Mehmood Q., Khan A., Chen J., Rahman G., Nasrullah & Tosunla H., 2023: Susceptibility assessment of landslide using Analytical Hierarchy Process and Weighted Overlay Analysis, along N-75 highway, Pakistan. Acta Geologica Slovaca, 15, 1, 23–34.

Susceptibility assessment of landslide using Analytical Hierarchy Process and Weighted Overlay Analysis, along N-75 highway, Pakistan

Qaiser Mehmood^1,3 , Asad Khan² , Jianping Chen³ , Gohar Rahman³ , Nasrullah⁴ & Hatice Tosunlu¹

¹Department of Geological Engineering, Cukurova University, 01330, Adana, Turkey; qaiserktk013@gmail.com
²Department of Geology, FATA University, FR Kohat 26100, Pakistan
³College of Construction Engineering, Jilin University, Changchun, 130026, China
⁴Department of Earth Sciences, Karakoram International University Gilgit, Pakistan

Abstract

The N-75 highway has a strategic and socio-economic importance in North Pakistan and is prone to frequent disruption by landslides. For landslide mitigation strategies of this highway, comprehensive landslide inventory and susceptibility assessment are rarely available. This study presents the application of Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP) and Weighted Overlay Analysis (WOA) models for the assessment of landslide susceptibility zonation map of the area. To perform these models, nine usual causative factors of landslides (slope, aspect, curvature, lithology, normalised differentiation vegetation index, rainfall, and distance from faults, roads, and streams) were taken into account. For the preparation of thematic maps and other data layers, Digital Elevation Models (DEM), existing geological maps, and authorized data were being processed in GIS environment (ArcMap 10.3). The output landslide susceptibility maps of the study area were classified into five (i.e. very low, low, moderate, high, and very high) landslide susceptibility classes. The competencies of the landslide susceptibility zonation maps derived from AHP and WOA models were validated using Area under Curve method. The developed susceptibility maps can be adopted for land use planning and landslide mitigation strategies.

Key words: geohazards, landslide susceptibility assessment, GIS and Remote Sensing, analytical hierarchy process, weighted overlay analysis, Pakistan

Manuscript received: 2023-02-08

Revised version accepted: 2023-04-24