Evaluate a Spatial Site-Selection Model

5 questions0m 0s

Learn the skill

First remove sites that violate a stated constraint. Then calculate scores consistently for the eligible sites. A sensitivity check changes weights to see whether rankings depend on priorities; a score is not proof of a universally best location.

Worked example

If a site violates an exclusion rule, a high convenience score cannot rescue it. Among eligible sites, changing the weight of a criterion can change which site ranks first.

Fictional Field-Station Sites

Site A: access score 8, habitat-impact score 2. Site B: access 6, impact 1. Site C: access 9, impact 8. Higher access and lower impact are preferred. Exclude any site with impact above 5. The first scoring rule is 2 x access - impact. These invented scores illustrate a method, not real siting advice.

1. Which site is excluded before scoring eligible sites? Site A Site B Site C

2. What is Site A's score under the first rule? Answer

3. What is Site B's score under the first rule? Answer

4. Keep the exclusion rule but change the score to access - 4 x impact. Which eligible site now ranks higher? Site A Site B Site C

5. What does the ranking reversal demonstrate? The recommendation depends partly on the chosen priorities The underlying access data must have changed A numerical model removes all value judgments