ICIMOD’s SERVIR-HKH Initiative, a joint initiative of USAID and NASA, is working on developing a landslide monitoring and forecast system to automate EO-based monitoring of landslides in the region with support from scientists and researchers from NASA. To this end, we are organizing a consultation workshop to bring together key stakeholders – government and non-government organizations, academic, scientists and international agencies working on monitoring and mitigation of landslides – to explore the feasibility of developing a landslide monitoring system within Nepal and quantify the needs of regional entities to develop systems to better address stakeholder decision-making, and planning for disaster response.
- Bring together stakeholders working on landslide studies and discuss current needs for Nepal
- Share knowledge on innovations in monitoring and forecasting landslides
- Discuss data and information needs to develop a reliable landslide monitoring and forecast system
- Discuss potential collaborations
Resources
Background
Nepal is highly vulnerable to landslides, debris flows, soil erosion and mass wasting phenomena. Each year, landslides destroy buildings, agricultural land, forests, roads, hydropower projects, and public infrastructure, killing an average of 200 people in Nepal. The Gorkha Earthquake in 2015 induced about 20,000 landslides, by enlarging old landslides or triggering new landslides, causing massive destruction across 14 districts. In the aftermath, understanding the distribution and characteristics of earthquake-induced landslides and quantifying associated hazards and risks received renewed focus. However, rainfall is the primary trigger of landslides in Nepal, causing movement of new material and re-mobilization of co-seismic landslides following the Gorkha earthquake. In 2020, more than 300 deaths related to rainfall-induced landslides were reported across Nepal, highlighting the need for near real-time landslide monitoring and forecasting systems that can identify areas susceptible to landslides and alert vulnerable populations.
Recent advancements in Earth observation (EO) techniques have enabled the development and operationalization of systems that enable monitoring and near real-time modelling of landslides. EO combined with landslide monitoring and a forecast system including mapping, modelling, and exposure estimation has made landslide hazard predictions at large scales a possibility requiring minimal human effort. Combining susceptibility models with satellite-based precipitation and modelled precipitation forecasts has enabled nowcasting and forecasting of rainfall-induced landslide hazards. Empirical models combining EO and modelled seismic data has also been successful to predict near real-time earthquake-induced landslide activities and impacts.
