Wastewater treatment plant site selection using advanced decision tree machine learning and remote sensing techniques

Area of Science:

• Environmental Engineering
• Urban Planning
• Geographic Information Systems (GIS)

Background:

• Coimbatore South faces wastewater treatment challenges due to urbanization, inadequate infrastructure, and industrial pollution.
• Environmental and public health concerns necessitate strategic wastewater management solutions.
• Existing infrastructure struggles to cope with increasing wastewater volumes and pollution loads.

Purpose of the Study:

• To identify suitable locations for new wastewater treatment plants in Coimbatore South.
• To integrate machine learning, remote sensing, and GIS-based multicriteria decision analysis (MCDA) for site selection.
• To provide data-driven guidance for urban planning and sustainable wastewater management.

Main Methods:

• Utilized GIS-based multicriteria decision analysis (MCDA) for spatial suitability assessment.
• Employed machine learning and remote sensing techniques to analyze various environmental and urban datasets.
• Applied the Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP) to assign weights to critical factors like slope and elevation.

Main Results:

• The western region emerged as the most favorable for wastewater treatment plant siting, characterized by low elevation (147-200m), gentle slopes (0-3%), and significant land availability (approx. 309 sq. km).
• Site suitability analysis classified 14.48% of the area as 'Very High Favourable Zones' and 11.21% as 'High Favourable Zones'.
• A substantial portion (40.57%) was designated 'Very Low Favourable Zones', indicating limitations for development.

Conclusions:

• The study demonstrates the effectiveness of integrating GIS and machine learning for strategic urban utility placement.
• Key factors influencing site suitability include land availability, population density, wastewater volume, and flood vulnerability.
• Findings offer crucial insights for urban planners to enhance wastewater management and ensure long-term sustainability in Coimbatore South.