The role of unpaved roads in the formation of landslide processes (on the example of Voronezh region)

The article gives a brief description of the Voronezh region, provides data on the cause of landslides in its territory. The cyclical nature of landslide processes is noted, which in the region is on average 6-8 years. Attention is focused on anthropogenic activity, leading to the occurrence of creeping layers of the earth. The main causes of erosion processes are: significant plowing of the area (80%), which is not subject to the rules of anti-erosion agrotechnology; the irrational use of pastures and hayfields; an extensive gully-beam network. The role of temporary reservoirs formed in the ruts of unpaved roads, passing along the slopes and ravines, as a source of overmoistening of the soil layers and initiation of landslide processes is considered. The analysis of the landslide distribution over the territory of the Voronezh region and their dependence on the network of dirt roads is given. The areas of the Voronezh region were ranked by the number of landslide processes associated with the impact of a number of unpaved highways. Of the 32 districts of the region, according to this ranking, 12 are “extremely dangerous”, “very dangerous” and “dangerous”, and the same areas have a very extensive network of unpaved roads running near ravines, steep banks of rivers and ponds, where potentially flow of landslide processes. Dirt roads often have relatively deep ruts where melted or rainwater accumulates, forming local micro-ponds. Flowing to the waterproof layer, water saturates the soil layer, which can slide down the slope, forming a landslide process. It is necessary to predict the possibility of the occurrence of dangerous natural phenomena when laying automobile dirt roads.