Municipal solid waste disposal site suitability analysis using multi-criteria evaluation in Assosa, Ethiopia

Municipal waste management is among the critical global issues that need special attention and between the primary concerns of municipal authorities. Landfilling has been the frequently practiced method for municipal waste disposal and a convenient way to tackle waste tribulations in growing cities of developing countries. The intended goal of this study was to recognize appropriate landfill places in Assosa town using geographic information systems and multi-criteria decisions analysis. Eight criteria were well-thought-out such as proximity to residential, roads, rivers, airports, sensitive areas, and boreholes with land use and slope. The map layers of every criterion were prepared and standardized in the geographic information systems interface. The comparative weights of factors are estimated by the analytic hierarchy procedures and standardized maps were overlaid using the weighted layer combination approach to produce the landfill suitability map in the study area. The results indicate that 3.79% of the area was determined as highly suitable areas, while 38.21% were moderately suitable, 39.21% less suitable, and 18.79% were unsuitable areas for locating landfills. Given the highly suitable area, five landfill sites were identified as possible areas for landfill development following a detailed hydrogeological analysis of the final choice. Overall, the result of this study could support concerned authorities to improve municipal waste management in the area plus combining geographic information systems and multi-criteria decisions analysis is effective in selecting suitable landfill sites.