Triangulating pareto analysis, principal component analysis, and best-worst methods to advance perception-based ranking of environmental variables

This paper aims to rank environmental variables based on community perception supported by empirical evidence from the rapidly urbanizing secondary city of Debre Birhan, Ethiopia. The study employed questionnaires, determined by Yamane’s formula, for 395 households, site observations, and key informant interviews. The document survey complemented the study’s findings. Triangulation of the Pareto Analysis, Best-Worst Methods, and Principal Component Analysis, with composite Score Loading, was applied to analyze the data. The study also utilized ArcGIS 10.8 software to process to detect land use and land cover dynamics for 2014 and 2024. The results show that inappropriate urban waste management and land expropriation (0.5625) are the top priority environmental variables affecting the city’s and its residents’ well-being, followed by poor implementation of environmentally sensitive land uses (0.3125), including buffer zones, urban parks, and plazas, constituting the city’s urban land use planning element. The third-ranked variable is the lack of urban green spaces and recreation (0.1250), including forests, public squares, playgrounds, and gardens. The variables are within acceptable consistency limits with a ratio of 0.061. These findings are validated through key informant interviews and secondary data, which demonstrate that the ranked variables are critical urban challenges in the city. The broader policy implications of the research encompass resilience, climate change mitigation, and adaptation planning, as well as the introduction of capacity-building measures, participatory governance, and financial models. Thus, local governments should take proactive measures, and the study suggested further research into the complexities of urban environmental dynamics in the rapidly evolving global context.