https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9283-3947
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Abstract
Agricultural Land Suitability Analysis plays a pivotal role in sustainable land use planning, aiding decision-makers in identifying areas most conducive to agriculture. This study employs a systematic approach integrating Analytical Hierarchy Process and Multi-Criteria Decision Analysis techniques to assess and prioritize the suitability of agricultural land in in Southern Punjab (Multan region). The methodology involves defining clear objectives, identifying relevant criteria and sub-criteria, establishing a hierarchical structure and conducting pairwise comparisons to determine the relative importance of each factor. Our outcomes indicated that almost 43% area was highly suitable for agriculture, 27% moderately suitable, 16% marginally suitable, 8% less suitable and 6% not suitable for agriculture in study area. All the suitable lands had silty clay or clay type soil, which had sandy loam type soil in Multan region. The output is a comprehensive suitability map that identifies the most suitable areas for agriculture in Multan region. Sensitivity analysis and validation are incorporated to enhance the robustness and reliability of the results. This methodology provides a valuable tool for land use planners and policymakers to make informed decisions regarding agricultural land allocation, contributing to sustainable agricultural practices and resource management.
REVIEWING EDITOR:
Acknowledgements
The authors extend their appreciation to the Deanship of Scientific Research at King Khalid University for funding this work through Research Group under grant number RGP1/440/44. The authors are also grateful to editors and potential reviewers.
Authors’ contributions
Conceptualization and supervision: SH, WN and MM; writing review and editing: SH, WN, SF, AT, HGA, SK and HA; data curation and formal analysis SH, WN, SF, AT, MM, SA, JM, HGA, SK and HA; evidence collection, review and editing: SH, WN, JM, SF, AT, HA, SK and HGA.
Disclosure statement
No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).
Data availability statement
The data that support the findings of this study are available on request from the corresponding author.
Additional information
Funding
Notes on contributors
Sajjad Hussain
Sajjad Hussain is PhD scholar in Department of Environmental Science, COMSATS University Islamabad, Vehari Campus. He published 20 research article in international journals (with more than 75 Impact Factor) and 20 book chapter in international books. My research interests are: Assessment of land surface temperature, land use land cover changes, Cropping pattern, NDVI, NDBI, urban planning and management using remote sensing, MODIS, sentinel as well as multi spectral remote sensing data.
Wajid Nasim
Wajid Nasim Jatoi serving Department of Agronomy, Faculty of Agriculture & Environment, The Islamia University of Bahawalpur (IUB), Pakistan since November 21, 2019. Before joining IUB, he served the Department of Environmental Sciences, COMSATS University Islamabad (Vehari Campus), Pakistan for 08 years, and Quaid-i-Azam University Islamabad, (Pakistan) for 01 year at different positions. He published more than 100 peer reviewed research publications (with more than 400 Impact Factor) and organized more than 50 national and international conferences/seminars/workshops and attended more than 50 national & international conferences/seminars/workshops as invited/keynote speaker, also write International book “Building Climate Resilience in Agriculture” as first editor published by Springer Nature.
Muhammad Mubeen
Dr. Muhammad Mubeen has been working as Assistant Professor at Department of Environmental Sciences, COMSATS University Islamabad, Vehari Campus (Pakistan) since July, 2014. His areas of interest include Agronomy, Climate change and Agro-meteorology, Crop Growth Modeling, Remote sensing and GIS and Water management. He has over 60 publications in national and international peer reviewed journals and books. He has expertise in Cropping system model “Decision Support System for Agro-technology Transfer (DSSAT) and GIS softwares (ArcGIS and ERDAS). He is reviewer of many national and international well-reputed journals. He is also editor of international book.
Shah Fahad
Dr. Shah Fahad is working as Assistant Professor in the Department of Agronomy, Abdul Wali Khan University Mardan, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan. He obtained his PhD in Agronomy from Huazhong Agriculture University, China, in 2015. After doing his postdoctoral research in Agronomy at the Huazhong Agriculture University (2015–17), he accepted the position of Assistant Professor at the University of Haripur. He has published over 450 peer-reviewed papers (Impact factor 2334.31) with more than 390 research and 60 review articles, on important aspects of climate change, plant physiology and breeding, plant nutrition, plant stress responses and tolerance mechanisms, and exogenous chemical priming-induced abiotic stress tolerance.
Aqil Tariq
Aqil Tariq received the Ph.D. degree in photogrammetry and remote sensing from the State Key Laboratory of Information Engineering in Surveying, Mapping, and Remote Sensing, Wuhan University, Wuhan, China, in 2021. He is currently with the Department of Wildlife, Fisheries and Aquaculture, Mississippi State University, Mississippi State, MS, USA. He is the author of more than 130 journal articles and conference proceedings papers. His research interests include photogrammetry, precision agriculture, 3-D geoinformation, urban analytics, spatial analysis to examine land use/land cover, geospatial data science, agriculture monitoring, natural hazards (forest fire, landslide, droughts, and flood) forest monitoring, forest cover dynamics, spatial statistics, multicriteria algorithms, ecosystem sustainability, hazards risk reduction, statistical analysis, and modeling using Python, R, and MATLAB.
Shankar Karuppannan
Shankar Karuppannan is an Associate Professor in the Department of Applied Geology, School of Applied Natural Sciences (SoANS), Adama Science and Technology, Adama, Ethiopia. He is a Distinguished Adjunct Professor at the Department of Research Analytics, Saveetha Institute of Medical and Technical Sciences (SIMATS), Saveetha University, Chennai-600077, Tamil Nadu, India. He has 15 years of experience in teaching and research. His research interests include hydrogeology, environmental pollution, geostatistics, remote sensing, and GIS applications to geology, water, soil, natural hazards, agrarian, and environmental resources. He is an active researcher and has published over 80 papers in peer-reviewed journals, 26 research papers presented at national and international conferences and seminars, 4 chapters in books, and 2 books.
Saeed Alqadhi
Dr. Saeed Alqadhi is a distinguished academic and researcher in the field of Civil Engineering, currently serving as the Dean at the College of Engineering, King Khalid University, Saudi Arabia. He earned his Ph.D. in Civil Engineering from Purdue University, USA, in 2018, and holds a Master of Science in Engineering Management from California State University, Northridge, USA. His professional journey includes roles as an Assistant Professor and lecturer in Civil Engineering at King Khalid University. His research interests encompass transportation planning and management, traffic safety, and econometric modeling. Dr. Alqadhi is also involved in consultancy work and serves on various academic committees and professional societies. He has authored numerous journal articles, conference papers, and book chapters, focusing on topics like transportation planning, traffic safety, and econometric modeling. His research projects cover a wide range of issues in civil engineering, including the impacts of highway maintenance, bridge surface maintenance, and landslide management using advanced technologies like deep learning and artificial intelligence. His work is characterized by a blend of practical engineering applications and innovative research methodologies.
Javed Mallick
Prof. Dr. Javed Mallick is a renowned Professor in the Department of Civil Engineering at King Khalid University, Saudi Arabia, specializing in Geoinformatics. He earned his Ph.D. from Jamia Millia Islamia, India, and his Master’s in Geoinformatics from ITC, The Netherlands. Dr. Mallick’s research focuses on environmental and hydrological studies, advanced remote sensing, GIS, and geostatistical analysis. He has an extensive publication record with 205 peer-reviewed papers and significant involvement in undergraduate, postgraduate, and research grant projects. Recognized for his excellence in teaching, academic development, and research, Dr. Mallick has received numerous institutional awards. He has also played key roles in quality coordination and academic assessment within his university and nationally, contributing notably to the field of urban and water informatics. His influential work has placed him among the “Top 2% Scientists in the world” in Geological & Geomatics Engineering, as listed by Stanford University for 2021 and 2022.
Hussein Almohamad
Dr. Hussein Almohamad received a PhD in Physical Geography from Justus Liebig University Giessen, Germany in 2009. He is a full professor at the Department of Geography, Qassim University, Saudi Arabia. His research interests include climatology, physical and human hazards, hydrology, data visualization and remote sensing.
Hazem Ghassan Abdo
Dr. Hazem Ghassan Abdo is a faculty member with a Ph.D. completed at the Geography Department, Tartous University, Syria. He earned his Ph.D. in Physical Gheography from Damascus University, Syria, in 2020, and holds a Master of Science in Physical Gheography from Tishreen University, Syria. His main research interests are the use of Remote Sensing and Geographic Information Systems for applications in the terrestrial environment to enhance the understanding of the Earth system processes, in the context of environmental and geomorphological shifts, which significantly interests him.