Multi-criteria approach for the energy and environmental impact evaluation in urban districts in the central Mediterranean area

• The issue of multi-criteria environmental sustainability in urban areas is presented. • A novel multi-criteria index is proposed for Mediterranean urban areas. • The index integrates quantitative and qualitative metrics across 17 criteria. • Three years of on-site measurements and data extraction from ISTAT were conducted. • An SVM algorithm calibration and validation reached an 88 % F1 score in impact analysis. Rapid urbanization and growing awareness of climate change have made sustainability crucial for the future of cities. However, knowledge about the factors affecting environmental sustainability in urban districts is still fragmented, and comprehensive multi-criteria approaches to quantify this remain is lacking. This study presents an analysis aimed at quantifying the influence of various criteria on the environmental impact of anthropogenic activities in urban districts. The authors propose a novel index that integrates qualitative and quantitative parameters to assess and predict the environmental impact in urban areas. The methodological approach involves four steps: (i) extensive bibliographic analysis of relevant parameters, (ii) three years of data acquisition using on-site surveys and data mining techniques, (iii) calibration and validation via Support Vector Machine (SVM) algorithms, and (iv) index definition. The index is applied to a case study in Pescara, Abruzzo, Italy, demonstrating the potential of this approach. Unlike prior studies, which focus on limited parameters, this work quantifies the importance of 17 criteria related to energy and environmental impacts. Among the most influential parameters, carbon dioxide emissions, active mobility, and the availability of open public space stand out, contributing 8.2 %, 8.2 %, and 6.7 % to the overall impact, respectively. This study offers a comprehensive understanding of factors driving sustainability in urban districts and provides insights to support strategies aimed at reducing environmental impacts in urban settings.