Climate change, land use to raise landslide risk in Karnataka Western Ghats: study
A new study published in Scientific Reports warns that landslide susceptibility and risk across Karnataka's Western Ghats could rise sharply by 2050 due to climate change and land use shifts. Using machine…
The Story in Brief
A new study published in Scientific Reports warns that landslide susceptibility and risk across Karnataka's Western Ghats could rise sharply by 2050 due to climate change and land use shifts. Using machine learning, researchers modelled future rainfall patterns and land cover changes under four climate scenarios across 45,000 sq km in seven districts, including Uttara Kannada, Kodagu, Chikkamagaluru, and Shivamogga, a region that has seen over 1,200 rainfall-triggered landslides.
Unlike past studies that treat landslide causes as static, this future-oriented assessment finds the biggest risk increases along major transport corridors and in densely populated parts of Uttara Kannada, Kodagu, and Chikkamagaluru. The study, reported by Mongabay-India, recommends that these susceptibility and risk maps guide infrastructure planning, land use decisions, and disaster risk reduction before the next extreme rainfall event.
The Indian Opinion
Every monsoon brings heartbreaking images of hillsides collapsing and families buried alive, yet development in the Western Ghats proceeds with little regard for the slope beneath. Lazy narratives pit environment against economy, but this study shows both are at risk if zoning and building rules remain as porous as the soil. The real test is whether state governments will update hazard maps and enforce no-build zones along the identified corridors before another landslide becomes a statistic.
Source: india.mongabay.com
This story was synthesised by AI from the source linked above.
