Geography

Geography

Vulnerability of Iranian tourism villages in terms of Landslide hazard using GIS

Document Type : Research Article

Authors
Hojat Sadeghi 1
Fahad Javan 2
1 Assistant professor. Faculty of Geographical Sciences and Planning, University of Isfahan, Isfahan, Iran.
2 Assistant professor, Department of Tourism Management, Faculty of Cultural Heritage, Handicrafts and Tourism, University of Mazandaran, Babolsar, Iran.
10.22034/jiga.2025.2055364.1385
Abstract
Extended Abstract
Introduction
Landslide is one of the most important natural hazards that can have devastating effects on human settlements, especially in rural and tourism areas. Considering the geographical characteristics of Iran and the expansion of tourism villages in Iran, it is essential to identify and analyze the vulnerability of these villages to landslides. The use of Geographic Information Systems (GIS) provides a powerful tool for assessing and managing these risks. The purpose of this research is to investigate and analyze the vulnerability of Iran tourism villages to landslide hazard using GIS. The results of this study can provide appropriate solutions for crisis management and increasing the resilience of tourism villages, as well as reducing damage to these villages and prioritizing them in terms of hazard at the macro level. In addition to contributing to the sustainable development of tourism, this research can help planners make optimal decisions to reduce landslide risks, considering the situation of villages in each region or province. Considering the importance of the issue, it seems necessary to address this issue from a scientific and practical point of view. Therefore, the basic question of the research is how vulnerable are the tourism villages of Iran in terms of the landslide hazard?
 
Methodology
The research method is applied in terms of purpose and based on nature, analytical-quantitative. Data analysis was performed based on spatial data in Arc GIS software. To assess the vulnerability of Iran tourism villages in terms of landslide hazard, in the first stage, the most important criteria in the field of zoning and identifying landslide areas were identified. Based on previous research, 9 criteria including slope (percentage), height (meters), erosion (degrees), soil type, land use type, precipitation (millimeters), distance from fault (meters), distance from waterways (meters), and distance from road (meters) were selected for this study. In the second stage, maps related to each criterion were prepared. In the third stage, according to the purpose of the research, weighting operations were applied to the maps within the framework of the analytic hierarchy process and layer standardization was performed. Next, the weight and importance of the criteria relative to each other were evaluated. Then, the weighted maps were combined by applying the weight of each layer using a weighted overlap algorithm, and the final map that identified the vulnerability and landslide risk zones was obtained.
 
Results and discussion
Explanation and analysis of the results indicate that slope and erosion are known as the most important factors affecting the occurrence of landslide. This indicates a direct dependence of ground instability on topographic conditions, especially in high-altitude areas with steep slopes where the potential for landslide is greater. The high impact of these factors indicates the need for land use management in susceptible areas and imposing restrictions on human activities such as road building and construction in such areas. On the other hand, the distribution of criteria weights shows that other environmental factors also play a significant role, but their impact is meaningful in combination and not independently. For example, in areas where heavy rainfall is accompanied by steep slopes, the probability of landslides increases significantly.
The results showed that 62.59 percent of the country's area is known as a very low risk area; 19.55 percent is a low risk area; 11.20 percent is a medium risk area; 21.5 percent is a high risk area; and 1.43 percent is a very high risk area in terms of landslide hazard. Based on the results, 25 Iran tourism villages with very high vulnerability and 113 villages with high vulnerability are at risk of landslides. Analysis of the area of ​​various vulnerable zones shows that 62 percent of the area of ​​tourism villages is located in very low-risk zones, but more than 13 percent of the villages are located in high- and very high-risk zones that require special attention and preventive measures. These villages, which are located in high and very high risk zones, include 25 villages, mainly located in the western and northern regions of the country and are at risk of more serious landslides due to specific climatic and geographical conditions. The results of a study of the vulnerability of Iran tourism villages to landslide risk indicate the unequal distribution of this hazard throughout the country. Most of the areas with high and very high vulnerability are located in the western and northern regions of the country, which have favorable characteristics for the development of tourism villages in terms of climate and environmental conditions. This indicates the co-occurrence of high density of tourism villages with high-risk areas, which is especially evident in areas with steep slopes and high rainfall. On the contrary, by moving towards the central and southern regions of the country, the level of vulnerability decreases, which is due to features such as drier climatic conditions, Less erosion, soil type and gentler slope in these areas.
 
Conclusion
Overall, to protect tourism villages and reduce landslide risks, it is essential to adopt management and preventive measures for these areas, especially high- and very high-risk villages. These measures can include appropriate programs to stabilize slopes, control soil erosion, enhance vegetation cover, as well as restrictions on the development of certain human activities in these sensitive areas. It is suggested that in addition to single-factor analysis, a comprehensive and multi-criteria approach be adopted in risk management studies to achieve more accurate results for reducing landslide losses.
Keywords
Hazards
landslide
tourism villages
GIS

Subjects

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Geography
Volume 23, Issue 84
Spring 2025
Pages 153-170