Article
Environmental Sciences
Yuanjun Jiang, Xiaobo Hu, Heng Liang, Po Ning, Xiaoyi Fan
Summary: Predicting the occurrence time, volume, distribution and run-out length of shallow landslides is critical for assessing debris flow. Recent studies have suggested that the landslides hydro-mechanical triggering (LHT) model can predict rainfall-induced landslides. However, the model cannot determine a sliding surface above the soil-rock interface. Therefore, a framework combining the Soil and Water Assessment Tool (SWAT) model and the depth-resolved LHT (D-LHT) model was proposed to improve the prediction of shallow landslides in a catchment.
WATER RESOURCES RESEARCH
(2023)
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Chih-Yen Chen, Jyr-Ching Hu, Chi-Ching Liu, Chun-Ying Chiu
Summary: The study found significant abnormal underground strain induced by heavy rainfall, reflecting two different rates of rainfall response: a fast response to rainwater loads and a slow response to water infiltration. Rivers can help accelerate runoff dispersion and reduce the impact time of heavy rainfall in mountainous areas. Results from deconvolution calculations show that the response strains are smaller in vertical coupling compared to isotropic coupling.
APPLIED SCIENCES-BASEL
(2021)
Review
Geochemistry & Geophysics
Peter Mani, Simon Allen, Stephen G. Evans, Jeffrey S. Kargel, Martin Mergili, Dmitry Petrakov, Markus Stoffel
Summary: Populations and infrastructure in high mountain regions are vulnerable to natural hazards, especially with the sensitivity to climate change. Process chains associated with glacier retreat or permafrost degradation are common in high mountains. The frequency and magnitude of process chains are difficult to predict, especially those involving rapid sequences. A comprehensive review of relevant events reveals that progressive failure is the most frequent trigger of process chains. Climate change further increases the reach of process chains in the future.
REVIEWS OF GEOPHYSICS
(2023)
Article
Environmental Sciences
Ho-Wen Chen, Chien-Yuan Chen
Summary: Climate change has influenced the climate of Taiwan, causing urban areas to experience a temperature increase and mountain watersheds to receive less rainfall. This study found that typhoon-induced rains caused fewer landslides compared to non-typhoon climate events. The rainfall characteristics associated with landslide initiation were identified, and warning models for landslides were proposed based on cumulative rainfall-duration and rainfall intensity-duration plots.
Article
Geography, Physical
Derek J. Cheung, John R. Giardino
Summary: Wildfire incidents are increasing in frequency and magnitude in southern California. However, there is a lack of research on how ecosystems respond to changing fire regimes. This study found that post-fire debris flows will increase if fires continue to increase in size and occur on specific slopes and watersheds with certain soil burn severities.
Article
Environmental Sciences
Waqas Shabbir, Talha Omer, Jurgen Pilz
Summary: The actual impact of landslides in Pakistan is highly underestimated and this study provides an in-depth analysis of its impact over the past 17 years. Heavy rainfall plays a significant role as the main trigger, accounting for over 50% of landslide occurrences. Spontaneous landslides and human-induced events also contribute to the frequency of landslides in the country.
ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE AND POLLUTION RESEARCH
(2023)
Article
Engineering, Environmental
Abhishek Kashyap, Mukunda Dev Behera
Summary: In bedrock terrain, slope instability and associated mass wasting are efficient surface processes that result in significant changes to the landscape. A massive rock-ice avalanche that occurred in the Chamoli district of Uttarakhand, India on February 7, 2021, triggered a catastrophic flash flood, destroying two hydropower plants and causing multiple fatalities. This study conducted a landscape analysis in the Rishi Ganga and Dhauli Ganga sub-catchments of the Alaknanda River in order to investigate the spatial relationship between geomorphic and climatic controls on this extreme mass wasting event. The findings suggest that the flash flood was caused by the interaction of topographic discontinuity with climatic extremes, leading to glacial debris flows, bedrock landslides, slope failures, and snowmelt.
BULLETIN OF ENGINEERING GEOLOGY AND THE ENVIRONMENT
(2023)
Article
Geosciences, Multidisciplinary
Liying Sun, Bingjuan Ma, Liang Pei, Xiaohang Zhang, John L. Zhou
Summary: Human activities have a significant influence on natural hazards such as rainfall-induced landslides and debris flows, and the relationship between human activities and these hazards is quantitatively analyzed in this study. The study finds that the Human Activities Index (HAI) is effective in characterizing the spatiotemporal changes of human activities, with a significant spatial correlation between the intensity of human activities and the probability of hazards. Temporally, human activities have a more direct impact on rainfall-induced landslides compared to debris flows, with various types of relationships observed in the affected areas. The results suggest that HAI can be a simple and effective tool for local governments to manage these hazards, and integrated prevention measures should be implemented when HAI reaches a specific threshold.
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Weston C. McCool, Brian F. Codding, Kenneth B. Vernon, Kurt M. Wilson, Peter M. Yaworsky, Norbert Marwan, Douglas J. Kennett
Summary: Understanding the impact of climate change and population pressure on human conflict is a significant topic in social sciences. This study combines paleoclimatic and demographic data to analyze the relationship between population growth, resource competition, and violent deaths in the Nasca highland region of Peru.
PROCEEDINGS OF THE NATIONAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
(2022)
Article
Engineering, Geological
Lei Zhu, Siming He, Haokun Qin, Wenxiu He, Haiquan Zhang, Yi Zhang, Jihao Jian, Jiehao Li, Pengcheng Su
Summary: This study investigated the formation and impacts of a disaster chain induced by a debris flow along the Xiaojin River on the eastern Tibetan Plateau of China. The research demonstrated that multiple factors contributed to the generation of the disaster chain, and detailed analysis was conducted on the activation of potential landslides and the evolution of flooding.
ENGINEERING GEOLOGY
(2021)
Article
Engineering, Environmental
Ming Chang, Xiangyang Dou, Tristram C. Hales, Bin Yu
Summary: Research in the Wenchuan earthquake region of Southwest China has found that post-earthquake debris flows can be classified into short-term, medium persistent, and long-term intermittent rainfall patterns, each with different characteristics in terms of rainfall intensity, duration, and cumulative rainfall. These patterns have implications for infiltration, saturation, and triggering mechanisms of debris flows. By establishing rainfall-threshold patterns, it is possible to predict the critical initiation conditions of debris flows in different watersheds based on intensity-duration curves.
BULLETIN OF ENGINEERING GEOLOGY AND THE ENVIRONMENT
(2021)
Article
Engineering, Geological
Kongming Yan, Fawu Wang, Gang Fan, Yang Liu, Kounghoon Nam, Bo Zhang
Summary: On August 30, 2020, a large-scale debris flow occurred in Azijue Village, Sichuan Province, China, causing the death of three residents and significant damage to infrastructure. Local residents were able to detect the debris flow and evacuate in time, thanks to early warning. The debris flow was triggered by localized precipitation in a high-relief mountainous area and was facilitated by the presence of thick ancient diluvial deposit in the debris flow gully.
Article
Engineering, Geological
Deuk-Hwan Lee, Enok Cheon, Hwan-Hui Lim, Shin-Kyu Choi, Yun-Tae Kim, Seung-Rae Lee
Summary: A study in South Korea developed an Artificial Neural Network (ANN) model to predict debris-flow volume, considering morphology, rainfall, and geology characteristics. The ANN model with two hidden neurons showed the highest R-2 value (0.828) and the lowest MSE value (0.022). The study demonstrated the potential of the developed ANN model as a useful resource for decision-making and barrier designing in debris-flow prone areas in South Korea.
ENGINEERING GEOLOGY
(2021)
Article
Engineering, Geological
G. La Porta, A. Leonardi, M. Pirulli, F. Cafaro, F. Castelli
Summary: Rainfall-induced shallow landslides often transform into flows, posing a severe hazard to infrastructure and human lives in mountainous areas worldwide. Back-analysis of previous events can inform risk assessment and the design of mitigation measures. However, conventional back-analysis exercises do not account for the occurrence of flows in sequences or surges, leading to potential inaccuracies in hazard assessment. In this paper, a novel time-resolving procedure is proposed to address this issue, which discretizes the event and tracks the post-failure behavior of each surge separately. The results of two case studies demonstrate that the time-resolving procedure can significantly impact the runout path, flooded area, and flow heights, highlighting the need for a review of historical cases and reassessment of current practices.
Article
Environmental Sciences
Seungjun Lee, Hyunuk An, Minseok Kim, Hyuntaek Lim, Yongseong Kim
Summary: This study developed a two-dimensional debris flow model that accurately assesses the impact of deposition on erosion and entrainment processes in rivers. Comparison of simulation results with field data showed that the model considering deposition had higher accuracy in estimating the damage range and flow time.
Article
Engineering, Geological
Alejandra Serey, Laura Pinero-Feliciangeli, Sergio A. Sepulveda, Fernando Poblete, David N. Petley, William Murphy
Article
Geography, Physical
R. Toural Dapoza, S. Moreiras, P. Euillades, S. Balbarani
QUATERNARY INTERNATIONAL
(2019)
Article
Geography, Physical
Sebastian Junquera-Torrado, Stella M. Moreiras, Sergio A. Sepulveda
QUATERNARY INTERNATIONAL
(2019)
Article
Geosciences, Multidisciplinary
Violeta Tolorza, C. H. Mohr, S. Carretier, A. Serey, S. A. Sepulveda, J. Tapia, L. Pinto
JOURNAL OF GEOPHYSICAL RESEARCH-EARTH SURFACE
(2019)
Article
Engineering, Geological
Alejandra Serey, Sergio A. Sepulveda, William Murphy, David N. Petley, Gregory De Pascale
Summary: This research aims to establish geological models of earthquake-triggered landslides in the Andes of central Chile through analyzing local earthquake-induced landslide inventories and large prehistoric landslide inventories proposed to be induced by seismic activity. The models represent different types of landslides that could be generated by shallow crustal earthquakes compared to megathrust earthquakes, providing valuable insights for earthquake-induced landslide hazard assessment.
QUARTERLY JOURNAL OF ENGINEERING GEOLOGY AND HYDROGEOLOGY
(2021)
Article
Geosciences, Multidisciplinary
Sergio A. Sepulveda, Stella M. Moreiras, Diego Chacon, Tania Villasenor, Pilar Jeanneret, Fernando Poblete
Summary: This study investigates a landslide cluster located in the Pangal river valley, Cachapoal river basin, in the Andes of central Chile. Detailed geomorphological mapping and dating confirm the separate ages of the three largest rock avalanche deposits.
JOURNAL OF SOUTH AMERICAN EARTH SCIENCES
(2022)
Article
Engineering, Geological
Helbert Garcia-Delgado, David N. Petley, Mauricio A. Bermudez, Sergio A. Sepulveda
Summary: Landslides are a major threat in countries like Colombia, especially in central-western regions. The study found a strong correlation between landslides and the climate variability phenomenon known as El Nino Southern Oscillation (ENSO), as well as an increasing trend in anthropogenically related events.
Article
Engineering, Geological
Sergio A. Sepulveda, Brent C. Ward, Scott B. Cosman, Rachel Jacobs
Summary: An intense atmospheric river in mid-November 2021 caused flooding and ground failures in the southern coastal region of British Columbia, damaging major transportation corridors and disrupting land connectivity. This note summarizes slope and riverbank ground failures, focusing on their impact on highways in the Lower Mainland and connecting corridors. Field observations are discussed in the context of potential future similar disasters due to climate change-induced extreme climatic events.
CANADIAN GEOTECHNICAL JOURNAL
(2023)
Article
Geosciences, Multidisciplinary
Sergio A. Sepulveda, Christian Tobar, Vannesa Rosales, Felipe Ochoa-Cornejo, Marisol Lara
Summary: Large-volume rock slope failures in high mountain glaciated valleys are a significant hazard that poses a high risk for society, ecosystems, and infrastructure. This study validates the contribution of glacier unloading to these types of landslides. Numerical models show that the combination of shear stress changes and structural control from main discontinuities can cause landslides.
Article
Geosciences, Multidisciplinary
Maria-Victoria Soto, Joselyn Arriagada-Gonzalez, Martina Molina-Benavides, Misael Cabello, Miguel Contreras-Alonso, Ignacio Ibarra, Gabriela Guevara, Sergio A. Sepulveda, Michael Maerker
Summary: In this study, we investigated natural hazards and their potential impacts on productive activities in the Comau Fjord in Chilean Northern Patagonia. Through hazard mapping and fieldwork, we identified areas prone to landslides, river/tsunami flooding, and glacial retreat. The overlapping of these hazards with economic activities suggest potential damage to local salmon and mussel farming infrastructure. Furthermore, the construction sites for a new highway in the area also face a high level of exposure to natural hazards.
Review
Geosciences, Multidisciplinary
Stella M. Moreiras, Sergio A. Sepulveda, Mariana Correas-Gonzalez, Carolina Lauro, Ivan Vergara, Pilar Jeanneret, Sebastian Junquera-Torrado, Jaime G. Cuevas, Antonio Maldonado, Jose L. Antinao, Marisol Lara
Summary: Research on debris flows and hyperconcentrated flows in the central Andes reveals the increasing impact of climate change and urban expansion on the vulnerability of Andean communities. Therefore, a better understanding of these geoclimatic events and the implementation of preventive measures are crucial to reduce negative impacts on the communities.
Article
Engineering, Geological
Sergio A. Sepulveda, Alejandro Alfaro, Marisol Lara, Javiera Carrasco, Paula Olea-Encina, Sofia Rebolledo, Mario Garces
Summary: The Yerba Loca landslide in the Andes Main Cordillera is a large-scale multirotational slide, showing long-term slow deformation with a rapid increase in deformation rate in the months leading up to the failure. The event poses a hazard of rock avalanches, debris flows, river damming, and outburst floods that may endanger downstream communities.
Article
Geology
Marisol Lara, Sergio A. Sepulveda, Constanza Celis, Sofia Rebolledo, Pablo Ceballos