Case Study: Landslides

1. Are architects liable if events like landslides happen?

• Yes, according to the Civil Code of the Philippines: Essential Requisites of
Contracts. Section 3, Contract for a Piece of Work, Article 1723, the architect
who drew the building plans and specifications of a house is liable for 15 years
after the building’s completion. He/ She will be held responsible if the building
collapses in anytime within those 15 years, if the reason of collapse is due to a
defect in the drawings/ specifications, or due to a defect in the ground.
• This is why architects should do a thorough analysis if the site first, to discover its
problems and come up with effective, strong, and sustainable solutions.

2. What are some things that local government can do to protect people from the
impacts of similar calamities?
• The first thing they could do is to come up with a warning system that alerts the
residents in prone areas when a calamity is likely to happen (ex: heavy rainfall,
volcano being active etc.). The system could be anything from radio transferred
message, a town megaphone, or SMS. The faster the message can reach the
residents, the better.
• Second is of course, educating locals about Disaster Risk Reduction and
Management in accordance of which type of calamity they fall into. They can
conduct seminars on topics ranging from plans that require community wide
participation (such as the fastest path to an evacuation area, emergency supply
plans for the community during disaster and the like) to individual family
measures (how to prepare for a disaster at home, what to store for emergencies,
how to fortify one’s house to address the area’s calamity, if possible; and who to
call for help during emergencies and the like.)
• The third thing they could do is to stop mining activities on the area’s residing
mountain (or hill). Mining weakens the soil, making it easy to be eroded after it is
washed by the rainwater flowing from up the mountain, down to the town below.
 The only hard thing about this plan is, most of the time, mining is the only source
of livelihood of the residents. That’s why even though the government warns the
residents in the area to move out because it’s dangerous, they still prefer to stay,
because it’s the only thing they have to live by, or so it seems. So, if the local
government wants to stop the mining, they should prepare alternative livelihood
for the residents.
• The fourth thing they could do is to conduct tree-planting programs in the area’s
residing mountain (or hill). Tree roots have the capability to hold soil in place,
making it harder to erode when rainwater flows on it. This solution may not bear
fruit in 10 or 20 years, but it’s an important investment for protection from future
landslides. Trees also has the capability to remove toxins from the rainwater,
making it viable as irrigation for agriculture (Al, Stefan. 2020)

Source/s:

• Al, Stefan (2020) - What happens if you cut down all of a city's trees? Retrieved
from: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zarll9bx6FI