Multiobjectives in water resource systems analysis: The Surrogate Worth Trade Off Method

Abstract

The problem of noncommensurable multiobjective functions in water resource systems is discussed. Potential strategies in multiobjective decision theory are summarized. A new method for solving non‐commensurable multiobjective functions, namely, the surrogate worth trade off method, is developed. Procedures for the derivation of the trade off functions and the surrogate worth functions are developed and analyzed. Major characteristics and advantages of the surrogate worth trade off method are summarized. In particular, the trade off and surrogate worth functions are constructed in the functional space, where an interaction with the decision maker takes place, and only then these functions are transformed into the decision space. The Reid and Vemuri multiobjective problem in water resources has been chosen as an example and was successfully solved via the surrogate worth trade off method.