The combination of PS InSAR techniques and classical monitoring methods for landslide investigations within the GMES service portfolio

Abstract

Monitoring and mapping of active or dormant landslides as well as vulnerable slopes can greatly contribute to both the mitigation of landslide hazards and reduction of their impact. Classical landslide surveying techniques have recently been complemented by satellite data analysis, namely by SAR interferometry. In particular the Permanent Scatterer Interferometry (PSI) technique can be considered complementary to conventional geological and geomorphological studies due to its capacity to detect small displacements over long time periods and large areas. The integration of both the 'classical' and the SAR based methods for monitoring surface displacements at regional scale have been developed and tested within the framework of different commercial and public founded projects, including SLAM, TERRAFIRMA and PREVIEW. Based on these achievements, landslide inventories of past events carried out over large areas and landslide monitoring of specific built-up areas have been selected to become pan-European GMES services to be implemented within the Emergency Response SAFER (Services and Applications for Emergency Response). One of the SAFER's test regions is the Autonomous Province of Bolzano (Nothern Italy). Landslide Inventory Mapping (LIM) based on SAR interferometry, landslide archives and other ancillary data will be carried out in cooperation with the provincial geological service as main end-user. The results will support hazard zone mapping, the analysis of mass movements in construction zones of large objects (tunnels, bridges, dams etc.) and the choice of trigonometric points.