Climate change could bring about more landside disasters, experts say

Changing weather patterns render past risk assessments unreliable

Following a devastating landslide in the small village of Johnsons Landing, Canada, experts urge the province British Columbia to upgrade its slide hazard mapping to account for climate change, reports The Vancouver Sun. Establishing early warning systems in the high-risk areas and distributing emergency contact details are some of the measures that could be implemented. In addition, landslide hazard mapping should be updated to allow for climate change and extreme weather events. Japan is cited as an example where camera and motion sensor supported early warning systems warn when debris moves down a river channel and defensive structures such as debris ponds or channels to direct debris away from settlements are employed as well.