Multi-Hazard Analysis of Marine Geology in the Banda Sea: A GIS-Based AHP Approach

Abstract The Indonesian Ocean region has frequently experienced geological disasters, posing dangers to community life and vital infrastructure such as fiber optic cable in the sea. The increase in population and the need for infrastructure development in the Indonesian maritime region increase the risk of losses due to natural disasters. To protect the population and infrastructure, a comprehensive multi-hazard analysis of the Indonesian seas combined with marine geological disasters is required. This study applies a GIS-based analytic hierarchy process (AHP) to assess the level of marine geological hazard in the Banda Sea, covering an area of 518,400 km 2 . Three hazard factors are considered in this analysis: seismic hazards, underwater volcanism, and underwater landslides. All aspects are categorized into five hazard classes based on their relative contribution to the risk. The results show that about 17% and 30% of the study area are in hazardous and moderate hazard conditions, respectively. Meanwhile, regions within the Arafura Sea tend to fall into the non-hazardous class. Moderate hazard classes are found in the waters around the Tanimbar, Kei, and Aru Islands. The areas classified as hazardous in the seas are due to the presence of many seamounts on the seabed of the Banda Sea, west of the Tanimbar Islands. The multi-hazards map provides essential information for identifying the relative risk of an area, which can be used for future management and planning.