Landslide Risk Reduction in Poland: From Landslide Inventory to Improved Mitigation and Landuse Practice in Endangered Areas

Poland is moderately prone to natural hazards, yet floods and landslides are key threats resulting in major economic losses. Like floods, landslides here are generally triggered by precipitation. Landslides that occurred in the Flysch Carpathians and at their foreland in between 1997 and 2010 were widespread and particularly devastating. These disasters pointed to a vital need for an improved system of landslide data acquisition, hazard awareness building and developing mitigation measures. An initially developed landslide damage recovery programme evolved into a risk reduction strategy. Nowadays, the core is formed by the ongoing project named Landslide Counteracting System LCS (SOPO in Polish) combined with DBMS, meant to register landslides on a country-wide basis. However, the second streamline is focused on structural remediation measures that aim at maintaining stability and functioning of public infrastructure for foreseeable future conditions. For that, the task-oriented engineering geology documentation has to be approved by Polish Geological Survey with respect to reliability of landslide recognition and feasibility of proposed treatments. This provides technical credibility which was not present in years past.

Information on spatial distribution of landslides is, by law, to be considered in regional land use planning documents. To avoid unnecessary spending, municipal authorities draw upon previously experienced landslide threats and resultant damages, and create local management policies which impose restrictions on construction in landslide-prone terrains. Finally, risk reduction strategy involves landslide monitoring for warning purposes or remediation performance.