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Response of ancient landslide stability to a debris flow: a multi-hazard chain in China

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Abstract

On June 17, 2020, a debris flow dammed lake was formed in Meilong gully, Danba County, China, and a subsequent outburst flood led to the reactivation of the Aniangzhai ancient landslide. This new type of multi-hazard chain (MHC) has attracted widespread attention. This study aims to introduce the formation and evolution processes associated with this novel MHC and develop proposed countermeasures based on field investigations and numerical simulations. We show that this type of MHC comprises five stages: (1) debris flow blocking a river; (2) formation of a barrier dam and lake; (3) lake outburst; (4) revival of an ancient landslide; and (5) flood-induced debris flow. Among these, stage (4) brings particular uncertainty to the risk assessment of the MHC. For translational landslides, the erosion associated with an outburst flood may continuously reduce their stability, while for rotational landslides, their stability may instead increase. By analyzing the formation conditions of the debris flow, criteria required for river blockage, deformation history of the Aniangzhai landslide, and changes in geomorphology, we conclude that the risk of an MHC at this locality may increase in the future. Both rigid dams and flexible barriers could be effective measures to address these risks. Our field investigations and remote sensing analyses indicate that other watersheds in the study area are also exposed to the risk of a similar MHC; this requires detailed future analysis.

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Acknowledgements

The authors would like to express our sincere appreciation to the anonymous reviewers and editors for their valuable comments and suggestions. We would like to thank Guotao Zhang and Shujian Yi from the Institute of Mountain Hazards and Environment, the Chinese Academy of Sciences, and Chenxing Wang from Chang’an University for useful discussions. We thank David Wacey, PhD, from Liwen Bianji (Edanz) (www.liwenbianji.cn), for editing the English text of a draft of this manuscript.

Funding

This study was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant Nos. 41941017 and 42101088), Second Tibetan Plateau Scientific Expedition and Research Program (STEP) (Grant No. 2019QZKK0906), Research Fund for Young Scientists (B) of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (Grant No. E0R2210210), and Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Universities, CHD (Grant No. 300102261712).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. State Key Laboratory of Hydroscience and Engineering, Tsinghua University, Beijing, 100084, China

    Jian Guo & Yao Li

  2. Department of Geological Engineering, Chang’an University, Xi’an, 710064, China

    Jian Guo & Chenxing Wang

  3. Key Laboratory of Mountain Hazards and Earth Surface Process/ Institute of Mountain Hazards and Environment, Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), Chengdu, 610041, China

    Peng Cui, Mingyue Qin, Jiao Wang & Yao Li

  4. China-Pakistan Joint Research Center On Earth Sciences, CAS-HEC, Islamabad, 45320, Pakistan

    Peng Cui & Jiao Wang

  5. University of Chinese Academy of Science, Beijing, 100049, China

    Peng Cui, Mingyue Qin & Yao Li

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  1. Jian Guo
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  3. Mingyue Qin
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Correspondence to Peng Cui.

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Guo, J., Cui, P., Qin, M. et al. Response of ancient landslide stability to a debris flow: a multi-hazard chain in China. Bull Eng Geol Environ 81, 273 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10064-022-02745-5

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