Landslide Prediction in Mountainous Terrain Using Weighted Overlay Analysis Method: A Case Study of Al Figrah Road, Al-Madinah Al-Munawarah, Western Saudi Arabia

Talal Alharbi, Abdelbaset S. El-Sorogy () and Naji Rikan
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Talal Alharbi: Geology and Geophysics Department, College of Science, King Saud University, Riyadh 11451, Saudi Arabia
Abdelbaset S. El-Sorogy: Geology and Geophysics Department, College of Science, King Saud University, Riyadh 11451, Saudi Arabia
Naji Rikan: Geology and Geophysics Department, College of Science, King Saud University, Riyadh 11451, Saudi Arabia

Sustainability, 2025, vol. 17, issue 15, 1-17

Abstract: This study applies the Weighted Overlay Analysis (WOA) method integrated with GIS to assess landslide susceptibility along Al Figrah Road in Al-Madinah Al-Munawarah, western Saudi Arabia. Seven key conditioning factors, elevation, slope, aspect, drainage density, lithology, soil type, and precipitation were integrated using high-resolution remote sensing data and expert-assigned weights. The output susceptibility map categorized the region into three zones: low (93.5 million m 2 ), moderate (271.2 million m 2 ), and high risk (33.1 million m 2 ). Approximately 29% of the road corridor lies within the low-risk zone, 48% in the moderate zone, and 23% in the high-risk zone. Ten critical sites with potential landslide activity were detected along the road, correlating well with the high-risk zones on the map. Structural weaknesses in the area, such as faults, joints, foliation planes, and shear zones in both igneous and metamorphic rock units, were key contributors to slope instability. The findings offer practical guidance for infrastructure planning and geohazard mitigation in arid, mountainous environments and demonstrate the applicability of WOA in data-scarce regions.

Keywords: slope instability; satellite imagery; GIS-based modeling; multi-criteria spatial analysis; western Saudi Arabia (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
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