Spatially distributed rainfall information and its potential for regional landslide early warning systems

Crucial to most landslide early warning system (EWS) is the precise prediction of rainfall in space and time. Researchers are aware of the importance of the spatial variability of rainfall in landslide studies. Commonly, however, it is neglected by implementing simplified approaches (e.g. representative rain gauges for an entire area). With spatially differentiated rainfall information, real-time comparison with rainfall thresholds or the implementation in process-based approaches might form the basis for improved landslide warnings. This study suggests an automated workflow from the hourly, web-based collection of rain gauge data to the generation of spatially differentiated rainfall predictions based on deterministic and geostatistical methods. With kriging usually being a labour-intensive, manual task, a simplified variogram modelling routine was applied for the automated processing of up-to-date point information data. Validation showed quite satisfactory results, yet it also revealed the drawbacks that are associated with univariate geostatistical interpolation techniques which solely rely on rain gauges (e.g. smoothing of data, difficulties in resolving small-scale, highly intermittent rainfall). In the perspective, the potential use of citizen scientific data is highlighted for the improvement of studies on landslide EWS.     

滑坡监测预警国内外研究现状及评述

本文从降雨临界值研究、监测技术方法、区域性监测预警系统三个方面对滑坡监测预警的国内外研究现状进行了回顾和总结。首先归纳了国内外28个国家或地区的滑坡降雨临界值及统计方法,三个模型——日降雨量模型、前期降雨量模型和前期土体含水状态模型,基本概括了当前降雨诱发滑坡临界值的确定方法;但由于降雨入渗触发滑坡的复杂性,不同机理的滑坡"需要"不同的降雨临界值;目前的研究趋势是对雨量雨强雨时—土体渗流场动态变化—土体抗剪强度变化的耦合关系进行研究。按监测对象的不同,滑坡监测可分为四大类,即位移监测、物理场监测、地下水监测和外部诱发因素监测;按监测手段的不同,则可分为人工监测、简易监测、专业监测三大类;目前国内外在滑坡监测技术、方法、手段上并无太大差距,专业仪器已成为常规设备,只是由于价格因素得不到普及;一些新技术如InSAR、三维激光扫描等能很快应用到滑坡监测领域;监测数据的采集和传输也都实现了自动化和远程化;监测和预警系统有向Web—GIS发展的趋势。利用一个地区的滑坡易发区划或危险区划,结合降雨临界值,可以设定不同的预警级别,在区内布设一定数量的雨量站,监测雨量加上预报雨量,就可进行滑坡预警预报,国内外的区域性降雨型滑坡监测预警大体都是这个思路和做法,该方法在对公众进行警示方面起到了良好效果,但由于预警的范围太大,在具体的单点防治上,难以做到有效。我国在近10年开展了大量的监测预警工作,并取得了丰硕的成果,但根据统计数据,其成功预警率却并不理想,这一方面表现在成功预警实例中专业预警所占比例过低,另一方面同时表现在发生的大量的地质灾害在已有的预警点之外。制约目前工作有效性的主要问题是滑坡隐患点的排查和识别问题,因为只有识别出了隐患点才能进行下一步的监测和预警,它是一切工作的基础。而解决这一问题的重要途径是分析区域上的滑坡发育规律,找到有效的隐患点识别技术方法,以及引进风险管理的概念,进行监测资源的合理分配和有效预警。     

Effects of climate change on shallow landslides in a small coastal catchment in southern Italy

In different areas of the world, shallow landslides represent a remarkable hazard inducing fatalities and economic damages. Then, the evaluation about potential variation in frequency of such hazard under the effect of climate changes should be a priority for defining reliable adaptation measurements. Unfortunately, current performances of climate models on sub-daily scales, relevant for heavy rainfall events triggering shallow landslides, are not reliable enough to be used directly for performing slope stability analysis. In an attempt to overcome the constrains by gap in time resolution between climate and hazard models, the paper presents an integrated suitable approach for estimating future variations in shallow landslide hazard and managing the uncertainties associated with climate and sub-daily downscaling models. The approach is tested on a small basin on Amalfi coast (southern Italy). Basing on available basin scale critical rainfall thresholds, the paper outlines how the projected changes in precipitation patterns could affect local slope stability magnitude scenarios with different relevances as effect of investigated time horizon and concentration scenario. The paper concludes with qualitative evaluations on the future effectiveness of the local operative warning system in a climate change framework.     

Updating EWS rainfall thresholds for the triggering of landslides

In this paper, the updating of rainfall thresholds for landslide early warning systems (EWSs) is presented. Rainfall thresholds are widely used in regional-scale landslide EWSs, but the efficiency of those systems can decrease during the time, so a periodically updating should be required to keep their functionality. The updating of 12 of the 25 thresholds used in the EWS of Tuscany region (central Italy) is presented, and a comparison between performances of new and previous thresholds has been made to highlight the need of their periodical update. The updating has been carried out by collecting ca. 1200 new landslide reports (from 2010 to March 2013) and their respective rainfall data, collected by 332 rain gauges. The comparison has been made by the use of several statistical indexes and showed a marked increasing in the performances of the new thresholds with respect to previous ones.     

Analysis of the relationship of landslide occurrence with rainfall: a case study of Wudu County,China

Landslides are a significant hazard in many parts of the world and represent an important geohazard in China. Rainfall is the primary triggering agent for landslides and often used for prediction slope failures. However, the relationship between rainfall and landslide occurrences is very complex. Great efforts have been made on the study of regional rainfall-induced landslide forecasting models in recent years; still, there is no commonly accepted method for rainfall-induced landslide prediction. In this paper, the quantitative antecedent soil water status (ASWS) model is applied to investigate the influence of daily and antecedent rainfall on the triggering of landslides and debris flows. The study area is Wudu County in Gansu Province, an area which exhibits frequent landslide occurrences. The results demonstrate a significant influence of high intensity rainfall events on landslide triggering. Still, antecedent rainfall conditions are very important and once a threshold of approximately 20 mm is exceeded, landslides and debris flows can occur even without additional rainfall. The study presented could also facilitate the implementation of a regional forecasting scheme once additional validation has been carried out.     

Integration of a limit-equilibrium model into a landslide early warning system

Landslides are a significant hazard in many parts of the world and exhibit a high, and often underestimated, damage potential. Deploying landslide early warning systems is one risk management strategy that, amongst others, can be used to protect local communities. In geotechnical applications, slope stability models play an important role in predicting slope behaviour as a result of external influences; however, they are only rarely incorporated into landslide early warning systems. In this study, the physically based slope stability model CHASM (Combined Hydrology and Stability Model) was initially applied to a reactivated landslide in the Swabian Alb to assess stability conditions and was subsequently integrated into a prototype of a semi-automated landslide early warning system. The results of the CHASM application demonstrate that for several potential shear surfaces the Factor of Safety is relatively low, and subsequent rainfall events could cause instability. To integrate and automate CHASM within an early warning system, international geospatial standards were employed to ensure the interoperability of system components and the transferability of the implemented system as a whole. The CHASM algorithm is automatically run as a web processing service, utilising fixed, predetermined input data, and variable input data including hydrological monitoring data and quantitative rainfall forecasts. Once pre-defined modelling or monitoring thresholds are exceeded, a web notification service distributes SMS and email messages to relevant experts, who then determine whether to issue an early warning to local and regional stakeholders, as well as providing appropriate action advice. This study successfully demonstrated the potential of this new approach to landslide early warning. To move from demonstration to active issuance of early warnings demands the future acquisition of high-quality data on mechanical properties and distributed pore water pressure regimes.     

大型滑坡堆积体稳定性的三维数值分析

古水水电站争岗特大型滑坡堆积体方量高达4 750×104 m3,存在多处厚度超过50 m的超深层滑坡。稳定性直接关系到大坝的建设与运营。工程地质勘测、2008年降雨产生的变形资料表明,该滑坡体是一个多期次复合型滑坡,主要由基岩、滑带土和松散堆积物组成,地表已出现大量拉张和剪切裂缝,天然工况下整体处于沿贯通底滑面发生蠕滑变形的状态,各种工况下均存在滑塌的可能性,必须进行开挖加固治理。针对二维平面方法无法考虑计算断面的侧向约束和底滑面在空间上的曲率效应,运用三维极限平衡方法和大变形拉格朗日有限差分法,根据实际地质信息建立了多个三维计算模型,通过对治理前后滑坡体应力、变形、塑性区和安全系数变化对比分析,定性、定量对其稳定性进行了评价,并引入有限元点和面安全系数法对加固后稳定性进行了校核。结果真实反映了滑坡体的稳定性现状与规律,与现场勘查成果相吻合。开挖加固后,滑坡体局部和整体稳定性均有显著提高,结合排水措施,将更有利于保持其稳定性。研究成果可为类似工程问题提供有意义的参考。     

坡地地质灾害的减灾策略——以降雨预警基准为例

降雨是诱发坡地地质灾害的重要原因,因此掌握降雨的趋势与分布规律,可有效地用于坡地灾害预警,但由于降雨预测精度、灾害资料统计的不足与坡地地质条件的不确定性,实际应用降雨预警基准仍存在许多困难。通过分析台风诱发坡地地质灾害的降雨特性,来说明降雨预警基准在防灾减灾工作上应用的条件与限制。结果表明,对于不同类型之坡地灾害与降雨分布特性,需采用不同的雨量预警基准。唯有通过岩土力学、工程地质学与气象学的整合研究,才能有效提高降雨预警基准预测的准确率,因此各学科的整合是未来防灾减灾研究工作的发展趋势。     

Case history of controlling a landslide at Panluo open-pit mine in China

Controlling of landsides safely and economically is a great challenge to mine operators because landslides are major geological problems especially in open-pit mines. In this paper, a case history at Panluo open-pit mine is presented in detail to share the experiences and lessons with mine operators. Panluo open-pit mine is located in the southwestern Fujian province of China. It is the largest open-pit iron mine in the Fujian province and was planned in 1965 and is in full operation from 1978. In July 1990, an earthquake of magnitude 5.3 in Taiwan Strait and big rainstorms impacted the mine slope, causing tension cracks and rather large-scale failures, and forming a U-shaped landslide. Total potential volume was estimated to be up to 1.0 × 10⁶ m³. This directly threatened the mine production. In order to protect the mine production and the dwellers’ safety around, a dynamic comprehensive method was implemented including geotechnical investigations, in-situ testing and monitoring, stability analysis, and many mitigation and preventive measures. These measures slowed down the development and further occurrence of the landslide. The results showed that the landslides were still active, it was slowed with the control measures and moved rapidly with rainfall and mining down. However, no catastrophic accidents occurred and the pit mining was continued till it was closed at the elevation of 887 m in 2000. As a successful case of landslide control at an open-pit mine for 10 years, this paper reports the controlling measures in details. These experiences of landslide control may be beneficial to other similar mines for landslide control.     

Design and performance of a novel multi-function debris flow mitigation system in Wenjia Gully,Sichuan

The post-earthquake debris flows in the Wenjia Gully led to the exposure of the shortcomings in the design of the original conventional debris flow mitigation system. A predicament for the Wenjia mitigation system is a large amount of loose material (est. 50 × 10⁶ m³) that has been deposited in the gully by the co-seismic landslide, providing abundant source material for debris flows under saturation. A novel design solution for the replacement mitigation system was proposed and constructed, and has exhibited excellent performance and resilience in subsequent debris flows. The design was governed by the three-phase philosophy of controlling water, sediment, and erosion. An Early Warning System (EWS) for debris flow that uses real-time field data was developed; it issues alerts based on the probabilistic and empirical correlations between rainfall and debris flows. This two-fold solution reduces energy of the debris flow by combining different mitigation measures while minimizing the impact through event forecasting and rapid public information sharing. Declines in the number and size of debris flows in the gully, with increased corresponding rainfall thresholds and mean rainfall intensity-duration (I-D) thresholds, indicate the high efficacy of the new mitigation system and a lowered debris flow susceptibility. This paper reports the design of the mitigation system and analyzes the characteristics of rainfall and debris flow events that occurred before and after implementation of the system; it evaluates the effectiveness of one of the most advanced debris flow mitigation systems in China.     

福建南平安丰自来水厂滑坡特征及治理对策

持续强降雨导致安丰水厂后山坡坡面变形开裂,形成了一个规模较大的滑坡,严重威胁水厂安全。采用钻探、物探（地质雷达和面波法）和地表工程地质测绘等综合手段,查明了滑坡发育机制,认为坡体土层松软,风化差异大,透水性强,坡面相对较陡是滑坡发生的内因,降雨是诱发滑坡最主要的外在因素。稳定性计算表明,该滑坡目前处于蠕滑极限平衡状态。应急排险及后期治理施工措施的成功,可为类似滑坡地质灾害的防治提供经验。     

基于降雨滑坡机理的水文过程监测系统设计

本文在简要回顾前人降雨滑坡水文过程研究的基础上,针对深圳市某一填土滑坡,设计了降雨诱发滑坡的水文过程全自动监测系统,可以用来监测滑坡点的降雨特征、饱和-非饱和入渗过程、自由水渗流过程及微承压水渗流过程等降雨条件下斜坡的水文响应过程。该监测系统的提出在降雨条件下微承压水渗流过程的监测方法,体现了基于降雨滑坡水文过程的监测设计思想,不仅有助于降雨滑坡水文作用机理的研究,还给相关工作提供了有益的借鉴意义。     

基于非饱和渗流的水库库岸滑坡稳定性计算

三峡水库蓄水后,库水位涨落和降雨入渗是导致滑坡的主要因素。本文以秭归县下土地岭滑坡为例,在一个水文年内根据库区水位调控方案并考虑库区降雨情况,运用非饱和土力学的渗流和抗剪强度理论,对滑坡稳定性进行了分析,得出在库水位涨落和降雨条件下滑坡渗流和稳定性的变化规律,对库区滑坡稳定性评价和治理有一定的指导作用。     

An integrated methodology for landslides’ early warning systems

Early Warning Systems (EWS) are efficient tools for preventing and mitigating the risks associated to landslides occurrence. In this paper, an integrated methodology for landslides’ analysis is presented and described. Such methodology is aimed at the creation of early warning systems and is based on the integration between a modern monitoring technique, such as the Ground-Based Interferometric Synthetic Aperture Radar (GBInSAR), along with advanced numerical modelling. The paper also shows the application of the proposed methodology to the case study of a rockslide in central Italy. The integration between monitoring data, thanks to a GBInSAR survey and advanced numerical simulations with the combined Finite-Discrete Elements Method (FDEM), allowed for the definition of a set of surface velocity thresholds to be adopted for the long-term monitoring of the landslide and for the creation of an effective EWS.     

滑坡降雨阈值模型的应用

在数字高程模型（DEM）的基础上,运用滑坡降雨阈值模型,以楚雄丁家坟一斜坡作为试验研究工点,结合现场勘察、监测数据以及斜坡岩土体主要特性、地形地貌、降雨强度与降雨持续时间、地下水位等因素,模拟斜坡单元产生潜在滑动时的临界降雨量,研究降雨对滑坡发生、分布的影响。研究结果表明：各斜坡单元产生潜在滑动时的临界降雨量各不相同,在不同的降雨量及地下水位条件下滑坡降雨阈值模型模拟的潜在滑坡位置主要位于楚勐公路下边坡处,与实际发生滑坡的位置吻合率达80%以上,滑坡降雨阈值模型可实现对斜坡稳定性进行可视化分析与预测,为降雨型滑坡提供一种有效的预测与分析方法。     

Field monitoring and deformation characteristics of a landslide with piles in the Three Gorges Reservoir area

Landslides often occur within the reservoir area behind dams. In China, a common strategy for stabilizing these landslides is to install large piles through the landslide and into the stable ground below. The piles interact with the landslide and constitute a landslide-stabilizing pile system. The deformation of this system under the reservoir operation is more complicated than the deformation of the landslide itself. Understanding the behaviour of this system is very important to the long-term safety of landslides stabilized with piles in reservoirs. The Majiagou landslide, which was selected as a case study, was triggered by the first impoundment of the reservoir behind the Three Gorges dam. A row of anti-slide piles was installed in the landslide in 2007, but monitoring results found these were ineffective at stabilizing the landslide. Subsequently, in 2011, two longer test piles and an integrated monitoring system were installed in the landslide to better understand the failure mode of the landslide and to measure the deformation characteristics of the landslide-stabilizing pile system. Monitoring results show that the Majiagou landslide is a translational landslide with three slip surfaces. The test piles provided local resistance and partially slowed down the sliding mass behind the piles, and the landslide deformation response to external factors decreased for a time. However, after 2 years, the deformation of the landslide-stabilizing pile system reverted to seasonal stepwise cumulative displacements influenced by cycles of reservoir drawdown and rainfall. The monitoring results provide fundamental data for evaluating the long-term performance of anti-slide piles and for assessing long-term stability of the stabilized landslide under the reservoir operation.     

A simplified method for predicting rainfall-induced mobility of active landslides

This paper deals with the landslides that are reactivated by a groundwater level increase owing to rainfall. These landslides are usually characterized by low displacement rate with deformations essentially concentrated within a narrow shear zone above which the unstable soil mass moves like a rigid body (i.e., with a horizontal displacement profile that is essentially constant with depth). In view of this evidence, a new method based on a simple sliding block model is proposed in the present study for a preliminary evaluation of landslide mobility. Unlike other existing methods that provide an evaluation of landslide mobility on the basis of groundwater level measurements, the present method directly relates landslide movements to rain recordings. This possibility constitutes a significant advantage from a practical viewpoint because it allows future displacement scenarios to be predicted from expected rainfall scenarios. In addition, the present method requires a limited number of parameters as input data, many of which can be obtained from conventional geotechnical tests. To evaluate the other parameters involved, an efficient calibration procedure is also proposed. Four case studies documented in the literature are analyzed to assess the capability of the present method to reproduce the main features of the slope response to rainfall. In all these case studies, both groundwater level variations and landslide displacements observed in field are well approximated by the method.     

四川雅安市雨城区降雨诱发滑坡研究

降雨是滑坡灾害的重要诱发因素之一。通过详细的地质灾害调查及地质灾害与降雨相关关系的研究,得出降雨对雅安雨城区地质灾害诱发作用的规律并进一步定量评价了诱发因素级别。研究发现,降雨量对滑坡的诱发因素可划分为4级,1d降雨量分级临界值分别为20mm、50mm和100mm,3d降雨量分级临界值分别为100mm、150mm和240mm。这一研究成果为雅安雨城区地质灾害预警预报提供了基础。     

A time-space based approach for mapping rainfall-induced shallow landslide hazard

A rainfall-induced shallow landslide is a major hazard in mountainous terrain, but a time-space based approach is still an unsettled issue for mapping rainfall-induced shallow landslide hazards. Rain induces a rise of the groundwater level and an increase in pore water pressure that results in slope failures. In this study, an integrated infinite slope analysis model has been developed to evaluate the influence of infiltration on surficial stability of slopes by the limit equilibrium method. Based on this new integrated infinite slope analysis model, a time-space based approach has been implemented to map the distributed landslide hazard in a GIS (Geographic Information Systems) and to evaluate the shallow slope failure induced by a particular rainfall event that accounts for the rainfall intensity and duration. The case study results in a comprehensive time-space landslide hazard map that illustrates the change of the safety factor and the depth of the wetting front over time.     

Dynamic analysis and numerical modeling of the 2015 catastrophic landslide of the construction waste landfill at Guangming,Shenzhen, China

Since lots of underground and slope excavation works were conducted during the urbanization process, an increasing number of sites in ravines around a city have been used to stockpile a large amount of excavated soils. This brings a huge challenge for researchers and managers in the risk evaluation and mitigation of potential dangers of these man-made construction waste landfills. This paper describes a recently large landslide of the construction waste landfill, which occurred at a site of Guangming new district in Shenzhen, China, on December 20, 2015. This catastrophic landslide caused the death of 69 persons and 8 persons are still missing. In this paper, this landslide was numerically simulated and analyzed. In spite of neither high-intensity rainfall nor antecedent rainfall, a slope of this landfill with a relative height of 111 m sided and caused about 2.34 million cubic meters of the soils to travel over a gentle terrain more than 1.2 km. This means that the landslide mobility index (H/L = 0.092) is much lower than a general designed value and the values in most other cases. A depth-integrated continuum method and a MacCormack-TVD finite difference algorithm are adopted, in this paper, to numerically simulate the dynamic process of this large landslide. It is found that a Coulomb friction model with consideration of the pore water pressure effects can well reproduce the main characteristics of the dynamic process of this landslide. Sensitivity analysis has demonstrated that the high pore water pressure in the soils plays a significant role in its mobility and is a key factor to the severity of this landslide.