Analysis hierarchy process model for plain river reach health assessment of the Luanhe River

In light of the ecological health problem occurring between the plain river reach between Daheiting and the estuary of the Luanhe River, three first-level indicators (river physical characteristic, eco-hydrological characteristic and socio-economic features) and corresponding fifteen second-level indicators such as river natural connectivity, water quantity, etc., were employed to establish the analysis hierarchy process (AHP) model. After fitting the AHP model with the data of 2005, the results show that the overall plain river reach health assessment score is 0.698 and the ecology is basically healthy. Moreover, construction of the Panjiakou Reservoir on the river mainstream destroyed the river natural morphologies, and finally contributed to the relatively low scores: 0 and 0.5 for river natural connectivity and river curve degree, respectively. It implicates that measures such as construction of ecological river course and reservoir dispatching should be taken into account in further restoration projects of the Luanhe River.