Municipal Solid Waste Landfill Site Selection using Analytical Hierarchy Process Method and Geographic Information System in Abadan, Iran

Background and purpose: An appropriate solid waste (SW) disposal has been a major problem in municipal environment. The use of landfills is the most economical and environmentally acceptable method for the disposal of SWs all over the world. However, landfill leachate can cause environmental issues such as soil and ground water pollution. So, finding suitable land fill site is one of the most significant tasks in SWM. In this study, Geographic Information System (GIS) and Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP) method were used for Abadan solid waste landfill site selection. Materials and Methods: Six criteria were used in this study comprise distance from aquatic ecosystem, risk, residential, economical, geographical and social criteria. Each criterion weighted by using AHP method. After omission of inappropriate areas, the suitability examination of the residue areas was accomplished using GIS. Results: Relative importance weight of each criterion and score value of sub-criteria in the GIS environment was determined and finally suitability map was prepared. Based on the final suitability map, appropriate solid waste landfill site was located in north part of the study area. Conclusion: The combination of AHP method with GIS in our experiment proves it is a powerful tool for solid waste landfill site selection.