Abstract
Abstract Landslides are one of the natural hazards, which have significant negative effects on both humans and the environment. Thus, slope stability analyses and stabilization processes are necessary to obviate or mitigate landslides. In this study, the effect of groundwater level fluctuations and the construction of a building (i.e., a recently built church) on slope stability was investigated on the eastern slope of the Avas Hill, at Miskolc, in Northeast Hungary. Soil movements and groundwater levels were monitored and geological and slope stability models were constructed. Furthermore, the possibility of constructing a retaining system was evaluated to minimize the detrimental effects of both groundwater level fluctuations and the construction of the church. The findings showed that the fluctuation in groundwater levels had a destructive effect on slope stability due to pore-water pressure, which decreased the soil strength of the slope and slope stability. On the other hand, the church added an external load onto the underlying soil leading to an increase in slope instability. Hence, we suggested constructing retaining structures such as gravity retaining walls to increase the soil shear strength and enhance slope stability in the long term.
Highlights
Natural hazards, such as landslides, volcanic eruptions, floods, and earthquakes, are natural phenomena that occur without any human interference
The artificial factor is extensively represented by anthropogenic interactions, which are related to increased population, plantation, deforestation, quarrying, mining, and construction activities as a result of growing urbanization [12,13]
Compared to the measurements conducted in April 2018, the recent measurements (Figure 5) show that the soil movement was more effective on the uppermost first 5 m of the soil
Summary
Natural hazards, such as landslides, volcanic eruptions, floods, and earthquakes, are natural phenomena that occur without any human interference. They have significant negative effects on both humans and the environment as well. In the last few years, many disasters resulting in thousands of deaths, injuries, and economic losses were caused by landslides [2]. They occur when a part of the natural slope becomes unstable, and moves when it fails to carry its weight. The groundwater level plays a significant role in the evaluation and interpretation of landslide stability. The removal of deep-rooted vegetation binding colluviums to the bedrock followed by construction processes on the slopes are
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