Application of Geographic Information System and Analytic Hierarchy Process for Municipal Solid Waste Landfill Site Selection: A Case Study of Bushehr City, Iran

Landfill location is one of the most important aspects of municipal solid waste management. Selecting a suitable solid waste landfill site can prevent adverse ecological and socioeconomic effects. Therefore, the aim of this paper was to determine the solid waste landfill site selection problem in Bushehr city, according to some criteria including the considered land use, distance from surface and underground water, soil texture, precipitation, wind direction, geology, slope and distance from the fault, distance from the residential areas and distance from roads, and distance from the industrial parts and facilities . For this purpose, calculated criteria were weighted using the analytical hierarchy process (AHP). A geographic information system (GIS) was then used to manipulate and present the spatial data. The candidate sites by aggregation based on the criteria weighted by the weighted linear combination (WLC) method were determined and the candidate sites were divided to unsuitable and good landfill areas. In the good landfill area, with the least time and investment, there was the possibility of developing a solid waste. By considering the minimum required landfill area for 10, 20, 50 and 100 years, the candidate sites were prioritized. The results of the site suitability assessment showed that the site E in Bushehr city was the suitable area for locating the disposal of solid wastes, covering an area of 3738 ha, 3.7% of the total area.