Development of a multicriteria model for crises in urban water supply and its application to the case of Brasilia, Brazil

• Published in: Integrated environmental assessment and management 2023-01, Vol.19 (1), p.99-113
• Main Authors: Silva, Welitom T. P., Souza, Marco A. A.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Alternatives; Brazil; Case studies; Coding; Conservation practices; Decision support system; Decision Support Techniques; Decision‐making; Integrated urban water management; Methods; Multiple criterion; Sanitation; Sanitation services; Sensitivity analysis; Visual Basic for Applications; Visual stimuli; Water conservation; Water consumption; Water scarcity; Water shortages; Water Supply
• ISSN: 1551-3777; 1551-3793
• DOI: 10.1002/ieam.4671

The expansion of urban water supply crisis (UWC) cases, a context characterized by an inadequate ratio between water consumption and supply capacity, has motivated researchers to search for tools to solve the problem. The objective of this study is to develop a multicriteria tool to help select the solution alternative for UWC cases. The tool (called UWC‐MCDA) is based on obtaining consensus on various multicriteria methods for selecting alternatives to solve UWC cases. The proposed methodology consists of the following steps: (1) defining the criteria, (2) defining weights, (3) defining the alternative, (4) defining multicriterial decision support methods, (5) coding the UWC solution alternative selection model, (6) evaluation of the model coding, (7) application of the model coding, and (8) sensitivity analysis. The methods PROMETHEE II, TOPSIS, ELECTRE III, and Consensus ranking are used. The case study considered was the Administrative Region of Brasilia, in the Federal District of Brazil. A multicriteria tool to help select the solution alternative for UWC cases was developed in an easy‐to‐use environment (Visual Basic for Applications, MS Excel). The UWC‐MCDA is able to identify and prioritize, among a set of possible alternatives, the most appropriate solution for the case in question. For the case study, the UWC‐MCDA indicated the best alternatives for regulating water consumption, strengthening sanitation service operators and good water conservation practices. Integr Environ Assess Manag 2023;19:99–113. © 2022 SETAC KEY POINTS • Solutions for urban water supply crises are dynamic in space and time; the city X in year Y may have the best solution S1, but in year Y1, the best solution is S2. • A new way to perform a multicriteria analysis (three multicriteria methods plus one integrated assessment, the Consensus ranking) and a computational tool were created. • The consensus decision from the Consensus ranking method incorporates participation, concordance, inclusion, win‐win principles, equality, collaboration, cooperation, and better, more creative decisions into the decision‐making process. • The methodology was applied in a real case and can be applied in other cases.