Landslide Potential in Santo Domingo De Heredia, Costa Rica, Central America

Abstract

This paper reports results from a survey of landslide potential in the canton (county) of Santo Domingo de Heredia, Costa Rica. This canton, like much of Central America, is located in a tropical region with abrupt topography where the potential for landslides is relatively high. A deadly landslide occurred in this canton in 2008. Due to this reality, it is important to investigate the landslide potential in the canton more broadly. This action study will contribute to the efforts of local authorities to manage disaster risk in the study area. The purpose of the work is to spatially identify the areas at risk to this hazard, with the long-term goal of reducing the human vulnerability and enhancing protective actions for people living near the zones at high risk for landslide. The Mora-Varhson-Mora methodology, which takes into account lithology, humidity, slope, seismicity and precipitation to estimate landslide potential, was used to carry out the work. The most important results are that the landslide potential overall in Santo Domingo is low but that there are specific communities with high risk; these include Fatima, Monte Carmelo, Calle Vieja and La Presa.