Landslide susceptibility maps are vital for disaster management and for planning development activities in the mountainous country like Nepal as landslides pose a serious threat to life and property. Krishna Devkota et al. (2012) conducted an assessment of landslide susceptibility using geographic information system (GIS) by incorporating 12 landslide conditioning factors such as slope gradient; slope aspect; altitude; plan curvature; lithology; land use; distance from faults, rivers and roads; topographic wetness index; stream power index; and sediment transport index. They mapped a total of 321 landslides. They argue that the susceptibility maps can be used as basic tools in land management and planning future construction projects in this area to safeguard the life and property from landslides. With a cautionary note, the research concludes while the low susceptibility zones are relatively safe for the development of infrastructures, the high and very high susceptibility zones require further engineering geological and geotechnical considerations.

Full paper: DOI: 10.1007/s11069-012-0347-6