GIS as Decision Support Tool for Landfills Siting

GIS as Decision Support Tool for Landfills Siting

Another advocate proposed that a new landfill site must be sited. Budget allocation might be available from relevant agencies that would only be available for a new landfill site. Whatever the decision may be, a key element in the upgrading of the existing site or the identification of new one was the provision of effective site management which include among others site preparation, site management and method of dumping such as spreading, compacting and sourcing of cover materials and even to explore other method of solid waste disposal.

Perhaps one of the immediate solutions for SMC would be to maintain the existing site and to build a containment wall facing the Seguntor River. Whilst this may prove to be more expensive, it is one of the ways to improve the protection of the local environment; a compromise solution must be sought between cost and benefit. At any rate whatever the situation may be SMC must make a stand. For good planning practice, a landfill site must be made available for the future generations.

Along with this study, SMC was also looking for a potential site for town extension and it was found that the 6 potential search areas for Sandakan Landfills were also potential for town expansion. The management of SMC than would have to re-evaluate the constraint criteria and to run the exercise to see its effectiveness.

Recommendations

Search for a Specific Landfill Site
SMC shall identify a new site within the Search Area proposed under this study. This could only be done by the SMC as they are the owner and managers of the areas with local knowledge on their side. This would include site visits and taking technical notes of the proposed new sites. If site access was not available, high resolution satellite images or aerial photographs could be use for this purpose.

Applying the same Techniques for other Districts
It is also recommended that all Local Authorities in Sabah use the GIS analytical modules presented in this research.

This is in line with the intention by the Ministry of Local Government and Housing (KKTP.100-44/25 dated 24 th April 2002) and State Economic Planning Unit (UPEN.600-1/2 9 (97) dated 30 th April 2002 to produce “Local Authorities Waste Management Master Plan and Feasibility Study in Sabah” which aimed to establish haulage distance, transition sites, disposal sites for all the 22 Local Authorities and proposed disposal methods in Sabah up to the year 2030.

Conclusion
GIS as decision support tools for landfill siting using constraint mapping techniques has been proven to be useful. The total area eliminated by applying constraint criteria was 73.74%, thus leaving the balance of the Potential Search Area at 26.26%. The remaining search areas were located in 6 places and identified as Search Area A, B, C, D, E and F. The 6 areas were then further ranked using GAM rating and it was found that Search Area A ranked first, which represents about 3.90% of the total area followed by Search Area B which represents about 3.54%. This research therefore concluded that GIS utilizing CMT can be used effectively and has the potential to identify possible search areas for landfill siting.

Planning for future land use and deciding on the appropriate zoning for particular areas demand comprehensive analysis and sound judgment. These processes often take longer to achieve but with the introduction of appropriate tools, decision making can be made faster and more reliable. It is hoped that relevant government agencies would co-operate and work together especially on data exchange and data production in an integrated manner as demonstrated through this study.

References

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