Comprehensive solid waste dumpsite selection in arid cities of Northeastern Ethiopia: A spatial-MCDA approach

In the coming three decades, world waste will be expected to increase by 70%. Coupled with the absence of waste management technologies, unregulated dumping remained a threat to sustainable development in developing countries. To this end, this study emphasized to trace socially acceptable and environmentally friendly solid waste dumpsite for the northeastern arid cities of Ethiopia. The tuneful integration of GIS and MCDA was used for the end-to-end processing of 17 variables. At the earlier, to increase alternative dumpsites and seeking for safe zone outside the cities, 20 km buffer at Semera-logia city was used as a spatial scope of the study. Fifteen key informants (KIs) from related departments of the city and Samara University were selected to validate the model result. In the end, Ordinal Regression (OR) analysis was used to test the significance of the criteria's on suitable dumpsite selection. The pair-wise comparison matrix shows that variables such as distance from surface water (11.32%), distance from the settlement (9.88%), distance from boreholes (8.87%), and aquifer productivity (8.51%) were the top weighed criteria for the study area. The weighted overlay result shows that 10.75% and 38.64% of the study area are found to be convenient and prohibited for dumping, respectively. Indeed, the KIs were agreed on 77% of the validation points and the agreement decreases from points of not-suitable to highly suitable. Except for aquifer productivity, all the 16 variables are significantly and negatively affect dumpsites suitability. This result can be further used as a preliminary database for experts to design landfill structures and also management operations for decision-makers.Implications: The identification of potential dumpsite is an important step towards maximizing efficiency and building sustainability in the arid areas. The decision-making process shall be based on the empirical investigation. The decision-making process on dumpsite selection were well thought out both the socio-economic and environmental factors. In owing process, the empirical investigation that was conducted focusing on socio-economic dimension jeopardized other components of the environments. The approach that considers both socio-economic and spatial factors was all-inclusive. Overall, decision-makers could have a good insight to work on prioritizing dumpsite alternatives and implement feasible waste management actions.