Application of MCE-AHP technical for modelling paddy zoning: A case study in Vietnam

Abstract

The main aim of present study was to determine the most suitable land for paddy via AHP - GIS and Remote Sensing. Ba Thuoc district - Thanh Hoa province was selected as the target area to conduct the experimental set-up. As per opinion of scientists and the guidance of World Food Organization (FAO) on agricultural crops, the criteria selected to estimate the ecological adaptation of crops include soil type, soil texture, soil depth, soil pH, N (%), elevation, slope, distance from rivers, yearly precipitation, low-average and high temperature, average sunny hours, saltwater intrusion. The land suitability map was generated by superimposing the component maps considering the weighting of the criteria. The obtained results showed that in the experimental area nearly 8.26% of the land-use region was very appropriate for rice growing, 26.29% was observed medium appropriate, 43.35% was less appropriate and 22.1% was not fit for paddy cultivation. Overall, the data may be of value for country government, policy makers, managers as well as local authorities to induce local farmers for paddy production on most suitable areas