Multi-criteria decision analysis for sub-watersheds ranking via the PROMETHEE method

Soil and water resources are important elements of the environment that is managed to reduce the erosion rate and the destructive effects of torrential flooding.Implementation of the measures to reach this goal requires the ranking of sub-watersheds and areas within the sub-watersheds,from most to least vulnerable,which can be achieved using Multi-criteria decision analysis methods.In this paper,using the Preference Ranking Organization Method for Enrichment Evaluations(PROMETHEE)Ⅱ method ranking of nine sub-watersheds delineated in the Topciderska river watershed,Serbia,was performed by using ArcGIS software.The criteria used for determining the order of the most vulnerable sub-watersheds are land cover,rainfall,soil erodibility as well as topography.The importance of criteria was determined by using the Analytic Hierarchy Process(AHP)method,and the influence of the criteria weights on ranking results was tested.This research identified that the most vulnerable sub-watershed is located in the upper part of the study area,where 15% of the territory is at high risk of erosion.Thus,this sub-watershed should have priority for protection through the implementation of appropriate measures and works.The results of the PROMETHEE Ⅱ method and the ArcGIS application represent the valuable information for watershed management planning and implementation of soil erosion and torrent control measures.

Ranking environmental projects model based on multicriteria decision-making and the weight sensitivity analysis

With the fast growth of Chinese economic, more and more capital will be invested in environmental projects. How to select the environmental investment projects （alternatives） for obtaining the best environmental quality and economic benefits is an important problem for the decision makers. The purpose of this paper is to develop a decision-making model to rank a finite number of alternatives with several and sometimes conflicting criteria. A model for ranking the projects of municipal sewage treatment plants is proposed by using exports＇ information and the data of the real projects. And, the ranking result is given based on the PROMETHEE method. Furthermore, by means of the concept of the weight stability intervals （WSI）, the sensitivity of the ranking results to the size of criteria values and the change of weights value of criteria are discussed. The result shows that some criteria, such as “proportion of benefit to project cost”, will influence the ranking result of alternatives very strong while others not. The influence are not only from the value of criterion but also from the changing the weight of criterion. So, some criteria such as “proportion of benefit to project cost” are key critera for ranking the projects. Decision makers must be cautious to them.