Combining Landsat-8 spectral bands with ancillary variables for land cover classification in mountainous terrains of northern Pakistan

Landsat-8 spectral values have been used to map the earth's surface information for decades. However, forest types and other land-use/land-cover(LULC) in the mountain terrains exist on different altitudes and climatic conditions. Hence, spectral information alone cannot be sufficient to accurately classify the forest types and other LULC, especially in high mountain complex. In this study, the suitability of Landsat-8 spectral bands and ancillary variables to discriminate forest types, and other LULC, using random forest(RF) classification algorithm for the Hindu Kush mountain ranges of northern Pakistan, was discussed. After prior-examination(multicollinearity) of spectral bands and ancillary variables, three out of six spectral bands and five out of eight ancillary variables were selected with threshold correlation coefficients r20.7. The selected datasets were stepwise stacked together and six Input Datasets(ID) were created. The first ID-1 includes only the Surface Reflectance(SR) of spectral bands, and then in each ID, the extra one ancillary variable including Normalized Difference Vegetation Index(NDVI), Normalized Difference Water Index(NDWI), Normalized Difference Snow Index(NDSI), Land Surface Temperature(LST), and Digital Elevation Model(DEM) was added. We found an overall accuracy(OA) = 72.8% and kappa coefficient(KC) =61.9% for the classification of forest types, and other LULC classes by using the only SR bands of Landsat-8. The OA = 81.5% and KC=73.7% was improved by the addition of NDVI, NDWI, and NDSI to the spectral bands of Landsat-8. However, the addition of LST and DEM further increased the OA, and Kappa coefficient(KC) by 87.5% and 82.6%, respectively. This indicates that ancillary variables play an important role in the classification, especially in the mountain terrain, and should be adopted in addition to spectral bands. The output of the study will be useful for the protection and conservation, analysis, climate change research, and other mountains forest-related management information.     

Length-weight relationship of eleven species of marine catfishes from the northern Arabian Sea coast of Pakistan

This study records length-weight relationships(LWRs)for eleven commercially important marine catfi sh species of the family Ariidae(sea catfi shes)and Plotosidae(eel catfi shes)from the northern Arabian Sea coast of Pakistan.The specimens were sampled from December 2014 to November 2015,using bottom trawls with various mesh sizes by commercial vessels.The species were Nemapteryx caelatus,Sciades sona,Arius gagora,Batrachocephalus mino,Netuma thalassina,N.bilineata,Osteogeneiosus militaris,Plicofollis dussumieri,P.tenuispinis,Plotosus limbatus,and P.lineatus.Of the eleven species,two species A.gagora and N.bilineata were recorded for the fi rst time and LWRs for four species A.gagora,N.bilineata,S.sona,and B.mino still have no data in the Fish Base database.In addition,new maximum length for each of the three species N.bilineata,O.militaris and B.m ino was also found.     

Assessment of sea water inundation along Daboo creek area in Indus Delta Region,Pakistan

Indus Deltaic Region (IDR) in Pakistan is an erosion vulnerable coast due to the high deep water wave energy. Livelihood of millions of people depends on the fisheries and mangrove forests in IDR. IDR consists of many creeks where Daboo is a major creek located at southeast of the largest city of Pakistan, Karachi. Unfortunately, there has been no detailed study to analyze the damages of sea water intrusion at a large temporal and spatial scale. Therefore, this study is designed to estimate the effects of sea water inundation based on changing sea water surface salinity and sea surface temperature (SST). Sea surface salinity and SST data from two different surveys in Daboo creek during 1986 and 2010 are analyzed to estimate the damages and extent of sea water intrusion. Mean salinity has increased 33.33% whereas mean SST decreased 13.79% from 1987 to 2010. Spatio-temporal analysis of creek area using LANDSAT 5 Thematic mapper (TM) data for the years 1987 and 2010 shows significant amount of erosion at macro scale. Creek area has increased approximately 9.93% (260.86 m² per year) which is roughly equal to 60 extensive sized shrimp farms. Further Land Use Land Cover (LULC) analyses for years 2001 and 2014 using LANDSAT 7 Enhanced Thematic Mapper Plus (ETM+) has indicated 42.3% decrease in cultivated land. Wet mud flats have spread out at the inner mouth of creek with enormous increase of 123.3%. Significant sea water intrusion has increased the area of barren land by 37.9%. This also resulted in overall decrease of 6.7% in area covered by mangroves. Therefore, this study recorded a significant evidence of sea water intrusion in IDR that has caused serious damages to community living in the area, economical losses. Additionally, it has also changed the environment by reducing creek biological productivity as reported by earlier studies over other regions of the world.     

The Role of Aga Khan Rural Support Programme in Rural Development in the Karakorum, Hindu Kush ＆ Himalayan Region： Examples from the Northern Mountainous Belt of Pakistan

Pakistan is predominantly a mountainous country where rural development activities are characterised by inconsistency, politically motivated short-term projects without proper feedback. Since the inception of the country, the top-down approach has been followed, and the same development plans that were formulated for the plain areas have been extended to the mountains without any modification. In doing so, neither the participation of the local communities was cared for, nor the mountain specificities were considered in the planning process. Moreover, the representation of the local inhabitants was improper and contradictory to the facts. This biased approach has been one of the main causes for the failure of development projects carried out by different agencies of the Government. Contrary to the perception of the state authorities, the mountain communities proved to be more open to accept new approaches and demonstrated the capacity and capability of being a dependable development partner. In this paper, a detailed account of the Aga Khan Rural Support Programme （AKRSP） has been presented to assess and evaluate the approach followed by this non-governmental organisation （NGO）, and the response of the local inhabitants as collaborators in the development process. The achievements of the AKRSP from project planning, implementation and monitoring can be adopted as a model for rural development not only in the plains, but also in the mountainous areas of the developing countries in the world.     

STATISTICAL ANALYSIS OF TEMPERATURES ON BOTH THE UPPER AND LOWER BOUNDARIES OF SUB－ALPINE DARK CONIFER FORESTS IN CHINA

ＳＴＡＴＩＳＴＩＣＡＬＡＮＡＬＹＳＩＳＯＦＴＥＭＰＥＲＡＴＵＲＥＳＯＮＢＯＴＨＴＨＥＵＰＰＥＲＡＮＤＬＯＷＥＲＢＯＵＮＤＡＲＩＥＳＯＦＳＵＢ－ＡＬＰＩＮＥＤＡＲＫＣＯＮＩＦＥＲＦＯＲＥＳＴＳＩＮＣＨＩＮＡＷａｎｇＪｉａｎ（王建）；ＸｕＸｉａｏｂｉｎ（...     

Improving Indigenous Technologies for Sustainable Land Use in Northern Mountainous Areas of Vietnam

More than 30 ethnic groups are now living in northern mountainous regions, Vietnam, mainly relying on shifting cultivation with the fallow period being shortened from time to time. Naturally, soil fertility reduces from cycle to cycle, entailing the reduction of productivity. Large areas of moderately sloping lands suitable for upland agriculture have become bare after many cultivation-fallow cycles. The soils there have been severely degraded with more toxicity, low porosity, low water retention capacity and poor floral diversity. Normally, these lands cannot be used for food crop cultivation. So farmers in uplands have to rely on slash-and-burn practices for their livelihood. As there is no more forest with good soil in medium slopes, farmers go to cut forests in watershed, high slope lands and old forests up to the mountains‘ top. There are ecologically and environmentally very sensitive areas, so their destruction will inevitably cause hazardous consequences in the whole basin. Meanwhile,cultivation in these areas has low economic efficiency and sustainability because the crop yield may decrease very fast due to severe erosion as the higher the slope, the more serious erosion. Consequently living standards of highland farmers remain low and unstable. Sustainable farming on these lands in the perspective of a seriously deteriorated ecology and environmental is not an easy task. There have been many projects trying to help mountainous farmers get out of their vicious circle. However, due to different reasons, the results gained are low, and in some cases,things ceased to move after the projects phased out. During past few years, based on the farmer experiences, the Vietnam Agricultural Science Institute has cooperated with local and international partners to implement different projects in order to solve the problems by developing simple, easy and cheap cultivation technologies, which can be accepted and applied by local poor farmers for sustainable agricultural production. The first results of our activities offered good opportunities for sustain food production, improve soil health, recharge of aquifers,and enhanced household income for better rural lively hoods in the upland eco-regions of northern Vietnam.     

Using Landsat images to monitor changes in the snow-covered area of selected glaciers in northern Pakistan

Landsat satellite images were used to map and monitor the snow-covered areas of four glaciers with different aspects(Passu: 36.473°N, 74.766°E;Momhil: 36.394°N, 75.085°E; Trivor: 36.249°N,74.968°E; and Kunyang: 36.083°N, 75.288°E) in the upper Indus basin, northern Pakistan, from 1990-2014. The snow-covered areas of the selected glaciers were identified and classified using supervised and rule-based image analysis techniques in three different seasons. Accuracy assessment of the classified images indicated that the supervised classification technique performed slightly better than the rule-based technique. Snow-covered areas on the selected glaciers were generally reduced during the study period but at different rates. Glaciers reached maximum areal snow coverage in winter and premonsoon seasons and minimum areal snow coverage in monsoon seasons, with the lowest snow-covered area occurring in August and September. The snowcovered area on Passu glacier decreased by 24.50%,3.15% and 11.25% in the pre-monsoon, monsoon and post-monsoon seasons, respectively. Similarly, the other three glaciers showed notable decreases in snow-covered area during the pre-and post-monsoon seasons; however, no clear changes were observed during monsoon seasons. During pre-monsoon seasons, the eastward-facing glacier lost comparatively more snow-covered area than the westward-facing glacier. The average seasonal glacier surface temperature calculated from the Landsat thermal band showed negative correlations of-0.67,-0.89,-0.75 and-0.77 with the average seasonal snowcovered areas of the Passu, Momhil, Trivor and Kunyang glaciers, respectively, during pre-monsoon seasons. Similarly, the air temperature collected from a nearby meteorological station showed an increasing trend, indicating that the snow-covered area reduction in the region was largely due to climate warming.     

Spatial assessment of forest cover and land-use changes in the Hindu-Kush mountain ranges of northern Pakistan

Anthropogenic activities and natural processes are continuously altering the mountainous environment through deforestation, forest degradation and other land-use changes. It is highly important to assess, monitor and forecast forest cover and other land-use changes for the protection and conservation of mountainous environment. The present study deals with the assessment of forest cover and other land-use changes in the mountain ranges of Dir Kohistan in northern Pakistan, using high resolution multi-temporal SPOT-5 satellite images. The SPOT-5 satellite images of years 2004, 2007, 2010 and 2013 were acquired and classified into land-cover units. In addition, forest cover and land-use change detection map was developed using the classified maps of 2004 and 2013. The classified maps were verified through random field samples and Google Earth imagery (Quick birds and SPOT-5). The results showed that during the period 2004 to 2013 the area of forest land decreased by 6.4%, however, area of range land and agriculture land have increased by 22.1% and 2.9%, respectively. Similarly, barren land increased by 1.1%, whereas, area of snow cover/glacier is significantly decreased by 21.3%. The findings from the study will be useful for forestry and landscape planning and can be utilized by the local, provincial and national forest departments; and REDD+ policy makers in Pakistan.     

Status and determinants of other gainful activities by farmers in mountainous rural regions of Gilgit-Baltistan,Pakistan

Non-farm income sources are important for livelihood sustenance, especially in the mountainous regions of developing countries. To implement effective policies to improve economic development, policymakers need insights at the grassroots level. Yet, there is a lack of empirical evidence in the context of Pakistan. This study examines the current situation and the factors influencing the decision by farmers to engage in other gainful activities(OGAs) such as farm diversification and off-farm work in the northern mountainous regions of Pakistan. The study is based on quantitative survey data obtained from 459 farm managers and qualitative data from 24 key informants from five different districts in GilgitBaltistan. Utilizing a logistic regression model, a statistical analysis is conducted on farmer and farm characteristics to investigate the probability of farm managers to engage in OGAs. The survey results show that around 71% of farm managers are engaged in OGAs(with 24% in farm diversification, 61% in offfarm work and 15% in both). The share of female farm managers is 51% in farm diversification while male farm managers dominate off-farm activities(69%). The most prevalent types of farm diversification are the processing of farm products and tourism-related farm work, while the main off-farm activities are setting up grocery stores outside the farm, having salaried jobs or engaging in other non-agricultural business. There are significant differences between farmers with and without OGAs particularly regarding farmer characteristics, agricultural income and some other variables. The logit model results show that farmer characteristics mainly determine off-farm work activities while farm(and other) characteristics mostly explain farm diversification. These findings suggest that OGAs primarily exist as livelihood strategies. Farm diversification is linked with the long-term sustenance of agricultural activities while off-farm work is predominantly driven by economic needs. Both types of OGAs require specific support policies while attention needs to be given not to threaten regional food supply.     

Modeling habitat suitability of range plant species using random forest method in arid mountainous rangelands

Mountainous rangelands play a pivotal role in providing forage resources for livestock, particularly in summer, and maintaining ecological balance. This study aimed to identify environmental variables affecting range plant species distribution, ecological analysis of the relationship between these variables and the distribution of plants, and to model and map the plant habitats suitability by the Random Forest Method(RFM) in rangelands of the Taftan Mountain, Sistan and Baluchestan Province, southeastern Iran. In order to determine the environmental variables and estimate the potential distribution of plant species, the presence points of plants were recorded by using systematic random sampling method(90 points of presence) and soils were sampled in 5 habitats by random method in 0–30 and 30–60 cm depths. The layers of environmental variables were prepared using the Kriging interpolation method and Geographic Information System facilities. The distribution of the plant habitats was finally modelled and mapped by the RFM. Continuous maps of the habitat suitability were converted to binary maps using Youden Index(?) in order to evaluate the accuracy of the RFM in estimation of the distribution of species potentialhabitat. Based on the values of the area under curve(AUC) statistics, accuracy of predictive models of all habitats was in good level. Investigating the agreement between the predicted map, generated by each model, and actual maps, generated from fieldmeasured data, of the plant habitats, was at a high level for all habitats, except for Amygdalus scoparia habitat. This study concluded that the RFM is a robust model to analyze the relationships between the distribution of plant species and environmental variables as well as to prepare potential distribution maps of plant habitats that are of higher priority for conservation on the local scale in arid mountainous rangelands.     

Biodiversity conservation in the Hindu Kush-Karakoram-Himalayan mountain region of northern Pakistan:Overview of big mammal protection

The high mountains of northern Pakistan comprise the western section of the Hindu KushKarakoram-Himalayas(HKH) region of South and Central Asia. They are home to some rare and endangered species of fauna and flora which form an important link in the biodiversity of the region as a whole. Increasing population and changing life styles in recent decades have brought unprecedented pressures on the biodiversity of this region. Along with the government, the non-governmental organizations(NGOs) and communities have a crucial role to play in conserving biodiversity. In this regard,a number of undertakings to protect depleting species have been initiated by governmental and nongovernmental entities. These efforts are commendable and some have produced positive results, but many exist on a small scale and, with a few exceptions, are not self-sustaining. This paper reports on some of these initiatives of conserving big mammal species like the Astor markhor, Blue sheep,Himalayan brown bear, Himalayan ibex and Snow leopard, with the aim of collating and highlighting them, identifying gaps in conservation and suggesting a way forward so as to promote conservation projects on a larger and more sustainable basis.     

Differences of carbon and nitrogen stoichiometry between different habitats in two natural Korean pine forests in Northeast China's mountainous areas

There is a strong link between vegetation and environmental factors. Therefore, to elucidate how the stoichiometric characteristics of plants respond to different habitats, we studied organic carbon(C) and total nitrogen(N) stoichiometry characteristics of plants in four different habitats of two different natural Korean pine forests. Three of the habitats(gaps, mounds, and pits) were formed via tree uprooting, whereas an undisturbed site(closed canopies) was used as a control. The followings we...     

Integrated assessment of extreme climate and landuse change impact on sediment yield in a mountainous transboundary watershed of India and Pakistan

Assessment of climate and land use changes impact including extreme events on the sediment yield is vital for water and power stressed countries. Mangla Reservoir is the second-largest reservoir in Pakistan, and its capacity is being reduced due to rapid sedimentation and will be threatened under climate and land use changes. This paper discusses the consequences of climate and land use change on sediment yield at Mangla Dam using General Circulation Models(GCMs), Land Change Modeler(LCM), Soil and Water Assessment Tool(SWAT) model after calibration and validation.Results show that over the historical period temperature is observed to increase by 0.10 o C/decade and forest cover is observed to reduce to the level of only 16% in 2007. Nevertheless, owing to the forest conservation policy, the forest cover raised back to 27% in 2012. Anticipated land use maps by using LCM of 2025, 2050 and 2100 showed that the forest cover will be 33%, 39.2%, and, 53.7%, respectively. All seven GCMs projected the increase in temperature and five GCMs projected an increase in precipitation,however, two GCMs projected a decrease in precipitation. Owing to climate change, land use change and combined impact of climate and land use change on annual sediment yield(2011-2100) may vary from-42.9% to 39.4%, 0% to-27.3% and,-73%to 39.4%, respectively. Under climate change scenarios projected sediment yield is mainly linked with extreme events and is expected to increase with the increase in extreme events. Under land use change scenarios projected sediment yield is mainly linked with the forest cover and is expected to decrease with the increase in forest cover. The results of this study are beneficial for planners, watershed managers and policymakers to mitigate the impacts of climate and land use changes to enhance reservoir life by reducing the sediment yield.     

Mid and late Holocene forest fires and deforestation in the subalpine belt of the Iberian range,northern Spain

The conversion of subalpine forests into grasslands for pastoral use is a well-knownphenomenon, although for most mountain areas the timing of deforestation has not been determined. The presence of charcoal fragments in soil profiles affected by shallow landsliding enabled us to date the occurrence of fires and the periods of conversion ofsubalpine forest into grasslands in the Urbión Mountains, Iberian Range, Spain. We found that the treeline in the highest parts of the northwestern massifs of the Iberian Range(the Urbión, Demanda, Neila, and Cebollera massifs) is currently between 1500 and 1600 m a.s.l., probably because of pastoral use of the subalpine belt, whereas in the past it would have reached almost the highest divides(at approximately 2100–2200 m a.s.l.). The radiocarbon dates obtained indicate that the transformation of the subalpine belt occurred during the Late Neolithic, Chalcolithic, Bronze Age, Iron Age, and Middle Ages. Forest clearing was probably moderate during fires prior to the Middle Ages, as the small size of the sheep herds and the local character of the markets only required small clearings, and therefore more limited fires. Thus, it is likely that the forest recovered burnt areas in a few decades; this suggests the management of the forest and grasslands following a slash-andburn system. During the Middle and Modern Ages deforestation and grassland expansion affected most of the subalpine belt and coincided with the increasing prevalence of transhumance, as occurred in other mountains in the Iberian Peninsula(particularly the Pyrenees). Although the occurrence of shallow landslides following deforestation between the Neolithic and the Roman Period cannot be ruled out, the most extensive shallow landsliding processes would have occurred from the Middle Ages until recent times.     

ORIGIN OF CARBONATE MATERIALS IN THE NORTHERN BASIN OF LAKE BAIKAL AND ITS RELATIONSHIP TO HOLOCENE PALEOCLIMATE

Fine-grained disseminated carbonate was found in Holocene sediments in a core taken from the northern basin of Lake Baikal. The core had two distinct facies. a terrigenous blue-clay overlain by a diatomaceous silt. Oxygen and carbon stable isotope analyses, combined with SEM , X-ray diffraction and .palynology, show that the carbonate in the blue-clay layer is pedogenic in origin, rather than biogenic or authigenic . The S C values in the blue clay suggest that the carbonate is derived from a single source , while the carbonate in the diatom-rich layer might be transported by winds from different sources. On the assumption that the carbonate was formed during the post-glacial age and was transported primarily by river runoff, the 18O isotopic values suggest that the annual temperature in the northern Baikal drainage area was about 3℃ warmer during the middle Holocene (8500-7000 a, B. P.) than during the early Holocene (11 000-8 500a, B.P.) when the blue clay was being deposited . This interpretation is     

Diurnal and seasonal variation of the elevation gradient of air temperature in the northern flank of the western Qinling Mountain range,China

The typically sparse or lacking distribution of meteorological stations in mountainous areas inadequately resolves temperature elevation variability. This study presented the diurnal and seasonal variations of the elevation gradient of air temperature in the northern flank of the western Qinling Mountain range,which has not been thoroughly evaluated. The measurements were conducted at 9 different elevations between 1710 and 2500 m from August 2014 to August 2015 with HOBO Data loggers. The results showed that the annual temperature lapse rates(TLRs) for Tmean,Tmin and Tmax were 0.45?C/100 m,0.44?C/100 m and 0.40?C/100 m,respectively,which are substantially smaller than the often used value of 0.60°C/100 m to 0.65°C/100 m. The TLRs showed no obvious seasonal variations,except for the maximum temperature lapse rate,which was steeper in winter and shallower in spring. Additionally,the TLRs showed significant diurnal variations,with the steepest TLR in forenoon and the shallowest in early morning or late-afternoon,and the TLRs changed more severely during the daytime than night time. The accumulated temperature above 0°C,5°C and 10°C(AT0,AT5 and AT10) decreased at a lapse rate of 112.8?C days/100 m,104.5?C days/100 m and 137.0?C days/100 m,respectively. The monthly and annual mean diurnal range of temperatures(MDRT and ADRT) demonstrated unimodal curves along the elevation gradients,while the annual range of temperature(ART) showed no significant elevation differences. Our results strongly suggest that the extrapolated regional TLR may not be a good representative for an individual mountainside,in particular,where there are only sparse meteorological stations at high elevations.     

Recent snow cover variation in the Upper Indus Basin of Gilgit Baltistan,Hindukush Karakoram Himalaya

Mountainous basins like the Upper Indus Basin(UIB) of Gilgit Baltistan(GB) are dependent on seasonal snowmelt and glacier melt. Monitoring of the snow-covered area(SCA) is not only vital for the overall hydrology of the Indus basin but also important to the sustainable agriculture and hydropower system. The snow-covered area in the UIB of GB was investigated for changes over the last 18 years using the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer(MODIS) snow product. The study area was divided into five elevation zones ranging from 877-8564 meters above sea level(m ASL). In contrast to the global cryosphere related studies, SCA in the UIB is slightly increasing. Elevation based SCA analysis also indicated that SCA is slightly increasing in each elevation zone. However, a significant amount of snow is concentrated in areas above 5000 m ASL. Due to the strong correlation between SCA and precipitation, the precipitation data also follow a similar trend. Analysis of the climatic data suggests a statistically significant increase in total monthly precipitation and relative humidity, a slight decrease in mean monthly temperature and a significant upward tendency in monthly solar irradiance data. All these trends in combination with the increasing trend in global precipitation, winter westerly disturbances and orographic precipitation are the important factors behind the slightly increasing SCA in the study area. Our results though constrained by short observation period mainly contribute to the understanding of advancing snow cover and glaciers in Hindukush Karakoram.     

Energy poverty in the mountainous town of Metsovo,Greece

In an attempt to enhance knowledge on the energy poverty phenomenon in mountainous areas, a primary social survey was conducted in a typical mountainous town of Greece, Metsovo in the Region of Epirus. The survey recorded quantitative data of energy expenses and incomes of households and it also captured qualitative indicators related to energy poverty. The findings showed that nine out of ten households in Metsovo are exposed to energy poverty, based on the objective 10% index. The subjective indicators revealed other interesting aspects of the problem. Over one-third of the local population live in houses that are inadequately heated and/or present damp problems. Almost two-thirds of the local population have been forced to restrict other basic needs, in order to respond to high energy costs. Studying the relationships between variables of the survey also revealed some notable issues. Households inadequately heated present statistical significant correlation with the heating system used. The inadequately heated houses are also correlated with houses that presented damp-mould problems, as well as households that report arrears in energy bills. Moreover, reduction in hours of heating system operation is correlated with health problems. Current energy policy in Greece does not include specific strategies for mountainous areas, apart from some differentiations in heating oil subsidies. The great extent of energy poverty in mountainous Greece, highlighted by the present representative(with respect to mountainous Greece) study, may have irreversible social impacts. Hence, a need for specific and effective action is necessary, whose main axes should be an extensive upgrade of buildings' energy efficiency in mountainous settlements and special fuel tariffs for mountainous areas.     

山区公路软基病害研究

随着高等级公路建设规模的扩大，山区公路所面临的路基病害特别是软土路基病害问题也逐渐增多。结合对陕南勉(县)一宁(强)高速公路工程实例分析，对山区软土成因及其特性进行了初步分析，认为山区软土属以坡洪积、湖积和冲积为主的软土，也有少量是由坡残积物堆积而形成。山区软土的特殊性表现在成分的复杂性、分布的不均匀性、隐蔽性和物理力学性质的特殊性。根据其特性以及中国山区公路软基普遍存在的病害问题，总结了山区公路软基的主要病害类型为剪切拉裂破坏、浸水沉陷破坏、剥蚀坍塌破坏、推挤滑动破坏。还提出了相应的软基处理方法及建议。