Abstract
Slope failures occur in open-pit mining areas worldwide, producing considerable damage in addition to economic loss. Identifying the triggering factors and detecting unstable slopes and precursory displacements —which can be achieved by exploiting remote sensing data— are critical for reducing their impact. Here we present a methodology that combines digital photogrammetry, satellite radar interferometry, and geo-mechanical modeling, to perform remote analyses of slope instabilities in open-pit mining areas. We illustrate this approach through the back analysis of a massive landslide that occurred in an active open-pit mine in southwest Spain in January 2019. Based on pre- and post-event high-resolution digital elevation models derived from digital photogrammetry, we estimate an entire sliding mass volume of around 14 million m3. Radar interferometry reveals that during the year preceding the landslide, the line of sight accumulated displacement in the slope reached − 5.7 and 4.6 cm in ascending and descending geometry, respectively, showing two acceleration events clearly correlated with rainfall in descending geometry. By means of 3D and 2D stability analyses we located the slope instability, and remote sensing monitoring led us to identify the likely triggers of failure. Las Cruces event can be attributed to delayed and progressive failure mechanisms triggered by two factors: (i) the loss of historical suction due to a pore-water pressure increase driven by rainfall and (ii) the strain-softening behavior of the sliding material. Finally, we discuss the potential of this methodological approach either to remotely perform post-event analyses of mining-related landslides and evaluate potential triggering factors or to remotely identify critical slopes in mining areas and provide pre-alert warning.
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Acknowledgements
The photos taken on 25 January 2019 at Las Cruces open-pit mine were provided by Ecologistas en Acción Sevilla. First author shows gratitude for the working contract arranged with HEMAV SL for the development of the project and second author for the PhD student contract BES-2014-069076.
Funding
This work was supported by the Regional Administration of Madrid (Comunidad de Madrid) in the framework of the Industrial PhD Project GEODRON (IND2017/AMB-7789). It was also partially funded by the U-GEOHAZ project, co-funded by the European Commission, Directorate-General for Humanitarian Aid and Civil Protection (ECHO), under the call UCPM-2017-PP-AG, and E-SHAPE project co-funded by the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation program under grant agreements 820852.
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López-Vinielles, J., Ezquerro, P., Fernández-Merodo, J.A. et al. Remote analysis of an open-pit slope failure: Las Cruces case study, Spain. Landslides 17, 2173–2188 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10346-020-01413-7
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10346-020-01413-7