Optimal site selection for construction and demolition waste disposal using GIS-FAHP: a case study from Kafr El Sheikh City, Egypt.

The increasing number of building and demolition projects results in huge amounts of construction and demolition wastes (CDWs) that are illegally dumped. However, these wastes must be disposed of in appropriate legal sites to protect the environment and human health. After reviewing the literature, no prior research examined optimal site selection for dumping or recycling CDW in an Egyptian city. Furthermore, the absence of field surveys did not offer a holistic understanding of the specific criteria used in the model for this region, nor did it permit an assessment of the suitability of existing dumpsites, thereby revealing certain limitations in the final results. In this regard, this research aims to apply a multi-criteria geographic information system (GIS)-based framework to identify an optimal site for CDW disposal in Kafr El Sheikh City. The criteria affecting the site selection are identified and categorized from prior literature, which are further refined using field surveys and focus group to evaluate their applicability in the context of an Egyptian city. After conducting questionnaire surveys, the trapezoidal interval type II fuzzy analytic hierarchy process is applied to compute the weights of the identified criteria from the perspective of each group of experts. The entropy-based aggregation approach is employed to identify the compromise weights taking into account the preferences of different groups. GIS is a powerful tool for geoprocessing and analyzing spatial big data. The result is a scenario map for the optimal site locations with varying suitability scales (i.e., excellent, very good, good, average, poor, and very poor). The proposed methodology provides what-if scenarios based on a selected set of criteria. According to the results of the multi-criteria decision analysis models, the suitability varies based on the weights of the criteria. For the equal-weighted criteria model, the excellent category covers 5.96% of the study area, increasing to 6.48% for the weighted criteria model. These areas primarily lie in the northeast direction. Conversely, the majority of the study area, 41.80% under equal-weighted criteria and 32.39% under weighted criteria, falls within the average and poor suitability categories, respectively. In general, the most suitable areas are located on the outskirts of the city, and the suitability decreases near the central business district. To bridge the gap between research findings and practical applications, a land use analysis employing satellite imagery is conducted to pinpoint suitable locations for CDW disposal. Existing CDW dumpsites predominantly fall within the range of poor to very good for the equal-weighted criteria model, while the weighted criteria model categorizes them into the poor (16.66%) and average (83.33%) categories. The findings demonstrated the applicability of the proposed framework for CDW disposal management and planning.

A correlational study of uranium in groundwater with other physicochemical parameters using GIS mapping in Godda district of Jharkhand, India.

The present research concentrates on the cumulative use of GPS and GIS technologies, which are excellent resources for analyzing and monitoring divergent physicochemical parameters in groundwater, including pH, TDS, EC, ORP, Ca+2, Mg+2, NO3-, F-, SO4-2, Cl- and PO4-3 with explicit regard to uranium. Garmin GPS is used to record the locations of the sampling points in the Godda study area. The research aims to offer a thorough understanding of the relationship between soil and water, its impact on public health and the extent to which water can be used in various ways based on its quality. Utilizing the inverse distance weighted (IDW) technique, it is examined how these groundwater parameters and the Water Quality Index (WQI) can be estimated spatially. Additionally, a correlation analysis of the water quality parameters is computed to estimate the local population's cancer risk living in the study area. Except for calcium and magnesium, which are present in excess concentrations throughout the study area with the highest values of 325 and 406 mg/l, respectively at Amediha and Meherma, the results showed that the maximum concentration parameters are within limits with the standard. The main reason might be the area's predominance of Alfisol soil type. The radioactive element uranium is found to be in a limited  range. Chemo-toxicity and radiological risk assessment of the whole area lie far below the restricted cancer risk limit i.e., 30 ppb with the highest concentration of 14 ppb in the 'Sunderpahari' region, following the results obtained. The WQI for the area ranges from 'good' to 'very poor.' The results were favorable but a few sites such as 'Boarijor' and its surroundings, require additional attention to enhance groundwater quality. Given uranium's low availability in groundwater the region's cancer risk assessment is below average.

[Prediction of global potential growth areas for Panax ginseng based on GMPGIS system and MaxEnt model].

The suitable habitat for the endangered and valuable medicinal herb Panax ginseng is gradually decreasing. It is crucial to investigate its suitable growing areas in China for global protection and sustainable utilization of P. ginseng. In this study, 371 distribution points of P. ginseng were collected, and 21 environmental factors were used as ecological indicators. The geographic information system for global medicinal plants(GMPGIS) system, MaxEnt model, and Thiessen polygon method were used to analyze the potential suitable areas for P. ginseng globally. The results showed that the key environmental variables affecting P. ginseng were precipitation in the hottest quarter(Bio18) and the coefficient of temperature seasonality(Bio4). The suitable habitats for P. ginseng were mostly located in the "One Belt, One Road" countries such as China, Japan, South Korea, North Korea, and Russia. The highly suitable habitats were mainly distributed along mountain ranges in southeastern Shandong, southern Shanxi and Shaanxi, northern Jiangsu, and northwestern Henan of China. Data analysis indicated that the current P. ginseng planting sites were all in high suitability zones, and the Thiessen polygon results showed that the geographic locations of P. ginseng production companies were unbalanced and urgently needed optimization. This study provides data support for P. ginseng planting site selection, scientific introduction, production layout, and long-term development planning.

Comprehensive GIS based risk surveillance of organochlorine pesticides (OCPs) in edible fish species of River Chenab, Pakistan.

The present study was conducted to evaluate Carcinogenic (TR) and non-carcinogenic (THQ) human health risk of organochlorine pesticides (OCPs) in three edible fish species (Labeo boga, Channa marulius and Wallago attu) of River Chenab, Pakistan using USEPA human health risk assessment model. Holistic GIS (Geographic information system) based Geo-Statistical approach has been employed for the first time in River Chenab, Pakistan to categorize contaminated risk zones of OCPs based on single pollution index. The ∑OCPs concentrations in fish species were ranged from 5.09 to 414 ng/g with the prevalence of dieldrin. Results of single pollution index of DDE, aldrin, dieldrin and ∑endosulfan revealed River Chenab as polluted and risk zone area. Distribution pattern assessed significantly higher (p < 0.05) concentrations of OCPs in downstream area suggesting substantial pollution of surrounded industrial region. The human health risk assessment depicted no harmful non-carcinogenic (THQ) risk except for ΣOCPs concentration of C. marulius. Significant carcinogenic (TR) health risk exhibited by all examined OCPs from maximum of the studied sites. Therefore, the high carcinogenic human health risk had highlighted an immediate removal of continuous disposal of OCPs in the River Chenab.

An IoT-Based Wristband for Automatic People Tracking, Contact Tracing and Geofencing for COVID-19.

The coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic has triggered a huge transformation in the use of existing technologies. Many innovations have been made in the field of contact tracing and tracking. However, studies have shown that there is no holistic system that integrates the overall process from data collection to the proper analysis of the data and actions corresponding to the results. It is critical to identify any contact with infected people and to ensure that they do not interact with others. In this research, we propose an IoT-based system that provides automatic tracking and contact tracing of people using radio frequency identification (RFID) and a global positioning system (GPS)-enabled wristband. Additionally, the proposed system defines virtual boundaries for individuals using geofencing technology to effectively monitor and keep track of infected people. Furthermore, the developed system offers robust and modular data collection, authentication through a fingerprint scanner, and real-time database management, and it communicates the health status of the individuals to appropriate authorities. The validation results prove that the proposed system identifies infected people and curbs the spread of the virus inside organizations and workplaces.

Experimenting Agriculture 4.0 with Sensors: A Data Fusion Approach between Remote Sensing, UAVs and Self-Driving Tractors.

Geomatics is important for agriculture 4.0; in fact, it uses different types of data (remote sensing from satellites, Unmanned Aerial Vehicles-UAVs, GNSS, photogrammetry, laser scanners and other types of data) and therefore it uses data fusion techniques depending on the different applications to be carried out. This work aims to present on a study area concerning the integration of data acquired (using data fusion techniques) from remote sensing techniques, UAVs, autonomous driving machines and data fusion, all reprocessed and visualised in terms of results obtained through GIS (Geographic Information System). In this work we emphasize the importance of the integration of different methodologies and data fusion techniques, managing data of a different nature acquired with different methodologies to optimise vineyard cultivation and production. In particular, in this note we applied (focusing on a vineyard) geomatics-type methodologies developed in other works and integrated here to be used and optimised in order to make a contribution to agriculture 4.0. More specifically, we used the NDVI (Normalized Difference Vegetation Index) applied to multispectral satellite images and drone images (suitably combined) to identify the vigour of the plants. We then used an autonomous guided vehicle (equipped with sensors and monitoring systems) which, by estimating the optimal path, allows us to optimise fertilisation, irrigation, etc., by data fusion techniques using various types of sensors. Everything is visualised on a GIS to improve the management of the field according to its potential, also using historical data on the environmental, climatic and socioeconomic characteristics of the area. For this purpose, experiments of different types of Geomatics carried out individually on other application cases have been integrated into this work and are coordinated and integrated here in order to provide research/application cues for Agriculture 4.0.

Huddling with families after disaster: Human resilience and social disparity.

Disasters, from hurricanes to pandemics, tremendously impact human lives and behaviors. Physical closeness to family post-disaster plays a critical role in mental healing and societal sustainability. Nonetheless, little is known about whether and how family colocation alters after a disaster, a topic of immense importance to a post-disaster society. We analyze 1 billion records of population-scale, granular, individual-level mobile location data to quantify family colocation, and examine the magnitude, dynamics, and socioeconomic heterogeneity of the shift in family colocation from the pre- to post-disaster period. Leveraging Hurricane Florence as a natural experiment, and Geographic Information System (GIS), machine learning, and statistical methods to investigate the shift across the landfall (treated) city of Wilmington, three partially treated cites on the hurricane's path, and two control cities off the path, we uncover dramatic (18.9%), widespread (even among the partially treated cities), and enduring (over at least 3 months) escalations in family colocation. These findings reveal the powerful psychological and behavioral impacts of the disaster upon the broader populations, and simultaneously remarkable human resilience via behavioral adaptations during disastrous times. Importantly, the disaster created a gap across socioeconomic groups non-existent beforehand, with the disadvantaged displaying weaker lifts in family colocation. This sheds important lights on policy making and policy communication to promote sustainable family colocation, healthy coping strategies against traumatic experiences, social parity, and societal recovery.

Spatial distribution of soil nutrients and evaluation of cultivated land in Xuwen county.

It is of great significance to promote the quantitative research of soil science and the implementation of precision agriculture. On this basis, taking Xuwen County as the research object, this paper comprehensively analyzed the soil characteristics of cultivated land in Xuwen County and clarify the soil nutrient content and spatial distribution characteristics of cultivated land in Xuwen County, this paper comprehensively applied the methods of geostatistics, geographic information system (GIS) and fuzzy mathematics, and referred to the cultivated land quality grade standard (GB/T 33469-2016), to analyze the soil characteristics and evaluate the soil fertility of this region. The results show that the optimal interpolation model of soil pH and available phosphorus (AP) is a Gaussian model, and the optimal interpolation model of soil organic matter (SOM), available nitrogen (AN) and available potassium (AK) is a J-Bessel model. In addition, the spatial correlation of AK is weak, whereas pH, SOM, AN and AP show moderate spatial correlation. The proportion of excellent, good, average, medium and poor comprehensive fertility index are 26.00%, 32.67%, 19.33%, 19.00% and 3.00%, respectively. The overall level of soil fertility in Xuwen County is above the average, and the fertility quality presents an obvious trend of high in the South and low in the North. Areas that above average fertility are mainly distributed in Maichen Town, Qujie Town, Nanshan Town and Chengbei Town. The results can provide theoretical basis for improving the utilization rate of chemical fertilizer, fine management of cultivated land and ecological environment in this region, which can help in decision-making of precision fertilization.

Assessment of the Impact of Scientific Reports Published by EFSA and GIS on Functional Foods Newly Placed on the Market in Poland.

Dietary supplements are health-promoting products. The legal categorization of dietary supplements as foods does not raise concerns, but a general understanding of how they work in the human body seems to deviate from the official definition. Thus, it is necessary to establish effective methods of market control related to dietary supplements. This research aims at assessing the impact of recommendations by various food safety authorities on ingredients used in newly registered products. It probes how the proportions of utilized product ingredients were modified after the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) and Chief Sanitary Inspector in Poland (GIS) published their recommendations. Research data on the composition of products comes from the Polish national register of dietary supplements and covers the period from 2012 to 28 November 2021. Note that 103,102 products were analysed for the presence of thirty-seven ingredients, and the joinpoint regression method was applied to assess changing trends related to the use of ingredients. As our research points out, most often, changes in the trend appeared in product ingredients for which the European Food Safety Authority and Chief Sanitary Inspector in Poland issued the recommendation of having the safest level of consumption. However, these changes seem to emerge randomly and should not be unquestionably considered as the result of the published recommendations.

Water quality assessment in two lakes of Panchkula, Haryana, using GIS: case study on seasonal and depth wise variations.

Water is the most important commodity available on earth and exists as both surface and sub-surface sources, but increased water pollution has reduced its potability. In this context, it has become imperative to regularly monitor the water quality. In situ and laboratory experimental procedures involve point wise collection of samples for quality determination which are too elaborative and time consuming. As such, the use of methods like Geographic Information System (GIS) modelling if used in collaboration with the traditional methods can prove to be a great tool as they are less expensive and gives a complete spatial resolution of the study site. Therefore, the present study focuses on the determination of water quality using traditional methods in collaboration with GIS modelling system using the inverse distance weighing (IDW) method for two natural lakes in Haryana. The IDW technique was used to interpolate parameters like temperature, dissolved oxygen (DO), nitrates (NO3) and total phosphorous (TP) as they represent the effects of recent and old pollution in lake waters at different depths. These parameters were interpolated for determining the overall water quality status for the lakes. The collaboration can prove to be of great practical significance in today's time by giving an elaborative view of the present water quality status, easing daily telemetric monitoring of the sites as well as give an opportunity for futuristic modelling. The technique can work for almost all the sites around the globe which have either not been evaluated from quality aspect or are inaccessible for monitoring. Parameters like temperature and DO show significant depth wise and seasonal variations for both the lakes with highest values observed at the surface levels, whereas the NO3 and TP represented effects of point pollution sources to a smaller extent. The maximum value of temperature was determined to be of 30.7 °C and 9 mg/l for DO and was recorded at the surface of lakes 2 and 1, respectively. Further, nitrate and phosphorous concentrations were observed to have maximum values of 0.99 and 0.5 mg/l at the centre of the lake 1 for monsoon season due to influx of pollutants and settlements in the bed. The primary reason for the variation of water quality may be attributed to increased sedimentation at the bottom of lake due to agricultural activities in the vicinity which creates impacts on different hydrodynamic processes leading to increased levels of TP and NO3 concentrations. Further, increased recreational activities lead to induced variations in the water quality as well.

A GIS-based multi-criteria decision support model for planning municipal solid waste collection points: A case study of Çagdas Neighbourhood, Çigli District, Izmir, Turkey.

This study aims to develop a geographic information system (GIS)-based multi-criteria decision support model to create optimal plans for locating municipal solid waste (MSW) collection points. The model performs a series of consecutive GIS-based spatial analyses to determine alternative plans. Then, it weighs the alternatives considering the social, economic and environmental criteria to determine the optimum solution through analytical hierarchy process. The model was implemented as a case study in Çagdas neighbourhood of Izmir, Turkey. A total of 42 locations were determined as the optimum collection points out of 245 possible collection points, which yields 39% reduction in collection points compared to the existing system. Total number of waste bins and average walking distance to waste collection points were calculated as 129 and 33 m, respectively. The municipal authority would spend 48.79 $ day-1 on fuel for waste collection and transport. In addition, daily air pollutant emissions generated during the operations were estimated as 2.052 g CO, 0.231 g NMVOC, 8.409 g NOx, 0.954 g N2O, 0.260 g NH3, 0.000227 g Pb and 0.0231 g PM 2.5. The results indicated that 14 out of 69 collection points in the existing collection system were not allocated to any waste source geographically. This study presents a unique method for planning MSW collection points on two key aspects: (1) development of a novel method to determine all possible collection point locations using Thiessen polygons and (2) presenting a holistic planning method considering the impacts of the collection system on the waste generators and waste collectors.

Effect of Kinesiology Tape on Tri-Axial Accelerometry During the Dance Aerobic Fitness Test.

OBJECTIVES: Kinesiology tape (KT) is thought to provide greater mechanical support during physical activity, however, there is a paucity of research investigating its application in dance. The study aimed to determine whether KT reduces PlayerLoad (PL) during the Dance Aerobic Fitness Test (DAFT) in addition to examining the relative sensitivity of accelerometer site locations.
Methods: University-level dancers (N = 11; age 18 ± 0.45 years, height 168.17 ± 12.25 cm, body mass 57.50 ± 9.91 kg) participated in two trials of the DAFT protocol in two conditions: no tape (NT) and kinesiology tape (KT). Global positioning systems (GPS) and accelerometer units were attached onto the seventh vertebra (C7) at the mid-scapula region and lower limb (LL) located at the midgastrocnemius of the dominant leg calculating measurements of triaxial (PLTotal) and uniaxial measures (anteroposterior [PLAP], mediolateral [PLML], and vertical [PLV]) measures of PlayerLoad during the DAFT.
Results: No significant main effect was observed for the taping condition in all measures of PlayerLoad (P > 0.10). A significant main effect (p < 0.01) was observed for unit location and time, with greater loading at the LL compared to C7 and during each consequent stage of the DAFT. No significant (p > 0.52) location*taping, nor location*taping*time (p > 0.36) interactions were observed for all variables measured.
Conclusions: Kinesiology tape does not reduce loading patterns in healthy dancers during a fatigue protocol. However, triaxial accelerometers provide adequate sensitivity when detecting changes in loading, suggesting the LL may be deemed as a more relevant method of monitoring training load in dancers.

Pesticide use in sugar beet cultivation in Germany and assessment of the associated environmental risks using the risk indicator SYNOPS-GIS.

BACKGROUND: The assessment of the environmental risks for pesticides is a current topic of the European Union (EU) strategy 'Farm to Fork'. Therefore, an analysis of the status quo of pesticide use from 2010 to 2015 and the associated environmental risks was performed for sugar beet cultivation in Germany. Based on this assessment, crop protection strategies should be developed that contribute to risk reduction. RESULTS: Pesticide use data from 2314 randomly chosen sugar beet growing farms were available from annual farm surveys from 2010 until 2015. Possible environmental risks from pesticide applications were calculated with the model SYNOPS-GIS. Each pesticide application pattern was combined with several model fields. The concentrations of active ingredients in the non-target compartments, namely soil, neighboring surface waters and field margins, were used to determined risk indices (exposure toxicity ratios, ETRs) for different terrestrial and aquatic reference species. ETRs were mainly lower than a risk threshold used throughout this study (ETR = 1). The risks caused by herbicide use were studied in more detail since herbicides are applied on nearly all fields. The aquatic risks posed by herbicides were independent of specific active ingredients or application patterns. Instead, certain combinations of active ingredients, application dates and field-specific environmental conditions provoked higher risks. The aquatic risks were strongly influenced by the distance of the fields to surface waters. CONCLUSIONS: Further risk mitigation seems possible by combining field-specific measures and technical options. © 2021 Society of Chemical Industry.

Analyzing Cost-Effectiveness of Allocating Neurointerventionist for Drive and Retrieve System for Patients with Acute Ischemic Stroke.

OBJECTIVES: There are regional disparities in implementation rates of endovascular thrombectomy due to time and resource constraints such as endovascular thrombectomy specialists. In Hokkaido, Japan, Drive and Retrieve System (DRS), where endovascular thrombectomy specialists perform early endovascular thrombectomies by traveling from the facilities where they normally work to facilities closer to the patient. This study analyzed the cost-effectiveness of allocating a endovascular thrombectomy specialist for DRS to treat stroke patients. MATERIALS AND METHODS: he number of ischemic stroke patients expected to receive endovascular thrombectomy in Hokkaido in 2015 was estimated. It was assumed that an additional neutointerventionist was allocated for DRS. The analysis was performed from the government's perspective, which includes medical and nursing-care costs, and the personnel cost for endovascular thrombectomy specialist. The analysis was conducted comparing the current scenario, where patients received endovascular thrombectomy in facilities where endovascular thrombectomy specialists normally work, with the scenario with DRS within 60 min drive distance. Patient transport time was analyzed using geographic information system, and patient severity was estimated from the transport time. The primary outcome was incremental cost-effectiveness ratio (ICER) in each medical area which was calculated from the incremental costs and the incremental quality-adjusted life years (QALYs), estimated from patient severity using published literature. The entire process was repeated 100 times. RESULTS: DRS was most cost-effective in Kamikawachubu area, where the ICER was $14,173±16,802/QALY, significantly lower than the threshold that the Japanese guideline suggested. CONCLUSIONS: Since DRS was cost-effective in Kamikawachubu area, the area should be prioritized when a endovascular thrombectomy specialist for DRS is allocated as a policy.

Integrated vaccination and physical distancing interventions to prevent future COVID-19 waves in Chinese cities.

The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has posed substantial challenges to the formulation of preventive interventions, particularly since the effects of physical distancing measures and upcoming vaccines on reducing susceptible social contacts and eventually halting transmission remain unclear. Here, using anonymized mobile geolocation data in China, we devise a mobility-associated social contact index to quantify the impact of both physical distancing and vaccination measures in a unified way. Building on this index, our epidemiological model reveals that vaccination combined with physical distancing can contain resurgences without relying on stay-at-home restrictions, whereas a gradual vaccination process alone cannot achieve this. Further, for cities with medium population density, vaccination can reduce the duration of physical distancing by 36% to 78%, whereas for cities with high population density, infection numbers can be well-controlled through moderate physical distancing. These findings improve our understanding of the joint effects of vaccination and physical distancing with respect to a city's population density and social contact patterns.

Drone aerial imagery for the simulation of a neonate burial based on the geoforensic search strategy (GSS).

A woman reporting the homicide and burial of an infant in 2004 prompted the creation of an experimental simulated neonate grave shortly before the real search commenced. The real case, documented here, did not use aerial imagery, but used ground-penetrating radar (calibrated to the test site described here) to identify two locations that were probed for gas release and the deployment of victim recovery dogs. We suggest technological advances in remotely sensed aerial imagery that have developed since 2004 will demonstrate their use in focusing such searches by informing a Geoforensic Search Strategy (GSS) and suggesting locations accessible by a perpetrator to identify a burial location using the still-existent analogue site. To test this, in the spring of 2020 a DJI Mavic Pro drone was flown over the control site containing the simulated 2004 burial. Aerial image processing included the creation of orthomosaics, Normalised Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI), Visual Atmospheric Resistance Index (VARI), and photogrammetry. Conventional ground-based geophysical surveys using ground-penetrating radar, guided by this new type of information integrated into the GSS, confirmed that anomalies seen in drone data were the 16-year-old burial. We test this strategy using both the original simulated burial in Northern Ireland and further evaluate it in two recent simulated graves in the United States in more complex scenarios, but with successful results.

A new approach in the optimal site selection of landfills for drilling cuttings from petroleum and gas fields.

Drilling cuttings contain dangerous elements to human life and other organisms. Different criteria are effective in increasing or decreasing the transmission of this pollution to the environment. By studying and reviewing the scientific sources, these criteria were identified and the type of causal relationships between these criteria was determined using the Fuzzy DEMATEL1 technique. Finally, the appropriate location of the landfill was determined by recognizing these criteria and their internal relationships. The results of this study showed that Slope criterion has the highest degree of effect and Distance from airport criterion has the lowest degree of effect. Distance from city centres criterion has the highest and Distance from airport criterion has the least degree of importance in choosing the appropriate location for drilling cuttings. Distance from city centres criterion has the highest and Geology criterion has the least net effect on selecting the appropriate location of drilling cuttings. Considering the effective criteria on the selection of drilling waste disposal site, the proposed landfills were introduced in 5 different classes from very good to very poor. Accordingly, part of the land located in the southern regions of Khark Island and the central regions of Lavan Island is desirable for the burial of drilling wastes. These areas are suitable due to their distance from urban centres, distance from the road, distance from the river, distance from the airport and other waste disposal factors.

Site selection for waste vegetable oil and waste battery collection boxes: a GIS-based hybrid hesitant fuzzy decision-making approach.

The amount of municipal solid waste (MSW) has been increasing rapidly in the urban centres of developing countries during the last few decades; however, municipal solid waste management (MSWM) remains inadequate. One of the largest aspects of cost of the MSWM system is the collection of waste. This paper describes a methodology that combines geographic information systems (GIS), hesitant fuzzy linguistic term set (HFLTS), and the full multiplicative form of multi-objective optimization by ratio analysis (MULTIMOORA), to determine suitable locations for waste collection boxes (named AYPIKUT), which have been designed specifically for collection of domestic waste vegetable oil and waste batteries. It takes as case study, Atakum, a district of Samsun city, Turkey. As a solution to the problem, first, a total of 88 items have been identified for consideration by seven criteria elicited from the insights of experts, and spatial analyses were performed. Multi-criteria HFLTS was then used to determine weights of the criteria. Population density was the most significant criterion affecting the selection process, and proximity to housing complexes with more than 150 dwellings was the least important. According to the weights of the seven criteria, and three rules determined by the experts, 15 AYPIKUT locations were identified using GIS. As a final step, the alternative locations (A1-A15) were ranked with the MULTIMOORA method. A5 was the most suitable site, and A6 was the least suitable site for an AYPIKUT. The results indicated the ability of the proposed model to select the suitable locations for waste collection box.

Application of a geographic information system-based fuzzy analytic hierarchy process model to locate potential municipal solid waste incineration plant sites: A case study of Izmir Metropolitan Municipality.

Locating candidate sites for municipal solid waste management facilities is a multi-criteria decision and involves spatial consideration that all municipalities have to deal with. This study aims to develop a holistic model for locating the most suitable facility sites in municipal solid waste management considering environmental and economic factors, and its application to an incineration facility in Izmir as a case study. A fuzzy analytic hierarchy process model was developed by integrating multi-criteria decision analysis methods and a geographic information system. A stepwise methodology was conducted, including generating a spatial database, exclusion analysis, preference analysis to determine spatial membership degrees and weights for each preference factor and generating the final land suitability map. A high-resolution land suitability map and the point vector format data of potential incineration plant sites were created as the model outputs. The case study results demonstrated that an incineration facility with a total capacity of 117 MWe could be established for energy recovery from 5649 tonnes day-1 municipal solid waste. Four locations were determined as potential incineration facility sites in the case study area. The model can be utilized for different study areas to aid decision-makers in the process of site selection for not only incineration facilities but also for other municipal solid waste management facilities.

A holistic model to assess risk factors of fasciolosis in Ankole cattle.

In recent decades, remote sensing (RS) technology and geographical information systems (GIS) were increasingly used as tools for epidemiological studies and the control of zoonotic diseases. Fasciolosis, a zoonotic disease caused by a trematode parasite (Fasciola spp.), is a good candidate for the application of RS and GIS in epidemiology because it is strongly influenced by the environment, i.e. the habitat of the intermediate host. In this study, we examined variables which may increase the fasciolosis risk of Ankole cattle in the degraded and overgrazed Mutara rangelands of north-eastern Rwanda. The risk variables considered included three environmental variables (normalized difference vegetation index, NDVI; normalized difference moisture index, NDMI; normalized difference water index, NDWI), two landscape metric variables (rangeland proportion, building density), two geological variables (poorly-drained soil proportion, elevation) and three animal husbandry variables (herd size, adult proportion and the body condition score). Fasciola spp. prevalence was used as the dependent variable, sampling season as a fixed factor and four principal components (PCs, condensed from the ten risk variables) as covariates in a univariate General Linear Model. Fasciola spp. prevalence was positively correlated to rangeland proportion, cattle herd size in rural areas, adult proportion and individual body condition. Moreover, high Fasciola spp. prevalence was found in densely vegetated areas with high moisture (high values of NDVI and NDMI), in combination with large proportions of poorly-drained soil at low elevations. Future investigations should focus on increased sampling across the Mutara rangelands to prepare a predictive, spatial fasciolosis risk map that would help to further improve sustainable land-use management.