dw.com
Landslides: Global Impacts and Prevention
Landslides, a frequent geological hazard, caused over 18,000 deaths and affected 4.8 million people between 1998 and 2017, with events in Sudan, Papua New Guinea, and Indonesia in 2024 and 2025 highlighting the global impact.
- What preventative measures can be implemented to mitigate landslide risks?
- Landslide prevention strategies focus on countering the forces that cause them. This includes improving drainage, constructing stabilizing structures like retaining walls, and creating diversion paths for debris. Avoiding construction near vulnerable areas, as advised by the US Geological Survey, is crucial in reducing human-induced risks.
- How do factors like climate change and human activity contribute to landslides?
- Climate change, particularly rising temperatures and melting permafrost, increases landslide risk by destabilizing slopes. Human activities, such as construction near steep slopes and mining, often exacerbate the problem by altering natural drainage and slope stability, as seen in events in the US and India.
- What were the most significant impacts of landslides globally between 1998 and 2017?
- Between 1998 and 2017, landslides affected approximately 4.8 million people and resulted in over 18,000 fatalities worldwide, according to the World Health Organization. These figures underscore the significant human cost associated with this geological hazard.
Cognitive Concepts
Framing Bias
The article presents a relatively neutral overview of landslides, covering various aspects such as causes, types, geographic distribution, and prevention. While it highlights the devastating impact of landslides with examples from different countries, it avoids overtly blaming any specific group or entity. The focus remains on the geological phenomenon itself and the measures to mitigate its effects. The inclusion of statistics from organizations like the World Bank and WHO lends credibility to the presentation.
Language Bias
The language used is largely objective and descriptive. Terms like "devastating," "torrential rains," and "buried alive" are used, but these are factual descriptions of events rather than emotionally charged language intended to sway the reader's opinion. The overall tone is informative rather than sensational.
Bias by Omission
While the article provides a comprehensive overview, some potential areas for further exploration could include: a deeper dive into the socioeconomic factors contributing to landslide vulnerability in different regions, a more detailed explanation of the effectiveness of different prevention methods, and a discussion of the long-term societal impacts of landslides beyond immediate casualties. However, these omissions do not significantly distort the overall message.
Sustainable Development Goals
Landslides disproportionately affect countries with poor infrastructure, exacerbating existing inequalities. The article highlights incidents in countries like Sudan and Papua New Guinea, suggesting a correlation between limited resources and higher vulnerability to landslide disasters. This disparity in resilience to natural hazards contributes to the widening gap between developed and developing nations.