Site Suitability Mapping for Cattle Ranch in Selected Local Government Area of Benue, Nigeria

Site suitability mapping is a prerequisite for optimum and sustainable cattle production which ensures food and reduce incessant clashes among the farmers-headers. This study mapped the criteria and examined the suitability site for cattle ranching in some selected Local Government Area of Benue State, Nigeria, using GIS-based Multi-Criteria Decision Analysis (MCDA). Remote sensed data from Landsat 8 OLLTIRS, Shuttle Radar Topographic Mission (SRTM) elevation data, Sentinel-2 imagery, European Soil Data Centre (ESDC), NASA TRMM Satellite, OpenStreetMap, and administrative boundaries. GIS reclassification and, analytical hierarchical process (AHP) was applied. The criteria used for suitability assessment were Land Use/Land Cover (LULC), Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI), slope, soil type, proximity to roads and rivers, rainfall patterns, and Digital Elevation Model (DEM). ArcGIS 10.3 Software was used for the data analysis. The result of the weighted overlay analysis revealed that LULC (25%), soil (20%), and rainfall (15%) were the most influential factors, while DEM and road proximity had the least weight (5%). The results also indicate that 17% (34,786 Ha) of the study area is highly suitable, characterized by dense, 55% (113,337 Ha) is suitable, with moderate vegetation, 28% (57,197 Ha) is moderately suitable, featuring variable vegetation while less than 1 Ha was deemed unsuitable due to steep slopes (>>12°), poor soils (Lithosols), and water scarcity. The study recommends prioritizing development in highly suitable zones while implementing gradual improvements in moderately suitable areas to enhance cattle ranching productivity and reduce land-use conflicts.