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Landslide Hazard Manual: Trainer S Handbook
Landslide Hazard Manual: Trainer S Handbook
Trainer‘s Handbook
AUTHOR’S STATEMENT
The author of this manual believes that the value of any work is proportional to its capacity
to improve the living conditions of the less fortunate communities of this planet. Access to
the basic information and education needed to ensure a healthy and safe life is a right of
every human being. It is the duty of those who possess them to actively disseminate them.
REFERENCES
Most of the information and graphical material contained in this manual were gathered from
existing works. However, for the sake of keeping the manual as simple as possible the
references to these works were omitted in the text. Please contact the author
(patrik@engineering4theworld.org) to obtain a copy with full references.
INDEX
1 BASICS ON LANDSLIDES..................................................................................................................... 4
1.1 LANDSLIDE’S DRIVING FORCE.................................................................................................................. 4
1.2 LANDSLIDE SPEED ................................................................................................................................ 5
1.3 LANDSLIDE MATERIAL ......................................................................................................................... 6
2 LANDSLIDE TYPES .................................................................................................................................. 8
2.1 SLIDING ................................................................................................................................................ 8
2.1.1 Rotational Failure ......................................................................................................................... 8
2.1.2 Translational Failure .................................................................................................................... 9
2.2 ROCK FALL AND TOPPLING ................................................................................................................. 10
2.2.1 Rock Fall ....................................................................................................................................... 10
2.2.2 Rock Toppling............................................................................................................................... 11
2.3 SPREADING ......................................................................................................................................... 12
2.4 FAST DEBRIS FLOWS ......................................................................................................................... 12
2.5 LAHARS (USGS) ................................................................................................................................ 13
3 HOW TO IDENTIFY LANDSLIDE HAZARDS ............................................................................... 15
3.1 TERRAIN/MORPHOLOGIC FEATURES INDICATING RISK OF A LANDSLIDE .................................... 15
3.2 ADDITIONAL LANDSLIDE RISK INDICATORS .................................................................................. 17
4 SLOPE DESTABILIZING FACTORS AND LANDSLIDE TRIGGERS .......................................... 19
4.1 SLOPE DESTABILIZING FACTORS ..................................................................................................... 19
4.2 TRIGGERING FACTORS ....................................................................................................................... 20
4.2.1 Intense or Prolonged Rainfall .................................................................................................. 20
4.2.2 Shocks or Vibrations ................................................................................................................. 21
4.2.3 Human Intervention ................................................................................................................... 22
4.3 COMBINATION OF SLOPE CHARACTERISTICS AND TRIGGERING FACTORS FOR LANDSLIDES...... 22
5 HOW TO MINIMIZE LANDSLIDE HAZARDS.............................................................................. 23
5.1 PASSIVE INTERVENTION ................................................................................................................... 23
5.2 ACTIVE PREVENTIVE INTERVENTION ............................................................................................... 23
6 DOS AND DON’TS ................................................................................................................................. 27
6.1 PRIOR TO A POTENTIAL LANDSLIDE DUE TO INTENSE STORMS .................................................... 27
6.2 WHAT TO DO DURING A LANDSLIDE ................................................................................................ 27
6.3 WHAT TO DO AFTER A LANDSLIDE .................................................................................................. 27
6.4 CONSTRUCTION DON’TS .................................................................................................................... 28
7 WORKSHOP TEACHING PROCEDURE .............................................................................................. 30
8 ADDITIONAL RESOURCES AND ANNEXES................................................................................. 31
1 Basics on Landslides
Landslides are rock, earth, or debris flows on slopes due to gravity. They can occur
on any terrain given the right conditions of soil, moisture, and angle of slope.
Integral to the natural process of the earth’s surface geology, landslides serve to
redistribute soil and sediments in a process that can be in abrupt collapses or in
soil creep, slow mud flows, debris flows, earth failures, and slope failures (Figure
1-1). Three distinct physical events occur during a landslide: the initial slope failure,
the subsequent transport, and the final deposition of the slide materials.
Landslides can be triggered by rains, floods, earthquakes, and other natural origin
as well as human-made causes, such as grading, terrain cutting and filling, excessive
development, etc. Because the factors affecting landslides can be geophysical or
human-made, they can occur in developed or undeveloped areas, or any area where
the terrain was altered for roads, houses, utilities, and even for lawns in one’s
backyard.
Figure 1-3: How an increasing slope will cause the sliding of the material on it.
As mentioned in the previous chapter, slope movements are defined by the type of
material that the slope is made up and the type of movement that the slope
undergoes. In this handbook only the major types of landslides will be described.
2.1 Sliding
A slide is a downslope movement of a soil or rock mass occurring dominantly along
rupture surfaces undergoing intense shear strain. Movement does not initially occur
simultaneously over the whole of what eventually becomes the landslide.
In slidings the soil mass moves along one or more discrete planes and the movement
can either be rotational or translational (Figures 2-1 a and b). In the rotational
case the failure surface(s) is curved and in the translational failure it is
approximately flat.
In Error! Reference source not found. and Figure 2-34 show a rotational and a
slump failure that were rain induced and directly affected residential areas.
Figure 2-11: Mt. Huascaran landslide. Figure 2-12: Debris flow can carry large stones.
2.5 Lahars
Lahars (Figure 2-13) are mudflows or debris flows composed mostly of volcanic
materials on the flanks of a volcano are called lahars. These flows of mud, rock, and
water can rush down valleys and stream channels at speeds of 20 to 40 miles per
hour (32 to 64 km per hour) and can travel more than 50 miles (80 km). Some
lahars contain so much rock debris (60 to 90 percent by weight) that they look like
fast-moving rivers of wet concrete. Close to their source, these flows are powerful
enough to rip up and carry trees, houses, and huge boulders miles downstream.
Farther downstream they entomb everything in their path in mud.
Historically, lahars have been one of the deadliest volcano hazards. They can occur
both during an eruption and when a volcano is quiet. The water that creates lahars
can come from melting snow and ice (especially water from a glacier melted by a
pyroclastic flow or surge), intense rainfall, or the breakout of a summit crater lake.
Large lahars are a potential hazard to many communities downstream from glacier-
clad volcanoes.
Figure 3-2: An increasing slope angle A also results in an increase of the driving force D.
Ancillary structures such as decks and patios tilting and (or) moving relative
to the main house
Tilting or cracking of concrete floors and foundations
Soil moving away from foundations
Broken water lines and other underground utilities
Leaning telephone poles, trees, retaining walls, or fences
Offset fence lines or retaining walls
Springs, seeps, or saturated ground in areas that have not typically been wet
New cracks or unusual bulges in the ground or street pavement
Rapid increase in creek water levels, possibly accompanied by increased
turbidity (soil content)
Sticking doors and windows, and visible open spaces indicating jambs and
frames out of plumb
Sudden decrease in creek water levels though rain is still falling or just
recently stopped
In most cases in the field there will be a combination of morphological and landslide
risk indicators to be considered.
Figure 4-1: Roadcuts can destabilize a slope Figure 4-2:Cut-fill has to be done carefully
Deforestation and vegetation loss (Figure 4-3) may reduce up to 90% the
stability of some slopes. Poorly planned forest clearing may increase rates of
surface water run-off or ground-water infiltration. Inefficient irrigation or
sewage effluent disposal practices may result in increased ground-water
pressures, which in turn can reduce the stability of rock and sediment.
Lack of sufficient drainage due to a number of civil works will result in high
water content in the soil and destabilizing it.
The two principal reasons why landslides are triggered by rainfall are a rise in pore
pressure in the soil and an increase of the slope weight. As seen in Figure 4-6, once
the soils starts being saturated the frictional forces between the soil particles is
reduced, which in turn will significantly reduce the overall stability of the slope.
Any increase in pore pressure will result in an equal diminution of the effective
stress in the soil, which in turn results in a reduction in the frictional forces.
Figure 5-1: Tree roots help holding the different soil layers together and hinder
landslides.
Proper water runoff must be ensured, especially where houses and roads
have disrupted the natural flow patterns. This can be achieved by providing a
proper canalization network.
Drainage: good ground drainage is essential to prevent is saturation and
consequent weakening. Drainage is also needed when any kind of civil work,
like retaining walls, has been done. As it can be observed in Figures 5-2 A) &
B) the introduction of drainage ducts
In addition, gabions can also effectively replace the more expensive reinforced
concrete retaining walls (Figure 5-5).
Major civil works: The undertaking of major civil works is mostly not a
feasible solution because of their high cost and technical complexity. In
addition, such works are often unnecessary if the land is properly managed
and its use takes into account the local hazards. The pictures in Figure 5-7
show part of a massive US$50 million landslide mitigation project in
Antofagasta/Chile with a dubious need and performance.
Stay alert and stay awake! Many debris-flow fatalities occur when people
are sleeping. Listen to a radio for warnings of intense rainfall. Be aware that
intense short bursts of rain may be particularly dangerous, especially after
longer periods of heavy rainfall and damp weather.
If you are in areas susceptible to landslides and debris flows, consider
leaving if it is safe to do so.
Listen for any unusual sounds that might indicate moving debris, such as
trees cracking or boulders knocking together. A trickle of flowing or falling
mud or debris may precede larger flows. If you are near a stream or channel,
be alert for any sudden increase or decrease in water flow and for a change
from clear to muddy water. Such changes may indicate debris flow activity
upstream, so be prepared to move quickly. Don’t delay! Save yourself, not
your belongings.
Contact your local fire, police, or public works department. Local
officials are the best persons able to assess potential danger.
Inform affected neighbors. Your neighbors may not be aware of
potential hazards. Advising them of a potential threat may help save lives.
Help neighbors who may need assistance to evacuate.
Evacuate. Getting out of the path of a landslide or debris flow is your
best protection.
Quickly move out of the path of the landslide or debris flow. Moving
away from the path of the flow to a stable area will reduce your risk.
If escape is not possible, curl into a tight ball and protect your head.
A tight ball will provide the best protection for your body.
Do not build on or at the base of unstable slopes (Figure 6-1 & Figure 6-2)
Figure 6-2: Buildings on a very steep slope… and damaged houses due to slope failure.
Note: These workshops should not be fully free. The community should provide a
donkey (if needed) to transport materials to the village, or a guide, or food. The
NGO could donate the posters.
Poster