Landslide experts from world over in Ljubljana

Ljubljana, 30 May - More than 600 participants from over 50 countries have convened in Slovenia's capital for the 4th World Landslide Forum. Until Thursday they will discuss landslide research and risk reduction for advancing culture of living with natural hazards.

Ljubljana
Yueping Yin, president of the International Consortium on Landslides, addresses the opening of the 4th World Landslide Forum.
Photo: Nebojša Tejić/STA

Yunnan, China
Landslide experts from all over the world meeting in Ljubljana.
File photo: Xinhua/STA

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The forum is Slovenia's contribution to the implementation of the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction in 2015-2030, endorsed by UN member states in Japan's Sendai in 2015.

The event is being organised by the International Consortium on Landslides (ICL), International Programme on Landslides, University of Ljubljana and Geological Survey of Slovenia, with President Borut Pahor as the honorary sponsor.

The forum's chair and ICL vice-president Matjaž Mikoš says the main topics are enhancing Sendai partnerships, progress in landslide research and technologies of recovery, the diversity of landslides and landslides in a variety of environments.

The forum is expected to adopt a Ljubljana declaration, in which the ICL will further commit to direct its work and efforts in landslide protection in cooperation with other stakeholders in the world.

Speaking ahead of the event, Miloš Bavec of the Slovenian Geological Survey said that despite the world-class expertise in the field in Slovenia, prevention was "disastrous".

According to him, most of the landslides in the country are in locations where they could be prevented, however warnings by experts are not heeded in spatial planning.

Dean of Faculty of Civil and Geodetic Engineering Matjaž Mikloš added that while the state had recognised the importance of flood prevention, the same had not happened in case of landslides.

There are almost 2,000 landslides registered in the country, while estimates indicate as many as 7,000. To rehabilitate the active ones, he believes it would cost EUR 5m a year.