An innovative solution for groundwater drainage and erosion control for slope stabilization

Due to the influence of recent global climate change, landslide disasters due to rainfall are occurring frequently in Vietnam. Especially in mountainous areas, there are many cases where roads carved into mountains serve as the primary logistics routes. If landslide disaster occurs on the road, there is a concern that the logistics of the area surrounding the road will be temporarily interrupted, which could have a significant impact on people’s lives and economy. Landslide disasters can be classified into slope failures, slide, and flows. Each of landslide disasters has different characteristics and damage patterns. However, the most common in Vietnam is slope landslides, and a common direct cause of these incidents is the fluctuation of the groundwater level due to rainfall. Therefore, the groundwater level should be controlled to improve the safety of slopes. This study introduces an innovative approach designed to manage the rainwater infiltration as well as quickly eliminate groundwater from the slope. The approach has been implemented to several practical projects in both Japan and Vietnam. The promising findings demonstrate the efficiency of the proposed countermeasure in slope stabilization and erosion control under consideration of the impacts of the climate change.