Combining stakeholder analysis and spatial multicriteria evaluation to select and rank inert landfill sites

This paper presents a method based on the combination of stakeholder analysis and spatial multicriteriaevaluation (SMCE) to first design possible sites for an inert landfill, and then rank them according to their suitability. The method was tested for the siting of an inert landfill in the Sarca's Plain, located in southwestern Trentino, an alpine region in northern Italy. Firstly, stakeholder analysis was conducted to identify a set of criteria to be satisfied by new inert landfill sites. SMCE techniques were then applied to combine the criteria, and obtain a suitability map of the study region. Subsequently, the most suitable sites were extracted by taking into account also thresholds based on size and shape. These sites were then compared and ranked according to their visibility, accessibility and dust pollution. All these criteria were assessed through GIS modelling. Sensitivity analyses were performed on the results to assess the stability of the ranking with respect to variations in the input (criterion scores and weights). The study concluded that the three top-ranking sites are located close to each other, in the northernmost sector of the study area. A more general finding was that the use of different criteria in the different stages of the analysis allowed to better differentiate the suitability of the potential landfill sites. (C) 2009 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.