Emergency material location-allocation planning using a risk-based integration methodology for river chemical spills

Area of Science:

• Environmental Science
• Operations Research
• Emergency Management

Background:

• Increasing river chemical spills necessitate robust pre-accident preparedness.
• Effective emergency material location-allocation (EMLA) planning is critical for timely rescue operations.
• Current strategies require optimization for improved response capacity.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop and validate a two-stage framework for optimal EMLA scheme selection for river chemical spills.
• To integrate fuzzy multi-criteria decision-making (MCDM) and multi-objective optimization for EMLA planning.
• To enhance emergency response effectiveness in the pre-accident phase.

Main Methods:

• A two-stage framework combining fuzzy TOPSIS for warehouse evaluation and multi-objective optimization for allocation.
• Environmental risk assessment integrated into the fuzzy TOPSIS method.
• Application of the framework in Jiangsu province, China, to identify optimal warehouse locations.

Main Results:

• The framework successfully identified five optimal emergency material warehouses in Jiangsu province (WZ1, WZ4, WZ5, WZ18, WZ25).
• The EMLA optimization scheme achieved objectives of minimizing rescue points and maximizing rescue abilities.
• Demonstrated capability to provide timely material distribution for risk sources.

Conclusions:

• The developed two-stage framework provides an effective approach for optimizing EMLA schemes for river chemical spills.
• The methodology enhances preparedness by ensuring rapid response and resource allocation.
• This research contributes to improving resilience against chemical spill incidents through strategic planning.