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Monitoring and engineering geology analysis of the Zhangmu landslide in Tibet, China

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Abstract

The Zhangmu landslide is a large ancient landslide located on the China–Nepal border. Many local slope failure events occurred at this site in the past, posing a direct threat to people and property. One hundred borehole logs (total drilling length of almost 5500 m) were collected to investigate the inner structure of the landslide. Electron spin resonance (ESR) dating and width measurement of annual tree rings were used to determine the reactivation time of different parts of the landslide. A bromide tracer experiment and measurements of the distribution of borehole groundwater were combined to analyze the flow field in the study area. The alluvial stratum in the study area indicates a long-term stable deposition environment. Based on the distribution of the alluvium stratum, we identified the area least prone to landslide damage. Both the surface and underground deformation characteristics were analyzed based on displacement monitoring data from 2006, 2011, and 2013. Combining the monitoring result with the lithology and precipitation, we found that landslide reactivation is closely related to precipitation, suggesting that the reactivation began in the old shear zone.

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Acknowledgments

This research was supported by the Regional Collaboration and Innovation Project between the Chinese Academy of Sciences and Tibet, titled the ‘Geologic exploration, risk assessment and comprehensive prevention and control of Zhangmu Landslide’, as well as by the State Key National Program of Natural Science of China (Grant no. 41030750). We would like to express our deep appreciation for their support.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Key Laboratory of Shale Gas and Geoengineering, Institute of Geology and Geophysics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 19 Beitucheng West Road, Chaoyang District, Beijing, 100029, China

    Fengshan Ma, Jie Wang & Kuo Ding

  2. Institute of Mountain Hazards and Environment, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Chengdu, 610041, China

    Zhanlu Li

  3. College of Architecture and Civil Engineering, North China University of Technology, 5 Jinyuanzhuang Road, Shijingshan District, Beijing, 100144, China

    Jie Wang

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  1. Fengshan Ma
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  2. Zhanlu Li
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  3. Jie Wang
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  4. Kuo Ding
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Correspondence to Jie Wang.

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Ma, F., Li, Z., Wang, J. et al. Monitoring and engineering geology analysis of the Zhangmu landslide in Tibet, China. Bull Eng Geol Environ 76, 855–873 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10064-016-0901-7

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10064-016-0901-7

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