Landslide Hazard Mapping Using GIS : A Case of Pelakot VDC, Syangja

Landslides are one of the major natural disasters in Nepal and responsible for loss of property and lives. Landslide hazard mapping is an important tool for disaster management. The landslide hazard maps provide information about landslide vulnerability condition of certain region, which is beneficial for the community in planning, mitigating, and avoiding the danger. Various methods of hazard assessment have been proposed and demonstrated in Nepal. The use of Geographic Information Systems (GIS) for landslide hazard mapping has been increasing constantly in recent years in Nepal. In this study, GIS technology was applied to investigate zonation of the landslide hazards of the Pelakot VDC, Syagnja, Nepal. The Village Development Committee (VDC) is one of the susceptible areas to landslides in Syangja. In this particular area, several landslides were occurred. The method of landslide zonation used in this study was weighted overlay method. The causative factors include slope, landuse, geology, distance to drainage, distance to fault. The study of the area has been classified into five categories of relative landslide hazard namely, very low, low, moderate, and high. As a result, it can be concluded that 7% of this particular area has a high landslide hazard.