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Engineering Measures for the Hazard Reduction of Landslide Dams

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Natural and Artificial Rockslide Dams

Part of the book series: Lecture Notes in Earth Sciences ((LNEARTH,volume 133))

Abstract

Landslide dams cause two types of floods: (1) upstream flooding as the impoundment fills, and (2) downstream flooding resulting from catastrophic failure of the dam. A landslide dam may last for a few hours or for thousands of years, depending on: (1) rate of inflow to the lake (2) size and shape of the dam (3) physical character of the materials that comprise the dam, and (4) rate of seepage through the dam. This paper discusses (1) modes of flooding resulting from landslide dams (2) characteristics of failure of landslide dams (3) mitigative (i.e., remedial) measures used to reduce flood hazards from landslide dams, and (4) case histories in which mitigative measures have been used, both successfully and unsuccessfully. Mitigative engineering measures can reduce the hazard associated with landslide dams by preventing the failure of most landslide dams, or at least by reducing the severity of possible flooding.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. U.S. Geological Survey, Denver, CO, 80225, USA

    Robert L. Schuster

  2. Landslide Research Programme, Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of Waterloo, Waterloo, ON, Canada, N2L 3G1

    Stephen G. Evans

Authors
  1. Robert L. Schuster
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  2. Stephen G. Evans
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Correspondence to Robert L. Schuster .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Dept. Earth & Environmental Sciences, Landslide Research Program, University of Waterloo, University Avenue W. 200, Waterloo, N2L 3G1, Ontario, Canada

    Stephen G. Evans

  2. Dept. Geophysics, Geological Survey of Norway, Trondheim, 7491, Norway

    Reginald L. Hermanns

  3. Institute of the Geospheres Dynamics, Russian Academy of Sciences, Leninskiy Avenue 38, Moscow, 119334, Russian Federation

    Alexander Strom

  4. Dipto. Scienze della Terra, Università Roma, La Sapienza, Piazzale Aldo Moro 5, Roma, 00185, Italy

    Gabriele Scarascia-Mugnozza

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Schuster, R.L., Evans, S.G. (2011). Engineering Measures for the Hazard Reduction of Landslide Dams. In: Evans, S., Hermanns, R., Strom, A., Scarascia-Mugnozza, G. (eds) Natural and Artificial Rockslide Dams. Lecture Notes in Earth Sciences, vol 133. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-04764-0_2

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