Working with Landslide Inventories and Susceptibility Maps in Lower Austria

Abstract

The landslide inventory is an essential tool for working with landslides and related preventive and remedial measures in practice, and for the development of landslide susceptibility, hazard or risk maps. In Lower Austria, the regional Geological Survey has been developing its landslide inventory since 1953. In 2000 a digital version replaced the paper archive. For every geological or geotechnical report issued by the Survey the inventory is consulted. In 2007–2008 a pilot project was set up to produce the first landslide susceptibility maps. Three contracted organizations presented their proposals for the map design, using a heuristic approach, on the example of 12 selected municipalities. The results and the advantages as well as drawbacks of the method are discussed.