The application of the geotechnical methods and satellite tracking data for landslide studies

Abstract

The rapid development in Malaysia such as housing scheme at hilly terrain, construction of highways, mining activities and river bank instability especially in town areas such as Kuala Lumpur and Penang has triggered many landslide disasters. Since 1970 until 2002, more than 300 landslides have occurred throughout Malaysia and at least 30 landslides reported in Klang Valley alone. Most of the tragedies were largely triggered by incidences of heavy rainfall during the monsoon season. A landslide can be defined as the movement of the sand slope, rock and organic sources due to the gravity attraction. The landslides are caused by weather and external mechanism like heavy rain, human activities and slope erosion. Generally, there are various types of investigations and instrumentations used in monitoring the landslide’s phenomena. The main investigations in landslide monitoring are geological structure, satellite tracking data (GPS) observation and geotechnical method.