Utilization of analytical hierarchy process (AHP) method in identifying seismic risk, case study: Khuzestan Province

In the present study, an attempt has been made to identify the seismic risk zoning of Khuzestan province due to its location in the seismic state of Zagros. To achieve the desired goal, geological data, analytical hierarchy process (AHP), and GIS decision support system was used. The information layers used in this study were: digital elevation models (DEM), land slope, faults density, earthquakes density of the last 20 years, the distance of faults (buffer), the distance of earthquakes of the last 20 years (buffer), and interpolation (IDW) layer of earthquakes of the last 20 years’ province. The results of this study that the northeastern and northern parts of Khuzestan province have the highest seismic risk that the cities of Masjed Soleyman, Andika, and Izeh have high earthquake potential, Dezful, Lali, and Gutvand have moderate earthquake potential. A few cities such as Ahvaz, Abadan, and Dasht -e- Azadegan plain have low earthquake potential. The earthquakes of the last 10 years in Khuzestan province also showed good overlap with high-risk points. The reason for the high risk of earthquakes in these areas can be considered as the existence of many faults, many human activities such as dam construction, extraction from groundwater aquifers in areas with active faults, and the release of seismic energy of active faults.