Land degradation assessment using AHP and GIS-based modelling in Duhok District, Kurdistan Region, Iraq

Land degradation is a complex process and significant environmental problem affected by both natural and anthropogenic driving factors. Globally, the prevention of land degradation has become one of the most significant challenges of the twenty-first century. Over the last decade, a marked change was observed in land degradation in the Duhok district of Iraq. Geographic Information System (GIS), Multispectral Remote Sensing satellite image, and Analytic Hierarchy Process are efficient tools for modelling and assessing the risks of land degradation. To analyze land degradation, in this study, various physical and human-induced factors were used in the GIS environment; slope, elevation, drainage, precipitation, geology, vegetation coverage, and land use/land cover. The data were analyzed and weights assigned to each factor using the analytic hierarchy process and mapped using GIS techniques, resulting in a land degradation map. Field observations were carried out to better understand the degree of various factors that contribute to land degradation by using recent technologies and a global positioning system in the study area. The results show that 11.74% and 28.69% of the study area were affected by high and moderate levels of land degradation, respectively, while 34.77% and 24.79% of the study area experienced slight and no degradation, respectively. Slope gradient, rainfall, and distribution of vegetation were identified as the primary causes of land degradation in the area. This method of evaluation is intended to be beneficial to governments and researchers.