Regional-scale landslide activity and landslide susceptibility zonation in the Nepal Himalaya

Landslide susceptibility zonation mapping is a fundamental procedure for geo-disaster management in tropical and sub-tropical regions. Recently, various landslide susceptibility zonation models have been introduced in Nepal with diverse approaches of assessment. However, validation is still a problem. Additionally, the role of various predisposing causative parameters for landslide activity is still not well understood in the Nepal Himalaya. To address these issues of susceptibility zonation and landslide activity, about 4,000 km² area of central Nepal was selected for regional-scale assessment of landslide activity and susceptibility zonation mapping. In total, 655 new landslides and 9,229 old landslides were identified with the study area with the help of satellite images, aerial photographs, field data and available reports. The old landslide inventory was “blind landslide database” and could not explain the particular rainfall event responsible for the particular landslide. But considering size of the landslide, blind landslide inventory was reclassified into two databases: short-duration high-intensity rainfall-induced landslide inventory and long-duration low-intensity rainfall-induced landslide inventory. These landslide inventory maps were considered as proxy maps of multiple rainfall event-based landslide inventories. Similarly, all 9,884 landslides were considered for the activity assessment of predisposing causative parameters. For the Nepal Himalaya, slope, slope aspect, geology and road construction activity (anthropogenic cause) were identified as most affective predisposing causative parameters for landslide activity. For susceptibility zonation, multivariate approach was considered and two proxy rainfall event-based landslide databases were used for the logistic regression modelling, while a relatively recent landslide database was used in validation. Two event-based susceptibility zonation maps were merged and rectified to prepare the final susceptibility zonation map and its prediction rate was found to be more than 82 %. From this work, it is concluded that rectification of susceptibility zonation map is very appropriate and reliable. The results of this research contribute to a significant improvement in landslide inventory preparation procedure, susceptibility zonation mapping approaches as well as role of various predisposing causative parameters for the landslide activity.     

Landslide susceptibility maps comparing frequency ratio and artificial neural networks: a case study from the Nepal Himalaya

This study considers landslide susceptibility mapping by means of frequency ratio and artificial neural network approaches using geographic information system (GIS) techniques as a basic analysis tool. The selected study area was that of the Panchthar district, Nepal. GIS was used for the management and manipulation of spatial data. Landslide locations were identified from field survey and aerial photographic interpretation was used for location of lineaments. Ten factors in total are related to the occurrence of landslides. Based on the same set of factors, landslide susceptibility maps were produced from frequency ratio and neural network models, and were then compared and evaluated. The weights of each factor were determined using the back-propagation training method. Landslide susceptibility maps were produced from frequency ratio and neural network models, and they were then compared by means of their checking. The landslide location data were used for checking the results with the landslide susceptibility maps. The accuracy of the landslide susceptibility maps produced by the frequency ratio and neural networks is 82.21 and 78.25%, respectively.     

Landslide susceptibility mapping and factor effect analysis using frequency ratio in a catchment scale: a case study from Garuwa sub-basin,East Nepal

For assessing landslide susceptibility, the spatial distribution of landslides in the field is essential. The landslide inventory map is prepared on the basis of historical information of individual landslide events from different sources such as previously published reports, satellite imageries, aerial photographs and interview with local inhabitants. Then, the distribution of landslides in the study area is verified with field surveys. However, the selection of contributing factors for modelling landslide susceptibility is an inhibit task. The previous studies show that the factors are chosen as per availability of data. This paper documents the landslide susceptibility mapping in the Garuwa sub-basin, East Nepal using frequency ratio method. Nine different contributing factors are considered: slope aspect, slope angle, slope shape, relative relief, geology, distance from faults, land use, distance from drainage and annual rainfall. To analyse the effect of contributing factors, the landslide susceptibility index maps are generated four times using (a) topographical factors and geological factors, (b) topographical factors, geological factors and land use, (c) topographical factors, geological factors, land use and drainage and (d) all nine causative factors. By comparing with the pre-existing landslides, the fourth case (considering all nine causative factors) yields the best success rate accuracy, i.e. 81.19 %, which is then used to produce the final landslide susceptibility zonation map. Then, the final landslide susceptibility map is validated through chi-square test. The standard chi-square value with 3 degrees of freedom at the 0.001 significance level is 16.3, whereas the calculated chi-square value is 7,125.79. Since the calculated chi-square value is greater than the standard chi-square value, it can be concluded that the landslide susceptibility map is considered as statistically significant. Moreover, the results show that the predicted susceptibility levels are found to be in good agreement with the past landslide occurrences.     

Evaluation of the consistency of landslide susceptibility mapping: a case study from the Kankai watershed in east Nepal

GIS-based landslide susceptibility maps for the Kankai watershed in east Nepal are developed using the frequency ratio method and the multiple linear regression technique. The maps are derived from comparing observed landslides with possible causative factors: slope angle, slope aspect, slope curvature, relative relief, distance from drainage, land use, geology, distance from faults and mean annual rainfall. The consistency of the maps is evaluated using landslide density analysis, success rate analysis and spatially agreed area approach. The first two analyses produce almost identical quantitative results, whereas the last approach is able to reveal spatial differences between the maps and also to improve predictions in the agreed high landslide-susceptible area.     

基于Newmark模型的尼泊尔M_s8.1级地震滑坡危险性快速评估

在研究分析地震灾区地形地貌、地层岩性、地质构造、气象水文和典型地区滑坡的基础上,采用Newmark斜坡累积位移模型对2015年4月25日尼泊尔M_s8.1级地震诱发的滑坡危险性的空间分布状况进行了快速评估,通过典型地区的滑坡遥感解译结果验证表明评估结果具有较好的可信度,初步反映了尼泊尔地震诱发滑坡危险性分布的基本特征。然后考虑降雨作用对震后滑坡危险性的影响,对地震叠加降雨诱发滑坡危险性分布进行了快速预测。研究结果对地震应急救灾中的地质灾害防灾减灾具有重要的参考意义。     

Application and verification of a fractal approach to landslide susceptibility mapping

Landslide susceptibility mapping is essential for land-use activities and management decision making in hilly or mountainous regions. The existing approaches to landslide susceptibility zoning and mapping require many different types of data. In this study, we propose a fractal method to map landslide susceptibility using historical landslide inventories only. The spatial distribution of landslides is generally not uniform, but instead clustered at many different scales. In the method, we measure the degree of spatial clustering of existing landslides in a region using a box-counting method and apply the derived fractal clustering relation to produce a landslide susceptibility map by means of GIS-supported spatial analysis. The method is illustrated by two examples at different regional scales using the landslides inventory data from Zhejiang Province, China, where the landslides are mainly triggered by rainfall. In the illustrative examples, the landslides from the inventory are divided into two time periods: The landslides in the first period are used to produce a landslide susceptibility map, and those in the late period are taken as validation samples for examining the predictive capability of the landslide susceptibility maps. These examples demonstrate that the landslide susceptibility map created by the proposed technique is reliable.     

基于滑坡分类的西宁市滑坡易发性评价

以往的滑坡易发性评价多以全体滑坡为研究对象,忽视了滑坡类型的区别。各评价指标对不同类型滑坡的影响程度不同,也导致指标权重无法精确地反映其对滑坡的影响。为更准确地对滑坡灾害进行空间预测,针对西宁市滑坡特征及发育机理,将全区滑坡分为土质滑坡和岩质滑坡;在野外实际调查的基础上,结合相关性分析,选取坡度、坡向、剖面曲率、平面曲率、工程地质岩组,以及滑坡点距断层、水系、道路的距离远近等8项因素作为滑坡易发性评价指标,并通过滑坡点分布密度和滑坡点相对分布密度,分析各评价指标分别对土质滑坡和岩质滑坡的影响;利用信息量模型,计算各评价指标对两类滑坡的信息量值,利用人工神经网络模型,赋予各评价指标对两类滑坡的权重;最后基于GIS平台利用加权信息量模型对研究区进行易发性评价。通过统计方法和ROC曲线法分别计算滑坡易发性评价成功率,结果表明:评价成功率可达到82.61%和82.30%,与未经滑坡分类的成功率比较,分别提高了10.9%和5.2%;同时,经过滑坡分类后,湟水河两岸地质条件较差的地区转变为滑坡高易发区。     

Trends in landslide occurrence in Nepal

Nepal is a mountainous, less developed kingdom that straddles the boundary between the Indian and Himalayan tectonic plates. In Nepal, landslides represent a major constraint on development, causing high levels of economic loss and substantial numbers of fatalities each year. There is a general consensus that the impacts of landslides in countries such as Nepal are increasing with time, but until now there has been little or no quantitative data to support this view, or to explain the causes of the increases. In this paper, a database of landslide fatalities in Nepal has been compiled and analysed for the period 1978–2005. The database suggests that there is a high level of variability in the occurrence of landslides from year to year, but that the overall trend is upward. Analyses of the trends in the data suggest that there is a cyclicity in the occurrence of landslide fatalities that strongly mirrors the cyclicity observed in the SW (summer) monsoon in South Asia. Perhaps surprisingly the relationship is inverse, but this is explained through an inverse relationship between monsoon strength and the amount of precipitation in the Hill District areas of Nepal. It is also clear that in recent years the number of fatalities has increased dramatically over and above the effects of the monsoon cycle. Three explanations are explored for this: land-use change, the effects of the ongoing civil war in Nepal, and road building. It is concluded that a major component of the generally upward trend in landslide impact probably results from the rural road-building programme, and its attendant changes to physical and natural systems.     

基于最大熵模型的中尼交通廊道滑坡易发性分析

中尼交通廊道作为中国近年来建设的重点区域,地质灾害频发,尤其是滑坡灾害层出不穷。文章基于对G216国道沿线地质灾害的实地调查以及遥感解译结果,以最大熵模型为方法,利用169个灾害点数据和8个评价因子图层预测了研究区滑坡灾害的易发性分布。根据占比划分五级风险区。结果表明,滑坡易发概率以G216为中心向外辐射逐渐降低。同时采用刀切法检验评价因子对预测结果的贡献度,确定了滑坡主导因素及其阈值。最后通过ROC曲线验证了模型的可靠性。为中尼边境公路区域建设提供一种地质灾害预测分析模型,也为青藏地区公路边坡防灾减灾提供有效支撑。     

A practical trial of landslide detection from single-temporal Landsat8 images using contour-based proposals and random forest: a case study of national Nepal

Landslides are frequent all around the world, causing tremendous loss to human beings. Rapid access to the locations where landslides occur is crucial for emergency response. Most researches in landslide detection from remotely sensed images focus on small regions, which are handpicked. That makes it easy to distinguish landslides from background objects, but hard to apply in practical cases. The complicated non-landslide background pixels increase the difficulty to accurately detect landslides. In this study, we propose a technique framework to remove non-landslide background pixels for national Nepal using 12 Landsat8 images and digital elevation model (DEM). DEM is useful in removing flat areas, where landslides are less likely to occur. The framework consists of three sections: image enhancement, landslide proposal extraction, and detection model setup. Bare land, including landslides, is enhanced using vegetation index after haze/cloud re-movement. Later, calculate connective contours and propose them as potential regions that may contain landslides. For each proposal, calculate texture feature and build detection model using one of the Landsat8 images, which is further applied on other images to check its applicability and robustness. The assessment shows that the method is able to remove 99% of the background pixels in the scale of national Nepal, taking over billions of pixels. Even there is still much to do to achieve high accurate landslide detection results from large-scale images, the experiment validates a strong potential applicability for the proposed method in large-scale landslide-related analysis.     

西藏樟木口岸震后滑坡灾害变形InSAR监测分析

位于中国和尼泊尔边境的西藏樟木口岸是国家一类陆路通商口岸,也是西藏最大的边贸中心口岸。2015年尼泊尔大地震之后,西藏樟木口岸因多次发生滑坡灾害,而导致口岸关闭。为了调查樟木口岸区域滑坡灾害的分布和变形情况及更好的服务于区域减灾防灾,利用InSAR技术对覆盖该区域的Sentinel-1A和ALOS-2两种卫星影像数据进行了处理,并通过分析视线向年均形变速率图,圈定了17处疑似滑坡,并对其中的5处典型滑坡进行时间序列形变特征分析,监测识别出的滑坡基本沿318国道所在一侧的波曲河左岸分布。InSAR调查结果表明受地震影响樟木地区的滑坡多分布在沿波曲河左岸的陡峭山体上,中尼公路迪斯岗至友谊桥段的古滑坡出现了局部复活的现象,同时樟木镇居民所在的城区也发育有扎美拉山危岩体崩塌滑坡灾害。      

Topo-stress based probabilistic model for shallow landslide susceptibility zonation in the Nepal Himalaya

While dealing with slope stability issues, determining the state of stress and the relation between driving force and resisting force are the fundamental deterministic steps. Gravitational stresses affect geologic processes and engineering operations in slopes. Considering this fact, a concept of topo-stress evaluation is developed in this research and used to produce a shallow landslide susceptibility map in a model area. The topo-stress introduced in this research refers to the shear stress induced by the gravitational forces on the planes parallel to the ground surface. Weight of the material on a slope and friction angle of the jointed rock mass are the two fundamental parameters that are considered to govern topo-stress in this study. Considering topo-stress as a main factor for initiating shallow landslides, a GIS-based probabilistic model is developed for shallow landslide susceptibility zonation. An ideal terrain in central Nepal is selected as the study area for this purpose. Two event-based shallow landslide inventories are used to predict accuracy of the model, which is found to be more than 78 % for the first event-landslides and more than 76 % for the second event-landslides. It is evident from these prediction rates that the probabilistic topo-stress model proposed in this work is quite acceptable when regional scale shallow landslide susceptibility mapping is practiced, such as in the Himalayan rocky slopes.     

Regional landslide susceptibility zoning with considering the aggregation of landslide points and the weights of factors

In this paper, we propose a methodology for landslide susceptibility assessment at a regional scale in Yunnan, southwestern province of China. A landslide inventory map including 3,242 landslide points was prepared for the study area. Five factors recognized as correlated to landslide (namely, lithology, relative relief, tectonic fault density, rainfall, and road density) were analyzed and mapped in geographic information system. An index expressing the correlation between each factor and landslides [called class landslide susceptibility index (CLSI)] was proposed in the study. While analyzing landslide distribution in a large area, point aggregation might be expected. To quantify the uncertainty caused by aggregation, class landslide aggregation index was proposed. To account for the importance of each of the factors in the landslide susceptibility assessment, some weights were calculated by means of analytic hierarchy process. We propose a weighted class landslide susceptibility model (WCLSM), obtained by the combination of CLSI values of each factor with the correspondent weight. WCLSM performance in the study area was evaluated comparing the results obtained by first modeling all landslides and then by performing a time partition. The model was run including only landslides that occurred before 2009 and then validated with respect to landslides that occurred after 2009. The prediction–rate curve shows that the WCLSM model provides a good prediction for the study area. Of the study area, 21.4 % shows very high and high susceptibility and includes the 87.7 % of the number of landslides that occurred after 2009.     

GIS-based statistical analysis of the spatial distribution of earthquake-induced landslides in the island of Lefkada, Ionian Islands, Greece

This is the first landslide inventory map in the island of Lefkada integrating satellite imagery and reports from field surveys. In particular, satellite imagery acquired before and after the 2003 earthquake were collected and interpreted with the results of the field survey that took place 1 week after this strong (Mw?=?6.3) event. The developed inventory map indicates that the density of landslides decreases from west to east. Furthermore, the spatial distribution of landslides was statistically analyzed in relation to the geology and topography for investigating their influence to landsliding. This was accomplished by overlaying these causal factors as thematic layers with landslide distribution data. Afterwards, weight values of each factor were calculated using the landslide index method and a landslide susceptibility map was developed. The susceptibility map indicates that the highest susceptibility class accounts for 38 % of the total landslide activity, while the three highest classes that cover the 10 % of the surface area, accounting for almost the 85 % of the active landslides. Our model was validated by applying the approaches of success and prediction rate to the dataset of landslides that was previously divided into two groups based on temporal criteria, estimation and validation group. The outcome of the validation dataset was that the highest susceptibility class concentrates 18 % of the total landslide activity. However, taking into account the frequency of landslides within the three highest susceptibility classes, more than 85 %, the model is characterized as reliable for a regional assessment of earthquake-induced landslides hazard.     

基于分形的滑坡易发程度区划方法

本文发展了一种基于分形统计的滑坡易发程度评价方法,该方法仅使用已有的滑坡数据,首先通过分形统计获得滑坡分布的分形丛集关系,再通过GIS的空间操作与分析生成滑坡易发程度区划图。提出一种对滑坡易发程度区划图的可信度和预测效果进行评价的方法。本文介绍了这些方法及其在浙江地区应用的结果。     

Causes of large-scale landslides in the Lesser Himalaya of central Nepal

Geologically and tectonically active Himalayan Range is characterized by highly elevated mountains and deep river valleys. Because of steep mountain slopes, and dynamic geological conditions, large-scale landslides are very common in Lesser and Higher Himalayan zones of Nepal Himalaya. Slopes along the major highways of central Nepal namely Prithvi Highway, Narayangadh-Mugling Road and Tribhuvan Highway are considered in this study of large-scale landslides. Geologically, the highways in consideration pass through crushed and jointed Kathmandu Nappe affected by numerous faults and folds. The relict large-scale landslides have been contributing to debris flows and slides along the highways. Most of the slope failures are mainly bechanced in geological formations consisting phyllite, schist and gneiss. Laboratory test on the soil samples collected from the failure zones and field investigation suggested significant hydrothermal alteration in the area. The substantial hydrothermal alteration in the Lesser Himalaya during advancement of the Main Central Thrust (MCT) and thereby clay mineralization in sliding zones of large-scale landslide are the main causes of large-scale landslides in the highways of central Nepal. This research also suggests that large-scale landslides are the major cause of slope failure during monsoon in the Lesser Himalaya of Nepal. Similarly, hydrothermal alteration is also significant in failure zone of the large-scale landslides. For the sustainable road maintenance in Nepal, it is of utmost importance to study the nature of sliding zones of large-scale landslides along the highways and their role to cause debris flows and slides during monsoon period.     

同震滑坡发生概率研究——新一代地震滑坡危险性模型

地震滑坡发生真实概率研究基本空白。本研究创新性的利用贝叶斯概率方法与机器模型开展了中国地震滑坡危险性真实概率研究,制作了第一代中国地震滑坡危险性概率图。基于9个地震案例开展研究,包括1999年台湾集集、2005年克什米尔、2008年汶川、2010年玉树、2013年芦山、2013岷县、2014鲁甸、2015尼泊尔、2017九寨沟地震,这9次地震中7次发生在中国,2005年克什米尔与2015尼泊尔地震均发生在中国邻区,可以更好的控制模型预测精度。这些地震事件均有详细完整的,利用面要素标识的地震滑坡数据,包括306 435处真实的地震滑坡记录。考虑到真实的地震滑坡发生区域,滑坡面积规模的差别,滑坡与不滑样本的比例等因素,共选取了5 117 000个模型训练样本。选择绝对高程、相对高差、坡度、坡向、斜坡曲率、坡位、地形湿度指数、土地覆盖类型、植被覆盖度、与断层距离、地层、年均降水量、地震动峰值加速度共13个地震滑坡影响因子。采用贝叶斯概率方法与机器学习模型相结合,建立地震滑坡发生的多因素影响模型,得到各个连续因子的权重与分类因子的各个分类的权重。再将模型应用到整个中国研究区,地震动峰值加速度因子为触发因子。分别考虑研究区在经历不同地震动峰值加速度（0.1~1 g,每0.1 g一个结果,共10个结果）下的地震滑坡发生真实概率。此外,还结合中国地震动峰值加速度分布图,得到了中国地震动峰值加速度背景下的地震滑坡发生真实概率分布。     

Landslide-hazard mapping through multi-technique activity assessment: an example from the Betic Cordillera (southern Spain)

Landslide hazard in a region limited to data from a regional scale about triggering factors is assessed via cross tabulation between determining factors and landslides with recent activity. Firstly, landslide susceptibility was evaluated and validated through a bivariate statistical method between the previously identified stability conditioning factors and the mapped landslides. In this way, the most susceptible areas for assessing landslide hazards were selected. The main problem to solve in this type of research is the landslide activity. For this purpose, several techniques were applied: news reports, differential interferometric synthetic aperture radar, digital photogrammetry, light detection and ranging, photointerpretation, and dendrochronology. Both the strong and weak points of these techniques are also mentioned. The landslide return period was computed via the association between landslide activity and triggering factors, in this case annual rainfall. Finally, landslide hazard was mapped solely based on landslides with recent activity and their computed return period. The relationship between landslide occurrence and triggering factors shows that, according to both the considered assumptions and the observations made, deep-seated landslides are triggered or reactivated together with superficial landslides once every 18 years, while superficial landslides as flows or falls occur once every 5 years. The results show that there is generally a low landslide hazard in the study zone, especially when compared to landslide susceptibility. This means that landslides are mainly dormant from a natural evolution point of view, but could be reactivated as a result of geomorphological, climate, or human changes. In any case, the landslide hazard is successfully assessed, with a prediction of a 6% annual probability of a high hazard in 5% of the area, intersecting with the main infrastructures of the region; thus, control strategies are justified in order to avoid damage in extraordinary rainfall periods.     

Use of satellite remote sensing data in the mapping of global landslide susceptibility

Satellite remote sensing data has significant potential use in analysis of natural hazards such as landslides. Relying on the recent advances in satellite remote sensing and geographic information system (GIS) techniques, this paper aims to map landslide susceptibility over most of the globe using a GIS-based weighted linear combination method. First, six relevant landslide-controlling factors are derived from geospatial remote sensing data and coded into a GIS system. Next, continuous susceptibility values from low to high are assigned to each of the six factors. Second, a continuous scale of a global landslide susceptibility index is derived using GIS weighted linear combination based on each factor’s relative significance to the process of landslide occurrence (e.g., slope is the most important factor, soil types and soil texture are also primary-level parameters, while elevation, land cover types, and drainage density are secondary in importance). Finally, the continuous index map is further classified into six susceptibility categories. Results show the hot spots of landslide-prone regions include the Pacific Rim, the Himalayas and South Asia, Rocky Mountains, Appalachian Mountains, Alps, and parts of the Middle East and Africa. India, China, Nepal, Japan, the USA, and Peru are shown to have landslide-prone areas. This first-cut global landslide susceptibility map forms a starting point to provide a global view of landslide risks and may be used in conjunction with satellite-based precipitation information to potentially detect areas with significant landslide potential due to heavy rainfall.     

Landslide susceptibility analysis using probabilistic likelihood ratio model—a geospatial-based study

The crucial and difficult task in landslide susceptibility analysis is estimating the probability of occurrence of future landslides in a study area under a specific set of geomorphic and topographic conditions. This task is addressed with a data-driven probabilistic model using likelihood ratio or frequency ratio and is applied to assess the occurrence of landslides in the Tevankarai Ar sub-watershed, Kodaikkanal, South India. The landslides in the study area are triggered by heavy rainfall. Landslide-related factors—relief, slope, aspect, plan curvature, profile curvature, land use, soil, and topographic wetness index proximity to roads and proximity to lineaments—are considered for the study. A geospatial database of the related landslide factors is constructed using Arcmap in GIS environment. Landslide inventory of the area is produced by detailed field investigation and analysis of the topographical maps. The results are validated using temporal data of known landslide locations. The area under the curve shows that the accuracy of the model is 85.83%. In the reclassified final landslide susceptibility map, 14.48% of the area is critical in nature, falling under the very high hazard zone, and 67.86% of the total validation dataset landslides fall in this zone. This landslide susceptibility map is a vital tool for town planning, land use, and land cover planning and to reduce risks caused by landslides.