Spatial Environmental Sensitivity and Land Degradation Risk in Organized Industrial Zone Site Selection: A Multi-Criteria Assessment of Sakarya, Türkiye

Abstract

Unplanned industrialisation can contribute to environmental degradation when industrial zones are located without sufficient consideration of land capability, water resources and ecological sensitivity. Organized Industrial Zones (OIZs) provide planned infrastructure and centralised services, yet inappropriate site selection may increase land-use conflicts and potential degradation, particularly in regions where productive agricultural land and sensitive ecosystems coexist. This study evaluates the relationship between spatial environmental sensitivity and potential land degradation risk in OIZ site selection in Sakarya Province, Türkiye. Seven active OIZs were assessed using a multi-criteria decision-making framework supported by Geographic Information Systems and a 1-5 scoring scale. The assessment included 26 criteria covering spatial characteristics, infrastructure adequacy, environmental impacts and socio-economic factors. Expert-based weighting assigned the highest importance to environmental impacts, followed by spatial characteristics, infrastructure adequacy and socio-economic factors. The analysis showed notable variation among the OIZs. Karasu OIZ obtained the highest total score (82), followed by Sakarya Second OIZ (76), Ferizli OIZ (74), Sakarya Third OIZ (73), Kaynarca Furniture Specialized OIZ (68), Sakarya First OIZ (67) and the Eastern Marmara Machinery Manufacturers Specialized OIZ (66). The findings indicate that environmental criteria are as important as economic and infrastructural considerations in determining suitable industrial locations. OIZs established on fertile agricultural land or near sensitive water resources require stronger monitoring and management. The results also show that sensitivity-based scoring can identify improvement priorities without excluding operational and socio-economic considerations. The proposed framework offers a flexible and transferable approach for evaluating environmental performance, supporting more context-sensitive OIZ planning and land-use decision-making.