Journal of Urban Environmental Management

Optimal Landfill Site Selection Based on National Guidelines and Local Conditions: Lessons from the City of Chatroud

Authors

Majid Ramezani Mehrian 1
Sayedeh Alemohammad 2
Hossein Vahidi 3
Hossein Khosravi 4

1 Department of Environmental Studies, the Institute for Research and Development in the Humanities (SAMT), Tehran, Iran.

2 Department of Innovation and Sustainability, Faculty of Governance, University of Tehran, Tehran, Iran.

3 Department of Environment, Graduate University of Advanced Technology, Kerman, Iran

4 Department of Architucture and Urban Planning, Faculty of Architecture and Urban Planning, Art University, Tehran, Iran.

https://doi.org/10.48306/juem.2026.571320.1141
Abstract
Landfill management in arid Iran requires precise site selection due to environmental fragility and agricultural dependence. Chatroud's current landfill has become a pollution hub, provoking social conflicts by neglecting environmental criteria. This study provides an operational framework differentiating and integrating constraint and suitability criteria from national guidelines, tailored to local conditions. Using MCDM, weighted overlaying, and viewshed analysis, unsuitable areas were first excluded based on ecological-social constraints (e.g., buffers for water resources and settlements). Remaining lands were then weighted and evaluated by the suitability degree of other key criteria. Among five candidate sites, Site 2 is optimal due to safe aquifer distance, appropriate city distance, reduced future social conflicts (from wind alignment dispersing pollutants away from settlements, and highly limited viewshed from topographic confinement). The key lesson is implementing "closure and rehabilitation" of the current site while establishing the new site with comprehensive monitoring and sustainable social participation to manage future conflicts. Differentiating constraints from suitability ensures technical compliance with national guidelines and enables project implementation success and local acceptance—generalizable to other arid regions of Iran.

Keywords

Waste
Constraints
Suitability
Site Selection
Environmental Criteria
Social Conflicts
1. Environmental Protection Agency. (2020). Managing and transforming waste streams: A tool for communities (EPA Publication No. 530-F-20-001). https://www.epa.gov/transforming-waste-tool
2. Kazuva, E., Zhang, J., Tong, Z., Liu, X. P., Memon, S., & Mhache, E. (2021). GIS- and MCD-based suitability assessment for optimized location of solid waste landfills in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. Environmental Science and Pollution Research International, 28 (9), 11259–11278. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-020-11213-0
3. Rouhani, A., & Hejcman, M. (2025). A review of soil pollution around municipal solid waste landfills in Iran and comparable instances from other parts of the world. International Journal of Environmental Science and Technology, 22(10), 9711-9728. https://doi.org/10.1007/s13762-024-05728-z
4. Golhosseini, Z., & Ghazizade, M. J. (2024). Municipal solid waste status in Iran: from generation to disposal. Environmental Protection Research, 4(1), 16-29. https://doi.org/10.37256/epr.4120243553
5. Jomehpour, M., & Behzad, M. (2020). An investigation on shaping local waste management services based on public participation: A case study of Amol, Mazandaran Province, Iran. Environmental Development, 35, 100519. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envdev.2020.100519
6. MehriAhmadia, H. S. H., Mohameda, A. F., & Shamshiria, N. M. E. (2013). Status of waste governance system in Iran-An overview. World Applied Sciences Journal, 25(4), 629–636. https://doi.org/10.5829/idosi.wasj.2013.25.04.1371
7. Ansari, M., Emamjomeh, M. M., Yousefabad, S. A., Sheikh, M. R., Jamali, H., & Ahmadi, E. (2024). Towards Modern Waste Governance: Reforming Iran’s Waste Management Law. International Archives of Health Sciences, 11(Special Issue: Policy Briefs), 285–287. https://doi.org/10.48307/iahsj.2025.521546.1376
8. Derakhshandeh, M., & Taleb Beydokhti, T. (2014). Management of landfill locating of urban waste. European Online Journal of Natural and Social Sciences: Proceedings, 3(3 (s)), pp-32. https://european-science.com/eojnss/article/view/1849/pdf
9. Nanda, S., & Berruti, F. (2021). Municipal solid waste management and landfilling technologies: a review. Environmental chemistry letters, 19(2), 1433-1456. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10311-020-01100-y
10. Dabrowska, D., Rykala, W., & Nourani, V. (2023). Causes, types and consequences of municipal waste landfill fires—literature review. Sustainability, 15(7), 5713. https://doi.org/10.3390/su15075713
11. Javahershenas, M., Nabizadeh, R., Alimohammadi, M., & Mahvi, A. H. (2022). The effects of Lahijan landfill leachate on the quality of surface and groundwater resources. International Journal of Environmental Analytical Chemistry, 102(2), 558-574. https://doi.org/10.1080/03067319.2020.1724984
12. Donevska, K., Jovanovski, J., & Gligorova, L. (2021). Comprehensive review of the landfill site selection methodologies and criteria. Journal of the Indian Institute of Science, 101, 509–521. https://doi.org/10.1007/s41745-021-00228-2
13. Najafi Saleh, H., Valipoor, S., Zarei, A., Yousefi, M., Baghal Asghari, F., Mohammadi, A. A., & Mousavi Khaneghah, A. (2020). Assessment of groundwater quality around municipal solid waste landfill by using Water Quality Index for groundwater resources and multivariate statistical technique: a case study of the landfill site, Qaem Shahr City, Iran. Environmental geochemistry and health, 42(5), 1305-1319. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10653-019-00417-0
14. Qureshi, S., Shorabeh, S. N., Samany, N. N., Minaei, F., Homaee, M., (2021). A new integrated approach for municipal landfill siting based on urban physical growth prediction: A case study mashhad metropolis in Iran. Remote Sensing, 13(5), 949. https://doi.org/10.3390/rs13050949
15. Demesouka, O. E., Vavatsikos, A. P., & Anagnostopoulos, K. P. (2013). Suitability analysis for siting MSW landfills and its multicriteria spatial decision support system: method, implementation and case study. Waste Management, 33(5), 1190–1206. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.wasman.2013.01.030
16. Alavi, N., Goudarzi, G., Babaei, A. A., Jaafarzadeh, N., & Teymouri, P. (2013). Municipal solid waste landfill site selection with geographic information systems and analytical hierarchy process: Mahshahr, Iran. Waste Management & Research, 31(1), 98–105. https://doi.org/10.1177/0734242X12456092
17. Ghazifard, A., Nikoobakht, S., & Azarafza, M. (2016). Municipal waste landfill site selection based on environmental, geological and geotechnical multi-criteria: A case study. Iranian Journal of Environmental Technology, 2(1), 49-67. https://doi.org/10.22108/ijet.2018.107396.1003
18. Adeli, Z., & Khorshiddoust, A. (2011). Application of geomorphology in urban planning: Case study in landfill site selection. Procedia-Social and Behavioral Sciences, 19, 662-667. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sbspro.2011.05.183
19. Ahmadi, M., Teymouri, P., Dinarvand, F., & Nabizadeh, R. (2014). Municipal solid waste landfill site selection using AHP & GIS in Abadan, Iran. Iranian Journal of Health Sciences, 2(1), 37–50. https://doi.org/10.18869/acadpub.jhs.2.1.37
20. Khorsandi, H., Faramarzi, A., Aghapour, A. A., & Jafari, S. J. (2019). Landfill site selection via integrating multi-criteria decision techniques with geographic information systems: a case study in Naqadeh, Iran. Environmental monitoring and assessment, 191(12), 730. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10661-019-7863-8
21. Balist, J., Nahavandchi, M., & Bidar, G. S. (2021). Landfill Site Selection Using Fuzzy Logic & AHP & WLC (Case study: Razan city-Iran). Journal of Civil Engineering Frontiers (JoCEF), 2(1). https://doi.org/10.38094/jocef20129
22. Zoghi, M., Ehsani, A. H., Sadat, M., javad Amiri, M., & Karimi, S. (2017). Optimization solar site selection by fuzzy logic model and weighted linear combination method in arid and semi-arid region: A case study Isfahan-IRAN. Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, 68, 986-996. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.rser.2015.07.014
23. Ghiasinejad, H., Ghasemi, M., Pazoki, M., & Shariatmadari, N. (2021). Prediction of landfill leachate quantity in arid and semiarid climate: a case study of Aradkouh, Tehran. International Journal of Environmental Science and Technology, 18(3), 589-600. https://doi.org/10.1007/s13762-020-02843-5
24. Ahmadi, M., Nikseresht, M., Najafi, E., & Morshedi, B. (2020). Landfill site selection using geographic information system and Fuzzy-AHP model: A case study of Ilam township, Iran. Journal of environmental health and sustainable development. https://doi.org/10.18502/jehsd.v5i3.4276
25. Mousavi, S. M., Darvishi, G., Mobarghaee Dinan, N., & Naghibi, S. A. (2022). Optimal landfill site selection for solid waste of three municipalities based on boolean and fuzzy methods: A case study in Kermanshah Province, Iran. Land, 11(10), 1779. https://doi.org/10.3390/land11101779
26. Pasalari, H., Nodehi, R. N., Mahvi, A. H., Yaghmaeian, K., & Charrahi, Z. (2019). Landfill site selection using a hybrid system of AHP-Fuzzy in GIS environment: A case study in Shiraz city, Iran. MethodsX, 6, 1454-1466. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.mex.2019.06.009
27. Torabi-Kaveh, M., Babazadeh, R., Mohammadi, S. D., & Zaresefat, M. (2016). Landfill site selection using combination of GIS and fuzzy AHP, a case study: Iranshahr, Iran. Waste Management & Research, 34(5), 438-448. https://doi.org/10.1177/0734242X16633777
28. Fallahizadeh, S., Rahmatinia, M., Mohammadi, Z., Vaezzadeh, M., Tajamiri, A., & Soleimani, H. (2019). Estimation of methane gas by LandGEM model from Yasuj municipal solid waste landfill, Iran. MethodsX, 6, 391-398. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.mex.2019.02.013
29. Saghi, M. H., Nadimi, H., Eslami, A., Alavi Bakhtiarvand, S. N., Oghazyan, A., Setoudeh, S., & Sargolzaei, M. S. (2024). Characteristics and pollution indices of leachates from municipal solid waste landfills in Iranian metropolises and their implications for MSW management. Scientific Reports, 14(1), 27285. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-024-78630-w
30. Mozaffari, M., Bemani, A., Erfani, M., Yarami, N., & Siyahati, G. (2023). Integration of LCSA and GIS-based MCDM for sustainable landfill site selection: A case study. Environmental monitoring and assessment, 195(4), 510. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10661-023-11112-0
31. Bechroune, W., Kherrour, L., Belaid, L., & Goumrasa, A. (2024). GIS-MCDM integrated approach for suitable landfill site selection: a case study of the southwestern part of Bejaia Province, Algeria. Environmental Monitoring and Assessment, 196(12), 1262. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10661-024-13381-9
32. Sisay, G., Gebre, S. L., & Getahun, K. (2021). GIS-based potential landfill site selection using MCDM-AHP modeling of Gondar Town, Ethiopia. African Geographical Review, 40(2), 105-124. https://doi.org/10.1080/19376812.2020.1770105
33. Maafa, Z., & Badi, I. (2025). Integrating Multi-Criteria Decision-Making and Geographic Information Systems in Landfill Site Selection: A Comprehensive Review. International Journal of Sustainable Development Goals, 1, 289-309. https://doi.org/10.59543/ijsdg.v1i.15325
34. Mukomberanwa, N. T., Chaipa, B., & Mutowo, G. (2025). GIS-Integrated Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP) for optimal landfill site selection in Kadoma City, Zimbabwe. Sustainable Environment, 11(1), 2557727. https://doi.org/10.1080/27658511.2025.2557727
35. Shukor, A. A. H. M., Ishak, N. M., Salleh, S. A., & Othman, F. (2024, March). Waste management: Landfill selection using GIS and analytical hierarchy process. In IOP Conference Series: Earth and Environmental Science (Vol. 1316, No. 1, p. 012003). IOP Publishing. https://doi.org/10.1088/1755-1315/1316/1/012003
36. Elshaboury, N., M. AlMetwaly, W., Ali, E., & EE Eltoukhy, A. (2025). Sustainable Landfill Site Selection for Construction and Demolition Waste Using Magnitude-Based Fuzzy AHP and GIS Technologies. Journal of Geovisualization and Spatial Analysis, 9(1), 27. https://doi.org/10.1007/s41651-025-00227-2
37. Moumane, A., Al Karkouri, J., & Batchi, M. (2025). Utilizing GIS, remote sensing, and AHP-multi-criteria decision analysis for optimal landfill site selection in Kenitra Province, Morocco: a step towards sustainable development goals. Discover Environment, 3(1), 4. https://doi.org/10.1007/s44274-025-00183-0
38. Chang, N. B., Parvathinathan, G., & Breeden, J. B. (2008). Combining GIS with fuzzy multicriteria decision-making for landfill siting in a fast-growing urban region. Journal of Environmental Management, 87(1), 139-153. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jenvman.2007.01.011
39. Abessi, O., & Saeedi, M. (2010). Hazardous waste landfill siting using GIS technique and analytical hierarchy process. EnvironmentAsia, 3(2), 69-78. https://doi.org/10.14456/EA.2010.26
40. Environmental Protection Agency. (1996). Solid waste disposal facility criteria: Technical manual (EPA/530/R-93/017). U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. https://www.osti.gov/biblio/5495829

  • Receive Date 07 January 2026
  • Revise Date 04 June 2026
  • Accept Date 05 August 2026
  • First Publish Date 06 August 2026
  • Publish Date 23 September 2026

Home

Guide for Authors

Submit Manuscript

Reviewers

Contact Us