Assessment of flood risk in Söğütlü stream watershed of Trabzon province in Turkey using geographic information systems and analytic hierarchy process approach

In this study, the focus was on analyzing and predicting flood-prone areas in the Söğütlü stream watershed using a GIS-based MSCA decision analysis. The modeling method was chosen for the ease of measuring the watershed size and time-saving, and a flood risk map for the area was generated. In this model, the climatic, edaphic, biotic characteristics of the watershed, which contribute to flood formation, were selected as the determining factors.

The study results indicate that low and moderate areas encompass 95.98% of the watershed, while high-risk and very high-risk areas account for 4.02% of the watershed in the flood risk map of the Söğütlü watershed. It was observed that areas in close proximity to rivers, low slope end elevation were more susceptible to flooding.