Multi-Criteria Decision-Making in Environmental Risk Assessment

Multi-Criteria Decision-Making (MCDM) in environmental risk assessment has emerged as a vital framework for addressing complex challenges that involve multiple, often conflicting objectives. Moving beyond single-metric analyses, MCDM integrates quantitative and qualitative factors—such as pollutant loads, ecosystem health, social acceptance and economic cost—within a structured decision process. Core techniques include systematic weighting, ranking and aggregation methods that ensure transparent, reproducible evaluations across diverse environmental applications. By capturing expert judgement, quantifying uncertainty and balancing short-term mitigation against long-term sustainability, MCDM supports informed prioritisation of interventions. Recent methodological advances feature the hybridisation of established tools—incorporating fuzzy logic to manage ambiguity, entropy-based weight determination to reduce subjectivity and grey system theory to contend with incomplete data. Such innovations have been deployed in sectors from infrastructure development and urban stormwater management to industrial site remediation, offering enhanced decision support for policymakers and practitioners worldwide. The global significance of MCDM lies in its ability to guide resource allocation, regulatory compliance and adaptive management amid evolving environmental risks.

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Multi-Criteria Decision-Making in Environmental Risk Assessment publication trend

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Technical terms

Multi-Criteria Decision-Making (MCDM): A collection of methods for evaluating and ranking alternatives based on multiple, often conflicting criteria.

Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP): A structured technique that uses pairwise comparisons to derive weights and priorities among decision criteria.

Technique for Order of Preference by Similarity to Ideal Solution (TOPSIS): A ranking method that identifies options closest to an ideal solution and furthest from a nadir point.

Fuzzy Comprehensive Evaluation: An approach that applies fuzzy logic to handle ambiguity in criteria weighting and membership grading.

Grey System Theory: A mathematical framework for dealing with systems characterised by incomplete or uncertain information through grey relational analysis and clustering.

References

1. Environmental risk assessment of concrete construction projects in developing countries based on Analytical Hierarchy Process method. Green Technologies and Sustainability (2025).
2. Urban Pluvial Flood Management Part 1: Implementing an AHP-TOPSIS Multi-Criteria Decision Analysis Method for Stakeholder Integration in Urban Climate and Stormwater Adaptation. Water (2021).
3. Integrated Environmental Risk Assessment and Whole-Process Management System in Chemical Industry Parks. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health (2013).