitability for urban development. The evaluation results were cross-verified with land use plans. A comprehensive analysis of potential flood risk to urban land in 2100 was conducted, considering varying degrees of sea level rise under Sustainable Development Scenario SSP1-2.6 and High-end Emission Scenario SSP5-8.5, as well as the scenario reflecting the most severe sea level rise during extreme climate events. The results indicate that more than half of the land in the study area is suitable for construction, aligning spatially with the current planned urban land. The analysis process of the matter-element model reflects the impact level of each indicator on urban land suitability, conveying information both spatially and numerically, thus enhancing accuracy. Scenario analysis reveals that approximately 10% to 20% of urban land in the study area could face flooding threats due to future sea level rises, primarily in the northern and southeastern regions. Recommendations for future land development and spatial planning strategies to address flood risk are discussed, aiming to alleviate the pressure on urban land in response to future climate change.

ASSESSMENT OF ROCK MASS QUALITY AND ROCKFALL POTENTIAL EVALUATION FOR RECLAMATION OF A QUARRY

In order to make an informed decision about implementing sustainable and efficient development during land reclamation in an area deemed geohazard-prone, thorough geological input is necessary. Quarry areas are vulnerable to slope failure and rockfalls, making it imperative to evaluate rock slopes for quarry reclamation. For this reason, researchers in Kinta Valley, Malaysia, set out to evaluate the slopes GG1, GG2, and GG3 at a defunct quarry. To evaluate the rock mass classification, the Rock Mass Rating (RMR) and Slope Mass Rating (SMR) systems were utilized, and the analyzing rock block's trajectory was using a rockfall analysis. The kinematic stability analysis was also performed to identify possible failure mechanisms. In order to assess the site's suitability for urban development, the rockfall scenarios were conducted. The SMR scaled from moderate to very good, while the RMR ranked the rock mass quality as good to very good. For all three of the slopes analyzed, the kinematic stability analysis pointed to the possibility of various failures (toppling, planar and wedge). According to the rockfall trajectory analysis, the rock block could roll as far as 5 metres from the base of the slope. For this reason, the study advised creating a buffer zone of 20 metres or more away from the rock slope as a means of protection against the geohazard of rockfall.

Comprehensive evaluation of urban development suitability based on constraints and development factors: A case study of the central urban area of Zhengzhou, China

The overcapacity and overdevelopment of cities have led to various environmental hazards and resource depletion, making it crucial to evaluate the suitability of urban development. This research field provides scientific evidence and policy recommendations to improve land use quality and distribution. However, contemporary studies solely focus on construction land versus non-construction land competition, ignoring potential constraints from agriculture and ecology on parcel development. Using the land use situation of Zhengzhou City, this study comprehensively evaluated urban development suitability through hierarchical analysis, Delphi method, and eight-direction analysis. A multi-attribute overlay was applied with spatial restrictions from ecological protection and agricultural production, combined with urban expansion and development conditions. The results indicated that: (1) Ecological protection was critical for sustainable urban development, and areas like the Yellow River coast, northwest wetland, and southwest woodland were significant for ecological protection. High suitability areas for agricultural production were primarily located within the existing cultivated land. (2) Regarding urban expansion, the southeast of the city center was identified as the most suitable area, mainly covered by dryland. (3) Overall, the unsuitable, basically unsuitable, medium, suitable, and highly suitable areas for urban development covered 244, 921, 3024, 2224, and 944 km2, respectively. (4) The southeast-northwest direction showed prominent spatial characteristics for urban development suitability, while intensive development mode dominated the east-west direction of the city center. These findings provide significant guidance for land development and utilization, optimizing the spatial pattern, and formulating policies in Zhengzhou. Nevertheless, the weight calculation process presents a subjective factor that needs to be addressed in future research. More objective weight calculation results are necessary to achieve a more scientifically rigorous evaluation of urban development suitability.

The assessment of land suitability for urban development in the anticipated rapid urbanization area from the Belt and Road Initiative: A case study of Nong Khai City, Thailand

The Belt and Road Initiative is a megaproject expected to accelerate urban growth. However, the accompanying urban development process can endanger the environment. Thus, land suitability assessment for urban development is crucial to cope with the urban expansion, especially in the anticipated rapid urbanisation areas. This study aims to assess the land suitability for urban development in Nong Khai City, Thailand. Eighteen criteria were selected to indicate suitability by integrating the analytical hierarchy process with the geographical information system. The results showed that the policy to conserve the cultural assets, flood, and the policy to conserve the natural assets have the biggest influence on the decision-making for urban development areas. Precisely 24.73% of the areas were very highly suitable for urban development, most of which are flood-free with high accessibility and high suitability regarding policy. Precisely 12.10% of the areas were very lowly suitable for urban development, most of which are prone to flooding, have low accessibility, and are distributed in the zones under the policy to conserve natural assets. The results highlighted how the suitability map for urban development is utilized in urban planning and provided evidence to support urban planning in the context of small cities.

Land-use suitability assessment for urban development using a GIS-based soft computing approach: A case study of Ili Valley, China

Land-use suitability assessment is an important step in land use planning for urban development. We propose a GIS-based soft computing approach (GSC), which is a combination of two multi-criteria analysis methods, i.e., the ordered weighted averaging (OWA) method and the logic scoring of preference (LSP) method, to evaluate and map land-use suitability for urban development in Ili Valley, China. The evaluation uses 13 factors as suitability criteria for urban development. These factors are related to the topography and geology, socio-economic feasibility, ecological restrictions, and prohibitive constraints. Based on the final suitability results, Ili Valley was classified using five suitability levels: highly suitable, suitable, moderately suitable, marginally suitable, and not suitable. By comparing seven preference decision coefficient (α) scenarios, we determined that the area of the land that is highly suitable for urban development decreases, and the area of the marginally suitable land increases with increasing α. All of the scenarios show that approximately 32.6% of the land area is not suitable. Among the seven scenarios, the policy orientation of three of the scenarios was an urban expansion policy orientation (α = 0.5), a balanced policy orientation (α = 1), and an ecological protection policy orientation (α = 2). The result of the policy orientation analysis of urban development can be used as an urban development boundary for different development preferences and stages. The local land-use planning was evaluated by overlaying its planned urban development zones with the areas of the resultant suitability map. Specific recommendations are presented for the scale and timing of urban development in Ili Valley.

Investigating Capability and Evaluation of Spatial Temporal Variations in Yasuj in Urban Development

Sustainable development is a kind of development that responds to the needs of the present generation, without threatening the future generation's capabilities in meeting their needs. So one of the most important steps to achieve sustainable development is to carry out various environmental studies before implementing any development plan. Background and Purpose: In this study, with the aim of investigating capability and evaluation of spatial temporal variations in Yasuj, efforts have been made to implement weighted Linear Combination Technique in order to predict the capability of the region for urban development. Also satellite images were used to investigate the spatial temporal variation in Yasuj city. Analysis method: In order to investigate the amount of power and evaluation of temporal and spatial variation in urban development, the criteria and sub-criteria were determined based on experts' opinions and previous researches. Then the AHP technique assisted by 30 faculty members and experts was employed to paired comparison dimensions and criteria. After the paired comparison, the information layers were standardized in the Idrisi environment and in the GIS environment. Then the layers were combined to determine the land suitability for Urban development. Afterwards, in order to study the time-shift changes of land use in Yasuj city in the three periods of 1986, 2001, and 2016, Landsat satellite images, TM, ETM + and OLI sensors, which were prepared in the Envi 5.1 software environment, were used. Findings: Based on the land use change trends in the Yasuj area, residential or urban areas have undergone extensive changes that affected environment uses including forests, grassland, agriculture and aquatic structures. The forest, located inside and around the city of Yasuj, provides a lot of ecosystem services for the area, which by city development, these services have been reduced both quantitatively and qualitatively, which should be considered. Discussion and Conclusion: The results of this study can be used as a model for selecting suitable locations for urban development with respect to environmental considerations and results of this work shown that studies based on spatial data, especially on human settlements (due to their inherent nature) can be the basis for accurate planning.

Mapping of GIS-Land Use Suitability in the Rural–Urban Continuum between Ar Riyadh and Al Kharj Cities, KSA Based on the Integrating GIS Multi Criteria Decision Analysis and Analytic Hierarchy Process

The management of land use in big cities and capitals and the surrounding adjacent urban aggregates is still of major importance in the field of urban development, especially in cities with populations of millions and various types of land uses and economic activities. The rural–urban continuum between the cities of Ar Riyadh and Al Kharj suffers from an unclear general land use trend, due to urban expansion at the expense of the agriculture lands, the imbalance of the population compound, the deterioration of the urban fabric, lack and poor distribution of services, and the dominance of industrial land use at the expense of other uses. These factors have led to an increase in environmental changes and loss of the environmental and ecological characteristics of this area between Ar Riyadh and Al Kharj. The present study aims at evaluating the land use suitability for urban development in the rural–urban continuum between Ar Riyadh and Al Kharj cities. This is achieved by using the GIS-based Multi Criteria decision Analysis (GIS-MCDA) on twelve various economic, environmental, urban, and law criteria. The weights of criteria were determined using the Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) method. The results of the spatial suitability map of the land use for sustainable urban development revealed that there are five categories of spatial suitability ranging in suitability from 32% to 86%. The recommended areas for sustainable urban development are those with a spatial suitability upwards of 70% in the rural–urban continuum corridor between Ar Riyadh and Al Kharj cities. The sustainable development in this corridor can be achieved by executing high priority projects that ensure and support the urban sustainable development plan through establishing four local urban development centers and upgrading four current villages to rural communities, aiming at strengthening the functional bonds between the rural communities and the local urban development centers. These projects will limit the sustainable urban development to specific areas without allowing random expansion, avoiding the urban conjugation of the two Ar Riyadh and Al Kharj cities through the connecting area between them.

Three Types of Spatial Function Zoning in Key Ecological Function Areas Based on Ecological and Economic Coordinated Development: A Case Study of Tacheng Basin, China

Three types of spatial function zoning is an effective measure for regional environmental protection and orderly development. For ecological and economic coordinated development, spatial function zones should be divided scientifically to clear its direction of development and protection. Therefore, based on ecological constraints, a beneficial discussion would be about the key ecological function areas adopting the concept of ecological protection restriction and supporting socioeconomic development for spatial function zoning. In this paper, the researchers, taking Tacheng Basin, Xinjiang of China as an example, choose township as basic research unit and set up an evaluation index system from three aspects, namely, ecological protection suitability, agricultural production suitability, and urban development suitability, which are analyzed by using spatial analysis functions and exclusive matrix method. The results showed that: 1) This paper formed a set of multilevel evaluation index systems for three types of spatial function zoning of the key ecological function areas based on a novel perspective by scientifically dividing Tacheng Basin into ecological space, agricultural space, and urban space, which realized the integration and scientific orientation for spatial function at the township scale. 2) Under the guidance of three types of spatial pattern, the functional orientation and suggestions of development and protection was clearly defined for ecological protection zones, ecological economic zones, agricultural production zones, and urban development zones. 3) A new idea of space governance is provided to promote the coordinated and sustainable development between ecology and economy, which can break the traditional mode of thinking about regional economic development, and offers a scientific basis and reference for macro decision-making.

Assessment of the Temporal and Spatial Variations of Urban Development Using RS and GIS: A Case Study—Yasuj, Iran

The temporal-spatial change of cities is one of the main challenges of managers and decision makers in urban development. In the present study, a parameter related to the evaluation of the capability of Yasuj City was selected, classed, and weighed to determine a desired location for urban development. Accordingly, in order to determine fuzzy maps, all factors and sub-factors were weighed using the AHP and hierarchical technique. Then, the maps of each sub-factor were standardized in IDRIS environment and the considered layers were combined in GIS environment to determine the land suitability for urban development. Next, in order to evaluate the trend of temporal-spatial variation of land use around Yasuj City, the prepared images of the Landsat satellite as well as TM, ETM+ and OLI sensors in Envin 5.1 software related to 1986, 2001, and 2016, respectively, were employed. Finally, based on the changes in land use of Yasuj City, the residential or urban sections widely changed. The changes included different uses such as forests, grasslands, agriculture, and water corpuses. In 1986–2016, the results of changes in land use around the Yasuj City indicated 5% increase in the residential section and 3, 2 and 1% decrease in rangelands, agricultural lands, and water bodies, respectively. Forests, which are located in the outer and inner sections of Yasuj City, have a lot of ecological functions. With the high speed of city development, the ecological functions of forests are decreasing, both quantitatively and qualitatively, and therefore, should be taken into consideration. The results of this study, and the similar studies, indicated that spatial data, especially data related to human settlements (since they are highly changeable), are a good foundation for detailed planning. Such kind of data is also used since they are suitable tools for research purposes.

Urban land use planning within the system of sustainable urban development management

Agricultural and forest lands near settlements are main reserve for expansion of urban areas. Thus, among 148.5 thousand hectares of lands added to Moscow city territory in 2012, 72.2 thousand hectares or 48% were occupied by agricultural and forest lands. Urban areas are characterized by excessively high intensity of land use, land depletion, deterioration in environmental quality and decline in sustainability of urban development. The paper presents the results of analysis of urban land use planning system in the interests of sustainable development of urban territories. The object of the study is the land that is part of Moscow, which is planned to be developed in the coming decades. The authors propose an algorithm for urban development of such areas, which takes into account the quality of land. Design calculations for areas under development were carried out for Shchapovskoye settlement in New Moscow as an example. In addition, the paper covers aspects of land management when developing agricultural land within cities. The authors developed a classification of agricultural land according to a criterion of “suitability for urban development”. The suggested classification has been applied to achieve the objectives of planning urban land use development, determining the order of construction on agricultural lands within the system of sustainable urban development management.

Multi-hazard assessment modeling via multi-criteria analysis and GIS: a case study

Multi-hazard assessment modeling comprises an essential tool in any plan that aims to mitigate the impact of future natural disasters. For a particular area they can be generated by combining assessment maps for different types of natural hazards. In the present study, the analytical hierarchy process (AHP) supported by a Geographical Information System (GIS) was utilized to initially produce assessment maps on hazards from landslides, floods and earthquakes and subsequently to combine them into a single multi-hazard map. Evaluation of the reliability of the proposed model predictions was performed through uncertainty analysis of the variables that we used for producing the final model. The drainage basin of Peneus (Pinios) River (Western Peloponnesus, Greece), an area that is prone to landslides, floods and seismic events, was selected for the implementation of the aforementioned approach. Our findings revealed that the high hazard zones are mainly distributed in the western and north-eastern part of the region under investigation. The calculated multi-hazard map, which corresponds to the potential urban development suitability map of the study area, was classified into five classes, namely of very low, low, moderate, high and very high suitability. The most suitable areas for urban development are distributed mostly in the eastern part, in agreement with the low and very low hazard level for the three considered natural hazards. In addition, by performing uncertainty analysis we showed that the spatial distribution of the suitability zones does not change significantly. Ultimately, the final map was verified using the actual inventory of landslides and floods that affected the study area. In this context, we showed that 80% of the landslide occurrences and all the recorded flood events fall within the boundaries of the moderate, low and very low suitability zones. Consequently, the predictive capacity of the applied method is quite good. Finally, the spatial distribution of the urban areas and the road network were compared with the derived suitability map and the results revealed that approximately 50% of both of them are located within areas susceptible to natural hazards. The proposed approach can be useful for engineers, planners and local authorities in spatial planning and natural hazard management.

Suitability Evaluation of Urban Construction Land Based on an Approach of Vertical-Horizontal Processes

Suitability evaluation of urban construction land is critical for both urban master planning and the proper utilization of land resources. Using the Beihu New District of Jining City, China, as a case study, this paper introduces a novel research approach for comprehensive suitability evaluation based on vertical-horizontal processes. First, by considering both the land development potential and ecological constraint resistance, the potential-resistance (PR) model was developed and used to analyze the suitability for urban construction of vertical processes. Then, given the results of the vertical suitability analysis, the current urban built-up areas were selected as the sources of urban expansion, and the minimum cumulative resistance (MCR) model was applied to evaluate the suitability for urban development in terms of horizontal processes. The study area was regionalized into four categories—priority, suitable, restricted, and prohibited areas—which were defined based on the development threshold. The results showed that restricted and prohibited areas for urban construction occupied most of the study area. Totally, 648.51 km2 was categorized as restricted or prohibited, accounting for 12.89% and 54.75% of the total area, respectively. Priority and suitable areas for urban construction covered a total area of 310.37 km2, accounting for 16.55% and 15.81% of the total area, respectively. These areas were mainly distributed around urban centers and urban built-up areas. These findings reflect the substantial potential for future urban development and construction in the study area. The newly developed principles and methods of suitability evaluation for urban construction land presented in this paper provide more appropriate scales and spatial location for urban development and an ecological baseline for future urban growth.

Analysis of land suitability for urban development in Ahwaz County in southwestern Iran using fuzzy logic and analytic network process (ANP).

The ever-increasing development of cities due to population growth and migration has led to unplanned constructions and great changes in urban spatial structure, especially the physical development of cities in unsuitable places, which requires conscious guidance and fundamental organization. It is therefore necessary to identify suitable sites for future development of cities and prevent urban sprawl as one of the main concerns of urban managers and planners. In this study, to determine the suitable sites for urban development in the county of Ahwaz, the effective biophysical and socioeconomic criteria (including 27 sub-criteria) were initially determined based on literature review and interviews with certified experts. In the next step, a database of criteria and sub-criteria was prepared. Standardization of values and unification of scales in map layers were done using fuzzy logic. The criteria and sub-criteria were weighted by analytic network process (ANP) in the Super Decision software. Next, the map layers were overlaid using weighted linear combination (WLC) in the GIS software. According to the research findings, the final land suitability map was prepared with five suitability classes of very high (5.86%), high (31.93%), medium (38.61%), low (17.65%), and very low (5.95%). Also, in terms of spatial distribution, suitable lands for urban development are mainly located in the central and southern parts of the Ahwaz County. It is expected that integration of fuzzy logic and ANP model will provide a better decision support tool compared with other models. The developed model can also be used in the land suitability analysis of other cities.

An Entire-Array-Polygon (EAP) Method to Assess Urban Development Suitability

China has been experiencing rapid urbanization since the economic reforms and open-up in the late 1970s, with the expansion and restructuring of existing cities taking place at an unprecedented pace, as well as the emergence of many new cities. However, it remains a challenge for urban planners and decision-makers to identify and assess the suitability of areas for future urban development. Building on previous studies, this paper presents a novel approach using an Entire-Array-Polygon (EAP) method to assess the urban development suitability in the fast developing city-region in China. A suitability indicator system was developed to reflect the environmental and economic conditions as well as the living conditions of residents. A major advantage of the EAP model is that it does not rely on the assignment of weight ages for different indicators. Instead, all factors are mapped against one standardised platform. An application of the EAP model in Ezhou, a medium-scale city adjacent to the provincial capital city of Wuhan in Hubei Province, China, over a 15-year period (1998-2012) shows a differentiated suitability evolution for urban development in its three districts, Echeng, Huarong and Liangzihu. While Echeng remains most suitable for urban development, its development suitability decreased sharply from 1998 to 2009, indicating limited space for further growth. In contrast, the suitability in Huarong increased significantly attributed to rapid development of Gedian Economic and Technological Development Zone, while Liangzihu district experienced marginal increase in urban development suitability due to limited land space as well as the conservation of the Liangzi Lake. Our application demonstrates that the EAP method is effective in assisting planners to assess urban development suitability and identify potentials for future development.

GIS BASED GEO HAZARD ASSESSMENT OF PAKISTAN FOR FUTURE URBAN DEVELOPMENT USING AHP

<p>Pakistan has been subject to frequent earthquakes, which are often severe (especially in the north and west), and severe flooding along the Indus River after heavy monsoon rains (July to August every year). Loss to life and property as a result of these natural disasters has been very high in the recent past. In order to mitigate these losses, an integrated decision support which could help planners make complex decisions accurately and quickly is required. This first ever study aims to provide a multi criteria decision analysis framework resulting in the regionalization of the territories of Pakistan according to the level of vulnerability to these natural disasters. Site suitability for urban development in Pakistan was assessed by the application of GIS and the Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP). GIS can effectively store, retrieve, manipulate, analyse and display the spatial in site selection problems. AHP can be used to calculate weights of criteria while the decision maker remains consistent in judging and allocating comparative preferences to criteria. Weighted scores were aggregated in two clusters namely environmental (elevation, slope, aspect, distance from rivers, land surface temperature and precipitation) and hazard (flood extents, earthquake density and intensity). The results of these two clusters were then synthesized using an innovative scheme to obtain a suitability index map. Indices in the map were classified into four categories representing extremely suitable, suitable, less suitable and worst regions for urban development. This study shows how an effective multi criteria decision support method can be developed to select suitable sites for urban development in order to reduce exposure to natural disasters. Urban development should be planned in extremely suitable areas. </p>

Use of geological and geomorphological parameters in potential suitability assessment for urban planning development at Wadi Al-Asla basin, Jeddah, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia

During the planning of urban environment, usually economic and social parameters are taken into consideration. As a result, urban planning areas are susceptible and vulnerable to different types of natural disasters, which cause extensive damages to these areas. In the current study, for the protection of the urban environment, a unique approach of urban planning and sustainable development is proposed. The study area is the Wadi Al-Aska basin (East of Jeddah City), Saudi Arabia. Before the suitability analysis, urban development in the Jeddah area from 1973 to 2009 was applied. In the current study, an integrated evaluation of the suitable areas for urban development is proposed by using geological, geomorphological, and geographical characteristics of the study area as well as flash flood hazard factor. The used parameters were correlated by using the analytical hierarchical process (AHP) method and incorporated into a geographic information system (GIS) in order to produce the corresponding suitability maps. The study area is classified into five categories including very high, high, moderate, low, and very low suitability for urban development. These can be attributed mainly to the fact that in the majority of cases, only geographical, social, and economical factors were used for urban development, whereas in the current study, geomorphological, geographical, geological, and natural hazards parameters were quantified and taken into account.

Guiding SLEUTH land-use/land-cover change modeling using multicriteria evaluation: towards dynamic sustainable land-use planning

Upgrading the SLEUTH urban-growth and land-use-change model, realizing its full capability in modeling change simultaneously in land-use and land-cover types, and using it as a self-organizing dynamic land-use planning tool have been the three main objectives of this study. In doing so, SLEUTH was applied to design a better plan for future and assess two scenarios concerning land-use and land-cover changes in Gorgan Township of the Golestan Province of Iran. Four land-use and land-cover maps were derived from Landsat Thematic Mapper (TM) and Enhanced Thematic Mapper Plus imagery through a hybrid method including unsupervised, supervised, and on-screen classification for four years. To provide a more desirable forecast of future land-use and land-cover changes, SLEUTH's exclusion layer was combined with an urbanization-suitability layer from a multicriteria evaluation (MCE) using fifteen map layers that most influence land suitability for urban development. The layers used in the MCE process were related t...

Integrated evaluation of urban development suitability based on remote sensing and GIS techniques: contribution from the analytic hierarchy process

Urban, industrial, and tourist developments are considered of high priority in Egypt. In the current research, the site suitability investigation for rating the different environmental, geological, and geotechnical conditions facing civil engineering projects were assessed using a geographic information system (GIS) multi-criteria approach. The study area is one of the most promising areas for urban and touristic as well as industrial developments in Egypt, which is located on the NW coast of the Gulf of Suez. This area may face several geo-environmental problems that will limit its suitability for civil projects. Weighted GIS model, which integrates different types of data sources, such as land use/cover, geological, geomorphological, geophysical, environmental, remote sensing, and field data, can be achieved to create a site suitability map. In this paper, an analytical hierarchy process approach has been used to develop the weighted model for different factors. As a result of this study, areas of potential geotechnical and geo-environmental hazards that could impact the design and construction of civil projects were identified. Therefore, changes can be made early in the design process before significant design efforts are being invested.