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Causes of Landslides, Types and Precations Befor, During and After

Landslides are caused by slopes becoming saturated by water from heavy rainfall or snowmelt, seismic activity such as earthquakes that weaken bedrock, and volcanic eruptions that melt snow rapidly. They are also caused by weathered or fractured rock, erosion, and human activities like mining, construction, and deforestation that expose land. The main types of landslides are slides, topples, falls, and flows. Areas prone to landslides include steep slopes, canyons, regions of high seismic activity, locations with heavy rainfall, and places where human activities have exposed land.

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122 views4 pages

Causes of Landslides, Types and Precations Befor, During and After

Landslides are caused by slopes becoming saturated by water from heavy rainfall or snowmelt, seismic activity such as earthquakes that weaken bedrock, and volcanic eruptions that melt snow rapidly. They are also caused by weathered or fractured rock, erosion, and human activities like mining, construction, and deforestation that expose land. The main types of landslides are slides, topples, falls, and flows. Areas prone to landslides include steep slopes, canyons, regions of high seismic activity, locations with heavy rainfall, and places where human activities have exposed land.

Uploaded by

Monaoray Balowa
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© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Causes of landslides

Landslides are caused by these three main events—

Slopes saturated by water:


Intense rainfall and snowmelt and seepage often leave land surfaces saturated.
Flooding results and water overflowing its channels often wipe out land surfaces to
cause mudflows.

Seismic activity:
Earth tremors, earthquakes and natural seismic activity that cause the earth to rumble
or shake (vibrations) can weaken the bonding of bed rock and expose the earth to
landslides.

Volcanic activity:
Lava from eruptions has the potential of melting snow at here high rates. A combination
of melted snow, debris, volcanic ash and soils flowing rapidly along a slope can result in
catastrophic landslides.

Geological:
Weathered rock, sheared, fissured or jointed rock material are known causes of
landslides. Contrasting earth material and low adhesiveness of the rock also cause
landslides. This is so because cohesive rock material often holds itself in place and are
less prone to weathering and movement.

Morphological:
All forms of erosion such as fluvial, water, wave, glacial along a slope may cause
landslides and other types of flows. Deposition from erosion may also cause build up of
earth material (or debris) at places which may eventually give way in the form of
landslides. Weathering is also a major cause of landslides. It is a powerful process of
weakening debris and earth material of the surface of the slope.
Human:
Activities such as mining, construction, farming, deforestation, irrigation,
reservoirs and dams, and the like, all contribute to exposing the surface of the
earth and causing landslides. For example, in many mining communities along
slopes, tunnels and deep wells are dug into the ground and often left unfilled.
With time, air and water get in and may result in the earth giving way. Such
activities also expose lands to weathering and massive erosion which all end up
causing some types of landslides.

Types of landslides
The types of landslides are usually differentiated by the nature of its movement
and earth material involved. Here are a few:

Slide:

Slides may be translational or rotational. In a translational slide, the earth mass


is largely in place after it slides downhill on a plane preface. In a rotational slide,
the movement of the earth material is rotational in nature. It is also known
as Slump.

Topple:
In a topple, the earth mass rotates forward about a pivit. The result is usually a
tilt without collapse. It is usually cause by cracks or rfracture in the bedrocks.

Fall:
These are usually influenced by gravity after large rocks or boulders are
detached from their parent rock. They usually fall along steep slopes or cliffs.

Flow:
Flows come in many types, such as Debris flow, Debris avalanche, Mudflow,
Creep and Earth flow.

Debris flow involves the rapid downhill movement of loose earth material usually
with water. Debris Avalanche is similar to Debris Flow but has a more rapid flow.
In an earth flow, the earth material is finer and is washed away leaving a
depression bowl at the head. Mudslides are made up of fine silt, sand and clay
material saturated with water and flowing very rapidly. Creeps are slower in
nature and can be evident when electric poles and roads bend slightly.

Torrent:
These are a very sporadic discharge of water and debris, often along low-lying
channels between highlands.

Landslide prone areas


Places and location that may be prone to landslides include the following:

Location:
Slopes, the bottom of slopes and canyons are examples of locations that may be
prone to landslides and mudflows. Southern California, for example, has many
steep slopes and weak rocks, making that areas a great location for landslides.
Regions with more seismic activity or earth movements are also locations that
may be prone to landslides. Seismic activity causes disturbances in the land and
breaks up the bedrock. Areas with high rainfall amounts and slopes are also
great conditions for landslides.

Human activity:
Human activities such as mining, building, and road constructions have often
exposed the land and slopes to landslides. When roads are cut through hills, or
tunnels are dug, or crops are farmed along slopes, there is always the risk of
landslides and mudflows. Wildfires and deforestation also make a location prone
to landslides.

Frequency of landslide events:


Anywhere that there has been a mudslide or landslide is an area that is prone to
it. Chances are, it will happen again, because the conditions for it to happen may
still be present.

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