Article ID | Journal | Published Year | Pages | File Type |
---|---|---|---|---|
4374545 | Ecological Indicators | 2008 | 8 Pages |
Abstract
Environmental indicators are often aggregated into a single index in environmental studies. Commonly, an aggregated index is derived in a specific weighting scheme imposed from the outside. The paper presents a novel approach by letting each unit under study choose a set of weights. It applies the concept of self- and cross-appraisal in generating various aggregated indices from two linear programming optimization models. The proposed method is illustrated via a case study of the Mid-Atlantic region. Results show that the derived aggregated indices reveal environmental conditions of the study area in an objective and robust fashion. The proposed method is a valuable tool for integrated environmental assessment.
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Authors
Liem T. Tran, Robert V. O'Neill, Elizabeth R. Smith, Paul F. Wagner, Megan Mehaffey,