Application of the Analytic Network Process for Sub-Watershed Prioritization in the Huehuetan River Basin, Chiapas, Mexico

Adolfo López-Pérez (), Gerardo Colín-García, Héctor Moya, Martín Alejandro Bolaños-González, Demetrio Salvador Fernández-Reynoso and Angel Saul Cruz-Ramírez
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Adolfo López-Pérez: Posgrado de Hidrociencias, Colegio de Postgraduados, Campus Montecillo, Texcoco 56264, Mexico
Gerardo Colín-García: Centro de Investigación Regional Pacifico Sur, Campo Experimental Centro de Chiapas, Instituto Nacional de Investigaciones Forestales, Agrícolas y Pecuarias (INIFAP), Ocozocoautla de Espinosa 29140, Mexico
Héctor Moya: Centro Regional de Investigación e Innovación para la Sostenibilidad de la Agricultura y los Territorios Rurales (CERES), Pontificia Universidad Católica de Valparaíso, Quillota 2260000, Chile
Martín Alejandro Bolaños-González: Posgrado de Hidrociencias, Colegio de Postgraduados, Campus Montecillo, Texcoco 56264, Mexico
Demetrio Salvador Fernández-Reynoso: Posgrado de Hidrociencias, Colegio de Postgraduados, Campus Montecillo, Texcoco 56264, Mexico
Angel Saul Cruz-Ramírez: Centro Nacional de Investigación Disciplinaria en Conservación y Mejoramiento de Ecosistemas Forestales, Instituto Nacional de Investigaciones Forestales, Agrícolas y Pecuarias (INIFAP), Ciudad de México 04010, Mexico

Land, 2024, vol. 13, issue 11, 1-24

Abstract: Sub-watershed prioritization is essential for developing watershed management plans that maximize impact with minimal resources. This study used a multicriteria decision-making approach to rank sub-watersheds by degradation status in the Huehuetan River Basin, Chiapas, Mexico. The eight sub-watersheds in the basin were classified using the Analytic Network Process (ANP) model, evaluating morphometry, hydrology, hillslope stability, soil water saturation, land-use change, and socioeconomic factors. The results identified hydrology and land-use change as the most influential criteria, with weights of 20.62% and 19.82%, respectively, driven mainly by surface runoff and deforestation. Swtr 08 and Swtr 07 were identified as the highest-priority sub-watersheds, covering 24.31% of the basin area, with 55.31% of Swtr 08 classified as unstable and showing a combined high-vegetation loss of 16.46 km 2 . The entire watershed showed an annual vegetation loss rate of 146 ha year −1 . Increasing the weighting by 50% resulted in greater variability in priority rankings, with runoff and low vegetation showing maximum global ranges of −44.33% and 30.25%, respectively, instability decreasing by 33.94%, and peak flow increasing by 18.20%. These findings emphasize the need for focused interventions in the vulnerable subwatersheds of the upper basin to manage runoff, curb deforestation, and reduce soil instability.

Keywords: degradation; environmental restoration; geographic information systems; remote sensing; multicriteria decision-making (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q15 Q2 Q24 Q28 Q5 R14 R52 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2024
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