Integration of GIS-Based Multicriteria Decision Analysis and Analytic Hierarchy Process to Assess Flood Hazard on the Al-Shamal Train Pathway in Al-Qurayyat Region, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia

Abstract

Understanding the dynamics of floods in dry environments and predicting an accurate flood hazard map considering multiple standards and conflicting objectives is of great political and planning importance in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia’s vision for the year 2030, in order to reduce losses in lives, property, and infrastructure. The objectives of this study are (1) to develop a flood vulnerability map identifying flood-prone areas along the Al-Shamal train railway pathway; (2) to forecast the vulnerability of urban areas, agricultural land, and infrastructure to possible future floods hazard; and (3) to introduce strategic solutions and recommendations to mitigate and protect such areas from the negative impacts of floods. In order to achieve these objectives, multicriteria decision analysis based on geographic information systems (GIS-MCDA) is used to build a flood hazard map of the study area. The analytic hierarchy process (AHP) is applied to extract the weights of eight criteria which affect the areas which are prone to flooding hazards, including flow accumulation, distance from the wadi network, slope, rainfall density, drainage density, and rainfall speed. Furthermore, the receiver operating characteristic (ROC Curve) method is used to validate the presented flood hazard model. The results of the study reveal that there are five degrees of flooding hazard along the Al-Shamal train path, ranging from very high to very low. The high and very high hazard zones comprise 19.2 km along the path, which constitutes about 26.45% of the total path length, and are concentrated at the intersections of the Al-Shamal train pathway with the Bayer and Al-Makhrouk wadis. Moderate, low, and very low flood severity areas constitute nearly 53.39 km, representing 73.55% of the total length (72.59 km) of the track. These areas are concentrated at the intersection of the Al-Shamal train track with the Haseidah Al-Gharbiyeh and Hsaidah Umm Al-Nakhleh wadis. Urban and agricultural areas that are vulnerable to high and very high flooding hazards are shown to have areas of 29.23 km2 (22.12%) and 59.87 km2 (46.39%), respectively.

GIS-Based Multi-Criteria Approach for Flood Vulnerability Assessment and Mapping in District Shangla: Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan

“…It brings a significant consideration from conventional approaches towards advanced research methodologies. The underlying inspiration from the selected literature [1,[54][55][56] shows that MCDA in the GIS potentialities makes the researcher capable of take-out a timely decision and proper planning for any hazard. In the MCDA techniques, the analytical hierarchy process (AHP) is one of the most commonly utilized and accepted methods from several decades since the beginning.…”

“…In the MCDA techniques, the analytical hierarchy process (AHP) is one of the most commonly utilized and accepted methods from several decades since the beginning. It has been practical to address a broad decision-making problem involving a wide range of criteria to be expressed to achieve the most optimum solution and end product through an organized estimation process from existing alternatives [55]. Currently, AHP has an inspirational significance, particularly with the incorporation of GIS and remote sensing, within the scientific community, especially in environmental science, forestry, transport, agricultural practices, water conservation and management, geology, and urban planning and management [30].…”

“…The population census of 2017 was used to prepare the spatial layers of house type in this study Figure 5d,e. Floods cause wide devastation to crops and caused more damages in terms of economic losses [47,55]. In this study, the agriculture-dependent spatial layer was drawn up by classifying into cultivated, uncultivated, irrigated, and un-irrigated spatial layer by inverse distance weighting interpolation (IDW) methods in the GIS environment using point data gained from the KP bureau of statistics (Kp.bos) and district agriculture department.…”

“…By doing so the AHP process, the expert's and users' assessment are based on individual judgment so, they are not excepted from personal preferences and subjectivity, raising the likelihood of generating unreliability in concluding them [55,89]. For that type of indecision, the researcher performs the consistency check to evaluate whether the comparative judgment is reasonably consistent or to repeat the practice before further processing [88].…”

Providing the optimal method for sport places site selection based on GIS analytic functions

“…Malczewski and Jelokhani (2015), Elkarim and Awawdeh (2020) Sisay et al (2020). Abdelkarim et al (2020). Mahmoody et al (2019) and Jamshidi et al (2018), used, respectively, GIS-MDCDM for public parking, mixed of GIS and MCDA to obtain a spatial suitability map of the standard of living quality in the various districts in Buraidah city, mixed of GIS and MCDM-AHP for landfill site selection, mixed of GIS And AHP to assess flood hazard on the train pathway, mixed of MCDA approach and GIS to solving spatial decision-making and planning problems and mixed of GIS and AHP to adjust of optimal sports site selection criteria for elderly.…”