Sains Malaysiana 41(10)(2012): 1177–1185

 

Developing Priorities and Ranking for Suitable Forest Road Allocation Using Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) in Peninsular Malaysia

(Membangunkan Keutamaan dan Taraf untuk Perancangan Jalan Hutan Berasaskan

Proses Hierarki Analitik (AHP) di Semenanjung Malaysia)

 

 

K. Norizah & I. Mohd. Hasmadi*

Forest Surveying and Engineering Lab, Faculty of Forestry, Universiti Putra Malaysia

43400 UPM, Serdang, Selangor, Malaysia

 

Received: 8 August 2011 / Accepted: 22 May 2012

 

 

ABSTRACT

In hilly forest area, aligning forest roads is the key towards an effective and sustainable forest management. Constraints in forest road planning are mainly due to environmental factors and topographical conditions. Selecting the criteria for planning forest road and setting the priorities, ranking them for environmental sustainability and reduce cost in road construction is important. Different criteria are required at different forest area since the quantifiable relationship between cause and effect to meet the goal are not comprehensively prioritized. In order to solve the problem, the relative importance factor from multi criteria basis, namely Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) was applied. Therefore, the objective of this study was to develop priorities and rank a selected criterion for planning forest road in hilly area using AHP approach. Four criteria had been identified to meet the goal of suitable forest road allocation namely slope, river crossing, elevation and existing forest road. The suitable criteria selected were sorted with weight in ranking order to minimize the impact of timber harvesting. Our results showed that the priorities and ranking were as follows; slope (w = 0.558), followed by river crossing (w = 0.303), elevation (w = 0.095) and lastly existing forest road (w = 0.044), respectively. Therefore, the relative preference factor developed in this study can be used by the Forestry Department for formulating suitable forest road allocation in hilly area simultaneously to be integrated with geographic information system technology.

 

Keywords: Analytical hierarchy process; forest road planning; harvest planning; priorities criteria

 

ABSTRAK

Di kawasan hutan berbukit, penjajaran jalan hutan adalah faktor utama untuk mencapai pengurusan hutan yang berkesan. Masalah di dalam perancangan jalan hutan selalunya berkait dengan faktor alam sekitar dan keadaan topografi. Membuat pilihan bagi beberapa kriteria tertentu untuk mengurangkan kos perancangan adalah perlu. Kriteria yang berbeza diperlukan untuk kawasan hutan yang berlainan kerana hubungannya dikaitkan dengan sebab dan akibat tidak selalunya diberi keutamaan secara komprehensif untuk mencapai objektif pengurusan. Maka untuk menyelesaikan masalah ini, faktor-faktor relatif yang penting telah dinilai berasaskan kriteria iaitu Proses Hierarki Analitik (AHP). Objektif kajian ini ialah untuk membangunkan keutamaan dan taraf beberapa kriteria yang telah dipilih untuk perancangan jalan hutan di kawasan berbukit menggunakan pendekatan AHP. Empat kriteria telah dikenal pasti untuk mencapai objektif penjajaran jalan hutan yang bersesuaian iaitu cerun, lintasan sungai, ketinggian dan jalan hutan yang sedia ada. Kriteria yang bersesuaian telah disusun mengikut berat keutamaan dalam susunan yang teratur untuk meminimumkan kesan penuaian hutan. Daripada keputusan, keutamaan/pemberat dan susunan kriteria adalah seperti berikut: cerun (w = 0.558), diikuti oleh sungai (w = 0.303), ketinggian (w = 0.095) dan seterusnya jalan hutan yang sedia ada (w = 0.044). Faktor relatif yang telah dibangunkan dalam kajian ini boleh diguna pakai oleh Jabatan Perhutanan untuk membuat perancangan jalan hutan yang bersesuaian di kawasan hutan bukit seterusnya diguna pakai bersama dengan teknologi sistem maklumat geografi.

 

Kata kunci: Kriteria keutamaan, perancangan jalan hutan; perancangan penuaian. proses hierarki analitik

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*Corresponding author; email: mhasmadi@putra.upm.edu.my