SOMERSET-P: a GIS-based/MCDA platform for strategic planning scenarios’ ranking and decision-making in conflictual socioecosystem

Abstract

This contribution proposes an application of the SOMERSET-P platform for strategic environmental assessment of regional planning scenarios related to the municipality of Ste-Claire (Quebec, Canada). The platform combines spatial analysis and multicriteria decision-aid support and is supplied with data from several stakeholder expectations and planning issues. Stakeholders are modeled according to the following five groups: “Owners” (civil administration representatives), Farmers, Foresters, Environmentalists, and Neo-rural dwellers. Each scenario was built according to a hierarchy of planning objectives. Scenarios were assessed in accordance with 12 decision criteria and related indicators of performance. The spatial translation and spatial analysis of the territorial impacts of the scenarios are performed within the ArcGIS geographic information system. These scenarios were integrated into multicriteria and multi-stakeholders analysis software implementing the PROMETHEE/GAIA methodology. Four elements were computed to support the stakeholder negotiations and decision analysis: scenario strengths and weaknesses, individual and multi-stakeholder scenario rankings, and visual analysis of conflicts and synergies between criteria, and between stakeholders. Results suggest that a potential compromise is located in-between the full economic growth and the ecological scenarios. Since regional planning processes are becoming increasingly complex with time due to the group polarization and the emergence of conflictual societal value schemes among stakeholders hierarchical and networked relations approaches involving multiple stakeholders like this one are fully justified in the future.