CEE Seminar (ZOOM): Will It Stay or Will It Go? Use of LiDAR to Assess Slope Instability

ZOOM Link will be distributed by the CEE Department
Ben Leshchinsky, Ph.D.

Associate Professor, College of Forestry
Civil & Construction Engineering
Oregon State University

Abstract: Light detection and ranging technology, or lidar, is a promising tool for assessing unstable ground due to its resolution, accuracy and the ability to process away visual obstacles, such as vegetation. In particular, laser scanning has significant utility when applied repeatedly over time, quantifying changes in terrain that may not be easily discernable to the eye. This presentation will touch on some ongoing research that employs lidar-derived topographic models for (1) landslide inventorying, forensics, and susceptibility and (2) evaluating how slope instability evolves. An approach that uses landslide inventories to leverage region-specific landslide data is considered. The utility of this approach is combined with a three-dimensional slope stability algorithm to evaluate slope instability at a regional scale under a variety of remotely-sensed antecedent moisture conditions. Lastly, topographic data from single or multiple epochs of lidar-derived digital elevation models are used to develop techniques to estimate how landslides evolve over time. The increasing availability of lidar presents us with a unique opportunity to better assess the risk stemming from geohazards, enhance asset management, and understand geomorphic and geologic processes at a more refined level.

Bio: Ben Leshchinsky is an associate professor and Richardson Chair in the College of Forestry and School of Civil and Construction Engineering (joint appointment) at Oregon State University. He received his B.S. from University of Delaware in 2007, and his M.S. and Ph.D. from Columbia University in 2008 and 2012, respectively. His research focuses on evaluating the evolution of slope instability from a variety of disturbances as well as the design of geotechnical infrastructure under extreme conditions. He currently serves on four journal editorial boards, including the ASCE Journal of Geotechnical and Geoenvironmental Engineering; Landslides; Geotextiles and Geomembranes; and Geosynthetics International. He is the recipient of the 2018 International Geosynthetics Society Young Researcher Award and the 2020 ASCE Arthur Casagrande Award.