CHAPTER II

REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE

2.1.1 Mechanism of Soil Erosion

Soil erosion encompasses detachment, transport and deposition of soil

particles by raindrops and surface flow. These are fundamental concepts and the

foundation of soil erosion research. The articles in this theme cover new

developments in our understanding of the mechanics of soil detachment by raindrops,

sediment transport, flow hydraulics of eroding surface, infiltration processes, and

landform evolution (Zhang 2022).

2.1.2 Geotechnical Aspects

It is vital to identify and understand the factors causing landslides, and the

interactions between them to develop effective measures to stabilize the slope and

minimize the impacts of future occurrences (Ahmad, Et al. 2023)

2.1.3 Vegetation and Root System

The soil structure and soil hydraulic properties are influenced by many factors,

including the soil physical properties (e.g., mineral composition, GSD, organic matter

content, moisture content, dry density, etc.) (Dexter et al., 2008; Li et al., 2016; Xiao

et al., 2022a; Xiao et al., 2022b; Li et al., 2023) and environmental factors (e.g.,

temperature, freezing-thawing cycles, wetting-drying cycles, vegetation cover, human

activities, etc.) (Chahine, 1992; Rabot et al., 2018; Chen et al., 2021; Fei et al.,

2021a). Among these factors, vegetation, an important component of the Earth's

surface, also plays a significant role in the water cycle, carbon cycle, and climate
change. Moreover, vegetation restoration, as a technology for negative carbon

emissions, has the potential to mitigate greenhouse gas emissions and extreme climate

events (e.g., extreme drought and extreme rainfall) (Löbmann et al., 2020; Wang et

al., 2021; Ng et al., 2022). As a result, it exerts a profound influence on the

occurrence and prevention of some geohazards (such as shallow landslides, slope

failure and soil erosion) (Stokes et al., 2009; Kim et al., 2017; Gonzalez-Ollauri and

Mickovski, 2017; Löbmann et al., 2020; Baets et al., 2020; Fan et al., 2022). In

general, vegetation roots can modify the soil structure and soil hydraulic properties

through root exudation, root penetration, root water uptake, and root decay, according

to current research (see Fig. 1c, d) (Lu et al., 2020; Shi et al., 2021; Ng et al., 2022).

2.1.4 Human Impacts

Some cases human activities can be a contributing factor in causing landslides.

Many human-caused landslides can be avoided or mitigated. They are commonly a

result of building roads and structures without adequate grading of slopes, poorly

planned alteration of drainage patterns, and disturbing old landslides.

2.1.5 Integration and Remote Sensing and GIS

The proper assessment of landslide susceptibility mapping in this area is

applied to minimize for the collapse of infrastructure and loss of the human life. For

this reason, the using of landslide susceptibility mapping is seen as the first step in

planning, assessment, and getting rid of landslides. Because of this, many authors

around the world have used this map (Binaghi et al., 1998; Dai et al., 2001;

ErcanogluM et al., 2004; Lee, 2005; Nefeslioglu et al., 2008; Nefeslioglu et al., 2010;

Pradhan et al., 2010; Constantin et al., 2011; Pourghasemi et al., 2012a, 2012b; Dou

et al., 2015) to identify landslide susceptibility zonation (LSZ). Landslide

vulnerable areas using remote sensing and Geographic Information Systems.

In geographic information systems (GIS), it enables us to gather georeferenced

data from remote sensing and other resources for use in analysis, modelling,

simulations, and visualization, and it assists us in making knowledgeable results (Roy

and Saha, 2019; Li et al., 2021; Kothyari et al., 2021, 2022). Now, Remote sensing

and GIS are used to create a landslide inventory map as well as thematic maps

relating to landslide occurrences in the study region. The study area is in the

Himalayan region, where there are many places that are not physically accessible and

are prone to landslides. So remote sensing is the tool by which susceptible mapping of

landslide can be done easily (Yalcin et al., 2011; Anbalagan et al., 2015; Zhao and Lu,

2018; Gupta et al., 2022). High-resolution spatial data sets, GIS, remote sensing, and

advanced computing are making it feasible to automate some aspects of landslide

hazard and susceptibility mapping, reducing the need for manual fieldwork in

identifying vulnerable areas (Ilanloo, 2011; Kannaujiya et al., 2019; Velayudham et

al., 2021). Landslides are usually causes by two parameters: initiating parameters (due

to human caused and geological process of the earth) and conditioning parameters

(surface topographic or slope stability) (Sonker et al., 2021) and these parameters are

responsible for the occurrence of landslide events. These parameters contain different

factors such as geology, rainfall, geomorphology, soil, topographic roughness index,

distance to roads, distance to faults, earthquake magnitude, gravity anomaly, LULC,

NDVI etc. These various factors cannot all play the same role in determining

landslides (Sujatha et al., 2012; Shahabi and Hashim, 2015).

Several studies on the prediction of landslides and the associated damage are

available. Studies on landslide displacement prediction can roughly be partitioned

based on the duration and prediction method into three groups (Xu et al., 2011). The

empirical approach involving the landslide displacement rate was used to generate

initial prediction models, which were then improved by comparing the modeled to

field monitoring data (Sidle et al., 1985).

The statistical approach models, such as the Verhulst (Long et al., 2008),

Verhulst inverse function (Belle et al., 2014), golden section, Markov chain prediction

(Zhao et al., 2013), and time-series (Mazzanti et al., 2011) then improved landslide

deformation prediction.

The intelligent analysis and prediction approach, which emerged in the 1990s,

involves artificial intelligence-based nonlinear theories, which produce data-driven

models for systematic prediction of landslide deformation (Korup and Stolle, 2014).

2.1.8 Runoff and Soil Erosion Modelling

Runoff and erosion rates predicted from models are important quantitative

indicators for ecosystem health and a tool for assessing the effectiveness of

conservation practices. The need for prediction technology is paralleled by the need

for decision tools and information delivery mechanisms.

2.2.1 Anaylsis and Modelling Techniques

Models produced using existing landslide displacement prediction methods are

based mainly on geological monitoring data (e.g., reservoir water level, rainfall, and

landslide displacement) to predict future displacement (Zhang et al., 2015). Models

including the Gray (GM) (Huang et al., 2017), extreme learning machine (ELM)

(Bernardie et al., 2014), and support vector machine (SVM) (Lian et al., 2014)
involve different neural networks (Bergstra and Bengio, 2012; Hochreiter and

Schmidhuber, 1997) (e.g., back propagation (BPNN), recurrent (RNN), etc.) and have

generated varying prediction results. In fact, different models are associated with

advantages and drawbacks. The GM, for example, involves a simple structure but the

prediction accuracy is unsatisfactory, while the ELM is fast and requires little training

data, and the BPNN commonly produces an unsatisfactory fitting performance for

complex nonlinear curves.

The support vector regression (SVR) model is based on the machine learning

theory, and it involves few training samples and a simple structure. Its prediction

performance is better than that of a conventional neural network model, and thus, it is

suitable for landslide displacement prediction involving a short monitoring period.

SVR parameter search methods include the following: particle swarm optimization

(PSO), genetic algorithm (GA), grid search (GS), and random search (RS). The GA

and PSO are heuristic algorithms involving complex operations, while the GS

algorithm encompasses all possible solutions for a given parameter range, and thus, it

exhibits a higher classification accuracy. Compared to other methods, the RS

algorithm is associated with a comparable prediction performance and it is

computationally inexpensive (Wen et al., 2017).

The evolution of landslide displacement is influenced by many factors

involving complex relationships that are difficult to characterize accurately.

Therefore, in data-driven multivariate prediction models, time series decomposition

methods are commonly introduced to simplify the problem (Xu et al., 2011). The

displacement time series is decomposed into parts associated with varying data
characteristics such as, the trend, periodic, and random terms, and varied models serve

in forecasting the decomposition terms. The prediction accuracy of a model increases

as the factors considered are increased. The moving average method (Huang et al.,

1998; Xu et al., 2011) and the empirical mode decomposition (EMD) (Liu et al.,

2020) are methods commonly employed for decomposition in hydrodynamic

landslide displacement prediction studies that produce satisfactory results. However,

controlling the decomposition terms obtained by these methods is challenging, and

therefore, correlations between different factors and the displacement decomposition

terms are poor. In addition, the physical meaning of each decomposition term is

inadequately explained using these methods (Dragomiretskiy and Zosso, 2014). The

variational mode decomposition (VMD) method (Wang and Min, 2014) employed in

the present study resolves these shortcomings. Similar to the EMD, the VMD is a

signal processing method suitable for handling non-smooth and non-linear signals. It

was recently applied at the displacement decomposition stage of landslide

deformation prediction (Dragomiretskiy and Zosso, 2014) and produced good results.

2.2.2 Geotechnical Analysis

The rock mass attributes were assessed using field and laboratory experiments,

and the slope stability in the Cham-Shir Dam Power Plant pit was analyzed using the

limit equilibrium method and a numerical model. (Faramarzi et al. 2017)

The study by (Mehta Et.al 2020) analyzed the reasons and factors contributing

to landslides across NH-205 in Himachal Pradesh, India. The researchers advised

appropriate strategies for stabilizing the slopes. The methodology employed in this

study included geotechnical examinations, field observations, and laboratory testing

of soil samples. Integrating (L. Holcombe, 2014) into a landslip early warning system

involved incorporating it with the limit-equilibrium model.

Analytical models employing concept of Finite Element Methods (FEM) have

emerged as significant tools to carry out the prediction on the geogrid reinforced soil

systems. They allow the calculation of interactions and response prediction under

different loading situations, including the rainfall-related increase in pore water

pressure, which is an important landslide factor (Gamze, Leandro, 2016). Research

has demonstrated time and again the capabilities of numerical models in optimizing

geogrids whereby the effectiveness of assorted material characteristics and diverse

loads can be established, thereby increasing the safety of applications (Gholizadeh et

al., 2016).

2.2.4 Integrated Approaches

Despite the increasing landslide frequency and associated damages that are

exacerbated by climate change, an integrated risk assessment is lacking for the region.

The aim of the present study is to utilize the freely available geospatial and extensive

field data and integrate these data in a semi-quantitative approach for landslide risk

assessment. The proposed study is initiated with quantitative data for hazard and

vulnerability assessments, and the derived risk is classified into relative classes from

very high to very low risk levels. The developed methodology can be replicated in

other landslide-prone regions to assist in risk reduction.(Maqsoom, A. 2022)

2.3 Environmental Impact and Sustainability

Landslides occur throughout the world, and espe-cially in certain hotspots

(Nadim et al., 2006). Muchhas been written about landslide impacts on humanlives,

and on infrastructure. Little attention, how-ever, has been paid to landslide impacts on

thenatural environment (Schuster and Highland,2007). Even less consideration has

Pojar, 2007)

2.4 Legislation and Regulatory Framework

In general, landslide hazard assessment aims at answering to four questions:

what, where, when, and how does the phenomenon occur? Thus, the hazard may be

expressed as the occurrence of a particular type of landslide, including its volume,

runout, velocity (varying with the distance from the source area) and intensity for a

given time period (i.e., temporal frequency; (V. Catenacci, 1992)

2.5 Governance and Stakeholder Involvement

To address this natural hazard, global documents such as the IPCC

(Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change) reports, the Paris Agreement, the

United Nation’s Sustainable Development Goals, the Sendai Framework for Disaster

Risk Reduction 2015-203, and the Kyoto 2020 Commitment for Global Promotion of

Understanding and Reducing Landslide Disaster Risk emphasize multi-level and

comprehensive risk reduction measures (Aitsi-Selmi et al. 2016; Handmer et al. 2019;

Alcántara-Ayala and Sassa 2021; IPCC 2021). The key principle highlighted in these

measures is the inclusion of all levels of society to build resilience (Samuel and

Cornforth 2019). However, developing these joint societal efforts is not

straightforward. The commitment, intention, knowledge, experience, and resources of

all stakeholders are crucial (Matsuoka and Gonzales Rocha 2020). There is also a

need to elevate the role of local and scientific knowledge for disaster risk reduction

(DRR) as well as disaster risk management through enhanced communication and the

appropriate use of participatory methods. Effective landslide mitigation strategies,

such as modifying slope geometry, using chemical or biochemical agents to reinforce

slope material, installing structures, such as anchors, piles, and retaining walls,
grouting rock joints and fissures, diverting debris pathways, and rerouting surface and

underwater drainage (Dnr 2019; Mertens et al. 2016; Perera et al. 2018; Ferreira et al.

2022, Sharma et al. 2024) require a strong understanding of both local geography and

local risk (Ndlela 2019; Shayan et al. 2022). Community representatives play a

particularly crucial role in hazard reduction through the preparation of risk maps and

the monitoring of landslide movement (Klimeš et al. 2019a, b). To enhance resilience,

a comprehensive understanding of local perceptions, alongside a scientific and

accurate understanding of risk, is vital for integrated planning and public awareness

(Alrawad et al. 2023; Keating 2020)

2.6 Best management and Adaptive Management

Data in respect of known landslide hazards and potential hazards: Spatial

distribution data in respect of landslide hazards (http://www.resdc.cn/data.aspx?

DATAID=290 (accessed on 20 December 2022)), published by the Resource and

Environment Science and Data Center, Institute of Geographic Sciences and Natural

Resources Research of the Chinese Academy of Sciences [45], were used. A total of

124 known landslide hazards in the study area were identified, and 102 of them were

retained after screening. These were used to train the deep learning model for adaptive

identification of potential landslide hazards. In addition, 56 potential landslide hazards

(with obvious deformation) in the study area were identified from the field

investigation data provided by Shandong GEO Surveying and Mapping Institute.

These were used to test the identification effect of the deep learning model. (Singh, A,

2021)
2.7 Features and Dimensions of Landslides

New remote sensing techniques have enabled the improvement in the

investigation of the Earth’s surface processes. Among these techniques, airborne laser

scanning (ALS) is characterised by its usefulness and effectiveness in providing

detailed information about surface topography (Tarolli 2014). ALS is now widely

applied in landslide studies globally and is undergoing rapid developments. In the

literature, there are many examples of using ALS data for various landslide

applications covering landslide detection (Chen et al. 2013; Pawluszek and

Borkowski 2016; Van Den Eeckhaut et al. 2012; Pawluszek et al. 2018), landslide

characterisation (Glenn et al. 2006; Goetz et al. 2014; McKean and Roering 2004;

Sato et al. 2007) and landslide susceptibility mapping (Ayalew et al. 2005; Bai et al.

2010; Chalkias et al. 2014; Ermini et al. 2005; Jebur et al. 2014; Mashari et al. 2012;

Pawluszek and Borkowski 2017; Pourghasemi et al. 2012).

2.7.1 Factors Contributing to Slope Failures

According to Cruden (2003), “Landslide is defined as rock or debris

movement or slope earth down”. Ground characteristics, sub surface soil

properties, quick variations in ground water table along the slope easily trigger the

landslides. The causes of slope failure belong to three main groups:  Sub soil

strength: Steep and high slopes require more strength to uphold as compared to low or

medium height slopes. With the passage of time, sometimes, the soil becomes weak

and this also gives rise to instability.  Pore water pressure: In peak monsoon

seasons effective stress decreases, which lowers down the shearing resistance at

the slip surface. That is why slope fails after heavy downpour.  External impacts:
Earthquake forces, scouring, and wrong cutting at the toe put the slope at the verge of

failure. These categorizations are in actual the work of Bromhead (1998).

Regarding construction failures, Gue and Cheah (2008) reported that either

the workmanship, materials and/or short of supervision contributed to 8% of the

total cases of landslides. About 20% of the landslides investigated are caused by a

combination of design and construction errors. For landslides in residual soil slopes,

the slope failures caused by geological features only account for 6% which is same as

the percentage contributed by a lack of maintenance. It is also mentioned by Gue and

Cheah that the geological features, such as discontinuities in residual soils particularly

sedimentary formations are not easy to identify. Most of these geological features can

only be noticed after exposing the slopes during excavation. In this context, it is

suitable to take out confirmatory geological slope mapping of the exposed slopes

after excavation by an experienced engineering geologist or geotechnical

engineer to spot any geological discontinuities that may contribute to potential

failure mechanisms, namely planar sliding, anticline sliding, active-passive wedges,

etc. (Gue and Cheah, 2008)

2.7.2 Factors that Cause Increased Shear Strength in Slope

Xiong et al. (2011) found that the influence of peak strength of coal-bearing

soil on confining pressure in saturated state is greater than that in natural state. Hu et

al. (2010), Li et al. (2006b), Cao et al. (2008) studied the influence of water content

on the shear strength of coal measure soil and the rheological characteristics of weak

structural plane in coal measures. There are many factors that cause slope instability,

mainly including rainfall, earthquake and human activities (Chen, 2005; Wang et al.,

2013). Especially in rainfall, the weak interlayer is easy to form a sliding surface,

which will lead to slope deformation (Li et al., 2018).

There are many factors that affect the stability of slope, which can be divided

into internal factors and external factors. From the internal, there are factors of

geology: rock genetic types, the mineral component composition, geotechnical and

structural strength. The slope is composed of hard rock and soil compaction, mineral

stability, good weathering resistance, high strength, its stability is generally good, and

poor. The structure type of rock mass, the shape of the structure surface and the

relationship with the slope surface are the controlling factors of rock slope stability,

and sometimes there are discontinuities in the rock mass, which is easy to improve the

stability of the slope. From the environmental aspects to consider there will be

weathering, rain, earthquakes and other effects. Shear strength of rock are weakened

by weathering, fractured increased, expanded, affected the shape and sloped gradient,

and water permeability increases, so easy to surface water intrusion changing the

dynamics of groundwater. Rainfall is the main factor that causes the slope to be

destroyed. It is easy to soften the soil, reduce the intensity, increase the surface

porosity, and reduce the stability of the slope. Earthquake leads to decrease of the

slope stability is mainly the additional horizontal earthquake force generated by the

earthquake, when the direction of action of the additional horizontal earthquake force

is adverse, slope sliding force increase, sliding surface antislide force decreases.

Meanwhile, the hydrological conditions also have impact on the geology,

groundwater mainly by actingon the vertical fracture, producing horizontal thrust, the

rockslope to the bottom, buoyancy also causes reduced stability,reduce friction, rocky

are deteriorated, and decreasing the stability. (Linlin Sha 2016)