GIS-based regional prediction of landslides in Wanzhou County, the three Gorges Reservoir area

This paper presents a geo-statistical method to study the spatial relationship between landslides and their inner-factors on the regional scale in order to predict the regional susceptibility of landslides. The approach is based on digital databases, along with such methods as statistics, spatial analysis based on Geographic Information System, and interactive mapping. The prediction map of study area is created by overlaying the different spatial contribution map of each factor combined with the prediction model by the technology of GIS. In this prediction map, the authors classify the susceptibility of the landslides into 4 levels including high, medium, low and safe. The approach can be used not only to analyze the general characteristics of such a relationship, but also to depict its spatial distribution and development. The research results can also provide a sound basis for the landuse and town planning in the Three Gorges Reservoir area.