Multi-Criteria Decision Analysis (MCDA)

2.6 Multi-Criteria Decision Analysis (MCDA)
Multi criteria analysis is a set of mathematical tools and methods, like weighting to compare different substitutes according to the criteria. Multi-criteria decision analysis (MCDA) helps to rank potential dumping sites using different criteria -such as soil suitability, habitat effect, flood resistance, property costs, distance from population center, and others by measuring the relative importance weight for individual evaluation criteria (Zeinhom El et al,.2010). The MCDA methods were developed in the 1960s to address problems and assist decision makers in decision-making with various options. Multicriteria approaches have the potential to reduce the cost and time involved in sitting landfills by narrowing down the potential choice based on defined criteria and weights.
Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP), one of the methods of MCDA, is a conventional land suitability analysis method that provides right decision-making approach for site selection. AHP has been integrated with GIS for land suitability modeling when selecting the best alternatives from a pool of various possibilities in the presence of multiple criteria. This technique provides a means of decomposing the problem into a hierarchy of sub-problems that can be more easily comprehended and subjectively

Landfill involves an extensive evaluation process in order to identify the optimal available disposal location. This location must satisfy basic government regulations, and also take into recognizance how to minimize factors on health, economic, environmental and social cost. In fact, different researchers have used varying criteria for site selection purposes due mainly to the fact that different criteria apply to different region and all facilities (Ayo et al., 2011). The following criteria are often used for solid waste disposal site