Abstract
Extreme rainfall events, seasonal weather extremes and long term climate change present a threat to the stability of natural and engineered slopes by altering slope hydrology and shear strength beyond recent historical values.
The temporal and spatial fluctuation of slope wetting and drying in response to weather event sequences can be represented using a surface water balance approach of rainfall infiltration and potential evapotranspiration, such as a soil moisture deficit calculation (SMD). This provides an opportunity to address the regional susceptibility of slopes to become unstable when exposed to adverse weather event sequences. However, case studies have shown that site specific characterisation of foundation geology (e.g. permeability and shear strength) is required to assess the vulnerability of specific slopes to pore water pressure fluctuations and slope failure during extreme weather events.
The relationship between underlying geology and landslide incidence during extreme weather extremes is illustrated by comparing long term weather data, soil moisture deficit calculations and geological information using a database of over 400 UK land-slide events that occurred between 2004 and 2014.
The temporal and spatial fluctuation of slope wetting and drying in response to weather event sequences can be represented using a surface water balance approach of rainfall infiltration and potential evapotranspiration, such as a soil moisture deficit calculation (SMD). This provides an opportunity to address the regional susceptibility of slopes to become unstable when exposed to adverse weather event sequences. However, case studies have shown that site specific characterisation of foundation geology (e.g. permeability and shear strength) is required to assess the vulnerability of specific slopes to pore water pressure fluctuations and slope failure during extreme weather events.
The relationship between underlying geology and landslide incidence during extreme weather extremes is illustrated by comparing long term weather data, soil moisture deficit calculations and geological information using a database of over 400 UK land-slide events that occurred between 2004 and 2014.
| Original language | English |
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| Title of host publication | XVI European Conference on Soil Mechanics and Geotechnical Engineering, 2015 |
| Publication status | Published - 13 Sept 2015 |
| Event | XVI European Conference on Soil Mechanics and Geotechnical Engineering, 2015 - Edinburgh, UK United Kingdom Duration: 13 Sept 2015 → 17 Sept 2015 |
Conference
| Conference | XVI European Conference on Soil Mechanics and Geotechnical Engineering, 2015 |
|---|---|
| Country/Territory | UK United Kingdom |
| Period | 13/09/15 → 17/09/15 |
Access to Document
- XVIECSMGE2015_0310_final Edit KB
(C) 2015. IOS Press. Proceedings of the 16th European Conference on Soil Mechanics and Geotechnical Engineering.