Preliminary map of the occurrence of geohazards (landslide- and flood-prone areas only) at the district level based on a literature review compiled during the first visit in 2010 (updated version: Staudt 2012). 

Contexts in source publication

Context 1

... aim of this study was to evaluate the geohaz- ard potential of Uganda and to add this informa- tion to the newly produced geological maps of the Uganda Geological Mapping Project. To do so, existing information had to be found in archives of geohazard-related stakeholders in the country, or new geohazard-related information, such as the locations of landslides and flooded bridges, had to be mapped and collected. The work was divided between two field trips in Uganda and desktop The task of the mapping project was to identify geohazards in Uganda. Since little organized data is available in Uganda concerning landslides or other geohazards, a method had to be found to gain an initial indication of the distribution. Districts hav- ing a landslide risk were identified from the exist- ing literature. However, no standardized inventory of past landslides (coordinates, classification and damage potential) was available. During the first visit, data were collected and the available literature was reviewed. Geohazard-rele- studies before and after the visits. During the first visit, in May 2010, literature was reviewed and stakeholders were identified, and a field trip to the site of a disastrous landslide in Eastern Uganda was organized. During the second visit, in March 2011, the geohazard potential of the northern part of Uganda, including the Rwenzori Mountains, Al- bertine Rift Valley and Fort Portal volcanic fields, was mapped and assessed. vant stakeholders were identified and interviewed (Table 1). A similar approach was used during the Copperbelt Environmental Project in Zambia (GTK 2007) in order to obtain information on envi- ronmental monitoring and available GIS data on mining areas from public authorities and mining companies. Table 1 provides an overview of the stakeholders identified and interviewed during this stage of the project. A customized questionnaire was developed in or- der to: 1) obtain local expert opinions on the geohazards in the country; 2) ask for existing literature or available data and whether it would be possible to share this data with the project; 3) enquire about geohazard-relevant locations, such as where landslides have occurred; and 4) obtain directions to the locations, either by de- scription or by providing local guides. Biryabarema et al. (2002) reported landslide-prone areas in the Districts of Kabale. Erima (2004) more specifically reported recent landslides in the areas of Rubaya, Bufundi and Kashambya sub-counties of Kabale in 2000, Kasese Districts in May 2001, and Bundibugyo Districts in late 2001 and May 2002, as well as in the sub-counties of Wanale, Bu- sano and Bufumbo of Mbale District and Kyangya village in the Bishenyi District on 7 May 2002. Erima (2004) also described the soil properties of some sampled soils in sub-county of Bubita, and presented a table of reported landslides and result- ing damage extending back to 1818 (from Knapen The first map of flood-prone areas of Uganda (see Fig. 4) has been produced, having a focus on the northern districts and the northern shores of Lake Kyoga. Furthermore, flash floods have been re- ported in the Arua area (Fig. 1) and in the Kam- pala region since at least 1996. In general, little data or literature is available in connection with flooding in Uganda. Some areas around Mt. Elgon and the Rwenzori Mountains and the mountain- ous regions of SW Uganda are also indicated as flood-prone areas. Many of the interviewees stated a possible connection with changing precipitation patterns due to climate change or a connection with El Niño years. Some information on flood- Given the location of Uganda as a part of the west- ern branch of the East African Rift System (EARS), one can expect earthquake intensities ranging from moderate for the eastern parts of the coun- try and shores of Lake Victoria (degree IV) to very During the first visit in 2010, a preliminary geo- hazards overview map of Uganda (Fig. 3) was pro- duced containing the information gained from the literature review. This map only shows the spatial occurrence of different geohazards at the district or sub-county level where data were available. The geohazard-prone areas are indicated in combina- tion with the areas earmarked as game reserves, forest reserves or national parks for planning pur- poses, as this was requested by the client, DGSM. 2003). Claessens et al. (2007) modelled landslide hazard areas with the Lapsus-LS landslide model and compiled a landslide hazard map of the Mt. Elgon area. In 2011, Kitutu published her research, including the aforementioned papers by Knapen et al. and Claessens et al., in the form of a PhD thesis (Kitutu 2010). A preliminary geohazard map of Uganda has been produced that focuses on landslides in the areas of the Rwenzori Mountains, Mt. Elgon and mountainous regions of SW Uganda (see Fig. 3). Little detailed research has been conducted in ar- eas other than the Mt. Elgon area. prone areas in Uganda was gained from the Kam- pala office of the United Nations Office for Coordi- nation of Humanitarian Affairs (UN OCHA) and included, for example, in the overview map (see Fig. 3). A visit to the Department of Hydrology in Entebbe revealed that no information is avail- able on a catchment area basis, including detailed hydrological parameters (such as river cross-sec- tions, flow velocities and water gauge data) of the rivers, which would have been necessary to per- form a flood-plain analysis. However, a detailed flood-plain analysis on a regional scale would have been beyond the scope of the project. strong (degree VII) in the northern and southern parts of the Albertine Rift, and destructive (degree VIII) for areas adjacent to Lake Albert (degrees ac- cording to the Modified Mercalli Scale; UN OCHA 2007). Historical earthquake data have been collected from the geophysical department of DGSM and from the annual reports of the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Development (MEMD 2000–2008). Furthermore, Hollnack (2001) published the first overview of epicentres in eastern Africa, also show- ing the existing monitoring stations in the county. Hampton (1995) provided a detailed description of the Fort Portal earthquake of 1994. A first map showing the seismicity of Uganda was published in 1967, shortly after the devastating earthquake of 1966 (Loupekine 1966). This map is displayed at the Department of Geology of Makerere Uni- versity. The Department of Geological Survey and Mines (DGSM 2010) provided data files on epi- centres recorded by the Seismological Unit during 1960–2008. Some missing years were manually re- There is no active volcanism in Uganda. However, geothermal springs around the Rwenzori Moun- tains block and bubbles of CO 2 in maar lakes are indicative of the presence of magma chambers and a high temperature gradient in the rift valley in Western Uganda. The Ndali-Kasenda Volcanic Field is located west of the Kibale Forest National Park, approximate- ly 20–30 km south of Fort Portal. The field is of trieved from the Annual Report mentioned above. Newer earthquake data and research, mainly from the Rwenzori Mountains area and surroundings, were collected in the RiftLink project and pub- lished by Lindenfeld et al. (2012) and Lindenfeld & Rümpker (2011). The area around the Rwenzori Mountains is the most seismologically active area in Uganda. The Rwenzori Mountains are a horst structure and rep- resent a basement block of extreme topography within the rift basin. The majority of seismic events lie within fault zones east and west of the moun- tains, and the highest seismic activity occurs in the northeastern part, where the mountains are in con- tact with the rift shoulders (Lindenfeld et al. 2012), and between Lakes Albert and George, where the mountains are not separated by a graben from the rift shoulder (Lindenfeld & Rümper 2011). Holocene age and mainly consists of carbonatitic tuffs. There are about 60 permanent or seasonal freshwater crater lakes around the trading centres of Kasenda, Rweetera, Kabata and Rwaihamba. The Fort Portal Volcanic Field is located NW of the eponymous town. The field is of Holocene age and mainly consists of carbonatitic tuffs and lavas. Local folk tales suggest volcanic activity in histori- cal times, which was confirmed by an age determi- nation of 2120 BC ± 100 years (Holmes 1950). The field is possibly in a dormant stage. The Bunyaruguru volcanic field is located along the eastern side of the Western Rift Valley, south of Lake George. There are more than 130 maars, 27 of which contain lakes with water ranging from fresh to saline. The age of the field is from late Pleisto- cene to Holocene. During the field trip to the village of Kaiso, an area close to the shores of Lake Albert was visited where damage to houses and huts had been reported due to unfavourable soil properties (see Fig. 2). The soils in focus here are clay rich vertisols ( lat. turn- over ...

Context 2

... aim of this study was to evaluate the geohaz- ard potential of Uganda and to add this informa- tion to the newly produced geological maps of the Uganda Geological Mapping Project. To do so, existing information had to be found in archives of geohazard-related stakeholders in the country, or new geohazard-related information, such as the locations of landslides and flooded bridges, had to be mapped and collected. The work was divided between two field trips in Uganda and desktop The task of the mapping project was to identify geohazards in Uganda. Since little organized data is available in Uganda concerning landslides or other geohazards, a method had to be found to gain an initial indication of the distribution. Districts hav- ing a landslide risk were identified from the exist- ing literature. However, no standardized inventory of past landslides (coordinates, classification and damage potential) was available. During the first visit, data were collected and the available literature was reviewed. Geohazard-rele- studies before and after the visits. During the first visit, in May 2010, literature was reviewed and stakeholders were identified, and a field trip to the site of a disastrous landslide in Eastern Uganda was organized. During the second visit, in March 2011, the geohazard potential of the northern part of Uganda, including the Rwenzori Mountains, Al- bertine Rift Valley and Fort Portal volcanic fields, was mapped and assessed. vant stakeholders were identified and interviewed (Table 1). A similar approach was used during the Copperbelt Environmental Project in Zambia (GTK 2007) in order to obtain information on envi- ronmental monitoring and available GIS data on mining areas from public authorities and mining companies. Table 1 provides an overview of the stakeholders identified and interviewed during this stage of the project. A customized questionnaire was developed in or- der to: 1) obtain local expert opinions on the geohazards in the country; 2) ask for existing literature or available data and whether it would be possible to share this data with the project; 3) enquire about geohazard-relevant locations, such as where landslides have occurred; and 4) obtain directions to the locations, either by de- scription or by providing local guides. Biryabarema et al. (2002) reported landslide-prone areas in the Districts of Kabale. Erima (2004) more specifically reported recent landslides in the areas of Rubaya, Bufundi and Kashambya sub-counties of Kabale in 2000, Kasese Districts in May 2001, and Bundibugyo Districts in late 2001 and May 2002, as well as in the sub-counties of Wanale, Bu- sano and Bufumbo of Mbale District and Kyangya village in the Bishenyi District on 7 May 2002. Erima (2004) also described the soil properties of some sampled soils in sub-county of Bubita, and presented a table of reported landslides and result- ing damage extending back to 1818 (from Knapen The first map of flood-prone areas of Uganda (see Fig. 4) has been produced, having a focus on the northern districts and the northern shores of Lake Kyoga. Furthermore, flash floods have been re- ported in the Arua area (Fig. 1) and in the Kam- pala region since at least 1996. In general, little data or literature is available in connection with flooding in Uganda. Some areas around Mt. Elgon and the Rwenzori Mountains and the mountain- ous regions of SW Uganda are also indicated as flood-prone areas. Many of the interviewees stated a possible connection with changing precipitation patterns due to climate change or a connection with El Niño years. Some information on flood- Given the location of Uganda as a part of the west- ern branch of the East African Rift System (EARS), one can expect earthquake intensities ranging from moderate for the eastern parts of the coun- try and shores of Lake Victoria (degree IV) to very During the first visit in 2010, a preliminary geo- hazards overview map of Uganda (Fig. 3) was pro- duced containing the information gained from the literature review. This map only shows the spatial occurrence of different geohazards at the district or sub-county level where data were available. The geohazard-prone areas are indicated in combina- tion with the areas earmarked as game reserves, forest reserves or national parks for planning pur- poses, as this was requested by the client, DGSM. 2003). Claessens et al. (2007) modelled landslide hazard areas with the Lapsus-LS landslide model and compiled a landslide hazard map of the Mt. Elgon area. In 2011, Kitutu published her research, including the aforementioned papers by Knapen et al. and Claessens et al., in the form of a PhD thesis (Kitutu 2010). A preliminary geohazard map of Uganda has been produced that focuses on landslides in the areas of the Rwenzori Mountains, Mt. Elgon and mountainous regions of SW Uganda (see Fig. 3). Little detailed research has been conducted in ar- eas other than the Mt. Elgon area. prone areas in Uganda was gained from the Kam- pala office of the United Nations Office for Coordi- nation of Humanitarian Affairs (UN OCHA) and included, for example, in the overview map (see Fig. 3). A visit to the Department of Hydrology in Entebbe revealed that no information is avail- able on a catchment area basis, including detailed hydrological parameters (such as river cross-sec- tions, flow velocities and water gauge data) of the rivers, which would have been necessary to per- form a flood-plain analysis. However, a detailed flood-plain analysis on a regional scale would have been beyond the scope of the project. strong (degree VII) in the northern and southern parts of the Albertine Rift, and destructive (degree VIII) for areas adjacent to Lake Albert (degrees ac- cording to the Modified Mercalli Scale; UN OCHA 2007). Historical earthquake data have been collected from the geophysical department of DGSM and from the annual reports of the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Development (MEMD 2000–2008). Furthermore, Hollnack (2001) published the first overview of epicentres in eastern Africa, also show- ing the existing monitoring stations in the county. Hampton (1995) provided a detailed description of the Fort Portal earthquake of 1994. A first map showing the seismicity of Uganda was published in 1967, shortly after the devastating earthquake of 1966 (Loupekine 1966). This map is displayed at the Department of Geology of Makerere Uni- versity. The Department of Geological Survey and Mines (DGSM 2010) provided data files on epi- centres recorded by the Seismological Unit during 1960–2008. Some missing years were manually re- There is no active volcanism in Uganda. However, geothermal springs around the Rwenzori Moun- tains block and bubbles of CO 2 in maar lakes are indicative of the presence of magma chambers and a high temperature gradient in the rift valley in Western Uganda. The Ndali-Kasenda Volcanic Field is located west of the Kibale Forest National Park, approximate- ly 20–30 km south of Fort Portal. The field is of trieved from the Annual Report mentioned above. Newer earthquake data and research, mainly from the Rwenzori Mountains area and surroundings, were collected in the RiftLink project and pub- lished by Lindenfeld et al. (2012) and Lindenfeld & Rümpker (2011). The area around the Rwenzori Mountains is the most seismologically active area in Uganda. The Rwenzori Mountains are a horst structure and rep- resent a basement block of extreme topography within the rift basin. The majority of seismic events lie within fault zones east and west of the moun- tains, and the highest seismic activity occurs in the northeastern part, where the mountains are in con- tact with the rift shoulders (Lindenfeld et al. 2012), and between Lakes Albert and George, where the mountains are not separated by a graben from the rift shoulder (Lindenfeld & Rümper 2011). Holocene age and mainly consists of carbonatitic tuffs. There are about 60 permanent or seasonal freshwater crater lakes around the trading centres of Kasenda, Rweetera, Kabata and Rwaihamba. The Fort Portal Volcanic Field is located NW of the eponymous town. The field is of Holocene age and mainly consists of carbonatitic tuffs and lavas. Local folk tales suggest volcanic activity in histori- cal times, which was confirmed by an age determi- nation of 2120 BC ± 100 years (Holmes 1950). The field is possibly in a dormant stage. The Bunyaruguru volcanic field is located along the eastern side of the Western Rift Valley, south of Lake George. There are more than 130 maars, 27 of which contain lakes with water ranging from fresh to saline. The age of the field is from late Pleisto- cene to Holocene. During the field trip to the village of Kaiso, an area close to the shores of Lake Albert was visited where damage to houses and huts had been reported due to unfavourable soil properties (see Fig. 2). The soils in focus here are clay rich vertisols ( lat. turn- over soils), also known as black-cotton soils. Verti- sols are typical soils of the savannah and are often found in depressions or lowlands (Stahr 2001). These soils are characterized by a clay content of 30% or more in all horizons to a depth of at least The Bududa landslide incident of 1 March 2010 in the village of Nametsi is the most disastrous that has occurred in Uganda in recent years. Even though landslides are common in the country, es- pecially in the Mt. Elgon area, such a severe inci- dent has not happened before. The disaster started at 8:10 pm, after heavy rainfall throughout the day. In addition to the inhabitants of the village, numerous travellers sought shelter from the rain, The Katwe-Kikorongo Volcanic Field stretches from the NE shore of Lake Edward to the western shore of Lake George. The field contains several tuff cones and maars, some of which have lakes. Here, local folk ...

Context 3

... Mapping Project. To do so, existing information had to be found in archives of geohazard-related stakeholders in the country, or new geohazard-related information, such as the locations of landslides and flooded bridges, had to be mapped and collected. The work was divided between two field trips in Uganda and desktop The task of the mapping project was to identify geohazards in Uganda. Since little organized data is available in Uganda concerning landslides or other geohazards, a method had to be found to gain an initial indication of the distribution. Districts hav- ing a landslide risk were identified from the exist- ing literature. However, no standardized inventory of past landslides (coordinates, classification and damage potential) was available. During the first visit, data were collected and the available literature was reviewed. Geohazard-rele- studies before and after the visits. During the first visit, in May 2010, literature was reviewed and stakeholders were identified, and a field trip to the site of a disastrous landslide in Eastern Uganda was organized. During the second visit, in March 2011, the geohazard potential of the northern part of Uganda, including the Rwenzori Mountains, Al- bertine Rift Valley and Fort Portal volcanic fields, was mapped and assessed. vant stakeholders were identified and interviewed (Table 1). A similar approach was used during the Copperbelt Environmental Project in Zambia (GTK 2007) in order to obtain information on envi- ronmental monitoring and available GIS data on mining areas from public authorities and mining companies. Table 1 provides an overview of the stakeholders identified and interviewed during this stage of the project. A customized questionnaire was developed in or- der to: 1) obtain local expert opinions on the geohazards in the country; 2) ask for existing literature or available data and whether it would be possible to share this data with the project; 3) enquire about geohazard-relevant locations, such as where landslides have occurred; and 4) obtain directions to the locations, either by de- scription or by providing local guides. Biryabarema et al. (2002) reported landslide-prone areas in the Districts of Kabale. Erima (2004) more specifically reported recent landslides in the areas of Rubaya, Bufundi and Kashambya sub-counties of Kabale in 2000, Kasese Districts in May 2001, and Bundibugyo Districts in late 2001 and May 2002, as well as in the sub-counties of Wanale, Bu- sano and Bufumbo of Mbale District and Kyangya village in the Bishenyi District on 7 May 2002. Erima (2004) also described the soil properties of some sampled soils in sub-county of Bubita, and presented a table of reported landslides and result- ing damage extending back to 1818 (from Knapen The first map of flood-prone areas of Uganda (see Fig. 4) has been produced, having a focus on the northern districts and the northern shores of Lake Kyoga. Furthermore, flash floods have been re- ported in the Arua area (Fig. 1) and in the Kam- pala region since at least 1996. In general, little data or literature is available in connection with flooding in Uganda. Some areas around Mt. Elgon and the Rwenzori Mountains and the mountain- ous regions of SW Uganda are also indicated as flood-prone areas. Many of the interviewees stated a possible connection with changing precipitation patterns due to climate change or a connection with El Niño years. Some information on flood- Given the location of Uganda as a part of the west- ern branch of the East African Rift System (EARS), one can expect earthquake intensities ranging from moderate for the eastern parts of the coun- try and shores of Lake Victoria (degree IV) to very During the first visit in 2010, a preliminary geo- hazards overview map of Uganda (Fig. 3) was pro- duced containing the information gained from the literature review. This map only shows the spatial occurrence of different geohazards at the district or sub-county level where data were available. The geohazard-prone areas are indicated in combina- tion with the areas earmarked as game reserves, forest reserves or national parks for planning pur- poses, as this was requested by the client, DGSM. 2003). Claessens et al. (2007) modelled landslide hazard areas with the Lapsus-LS landslide model and compiled a landslide hazard map of the Mt. Elgon area. In 2011, Kitutu published her research, including the aforementioned papers by Knapen et al. and Claessens et al., in the form of a PhD thesis (Kitutu 2010). A preliminary geohazard map of Uganda has been produced that focuses on landslides in the areas of the Rwenzori Mountains, Mt. Elgon and mountainous regions of SW Uganda (see Fig. 3). Little detailed research has been conducted in ar- eas other than the Mt. Elgon area. prone areas in Uganda was gained from the Kam- pala office of the United Nations Office for Coordi- nation of Humanitarian Affairs (UN OCHA) and included, for example, in the overview map (see Fig. 3). A visit to the Department of Hydrology in Entebbe revealed that no information is avail- able on a catchment area basis, including detailed hydrological parameters (such as river cross-sec- tions, flow velocities and water gauge data) of the rivers, which would have been necessary to per- form a flood-plain analysis. However, a detailed flood-plain analysis on a regional scale would have been beyond the scope of the project. strong (degree VII) in the northern and southern parts of the Albertine Rift, and destructive (degree VIII) for areas adjacent to Lake Albert (degrees ac- cording to the Modified Mercalli Scale; UN OCHA 2007). Historical earthquake data have been collected from the geophysical department of DGSM and from the annual reports of the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Development (MEMD 2000–2008). Furthermore, Hollnack (2001) published the first overview of epicentres in eastern Africa, also show- ing the existing monitoring stations in the county. Hampton (1995) provided a detailed description of the Fort Portal earthquake of 1994. A first map showing the seismicity of Uganda was published in 1967, shortly after the devastating earthquake of 1966 (Loupekine 1966). This map is displayed at the Department of Geology of Makerere Uni- versity. The Department of Geological Survey and Mines (DGSM 2010) provided data files on epi- centres recorded by the Seismological Unit during 1960–2008. Some missing years were manually re- There is no active volcanism in Uganda. However, geothermal springs around the Rwenzori Moun- tains block and bubbles of CO 2 in maar lakes are indicative of the presence of magma chambers and a high temperature gradient in the rift valley in Western Uganda. The Ndali-Kasenda Volcanic Field is located west of the Kibale Forest National Park, approximate- ly 20–30 km south of Fort Portal. The field is of trieved from the Annual Report mentioned above. Newer earthquake data and research, mainly from the Rwenzori Mountains area and surroundings, were collected in the RiftLink project and pub- lished by Lindenfeld et al. (2012) and Lindenfeld & Rümpker (2011). The area around the Rwenzori Mountains is the most seismologically active area in Uganda. The Rwenzori Mountains are a horst structure and rep- resent a basement block of extreme topography within the rift basin. The majority of seismic events lie within fault zones east and west of the moun- tains, and the highest seismic activity occurs in the northeastern part, where the mountains are in con- tact with the rift shoulders (Lindenfeld et al. 2012), and between Lakes Albert and George, where the mountains are not separated by a graben from the rift shoulder (Lindenfeld & Rümper 2011). Holocene age and mainly consists of carbonatitic tuffs. There are about 60 permanent or seasonal freshwater crater lakes around the trading centres of Kasenda, Rweetera, Kabata and Rwaihamba. The Fort Portal Volcanic Field is located NW of the eponymous town. The field is of Holocene age and mainly consists of carbonatitic tuffs and lavas. Local folk tales suggest volcanic activity in histori- cal times, which was confirmed by an age determi- nation of 2120 BC ± 100 years (Holmes 1950). The field is possibly in a dormant stage. The Bunyaruguru volcanic field is located along the eastern side of the Western Rift Valley, south of Lake George. There are more than 130 maars, 27 of which contain lakes with water ranging from fresh to saline. The age of the field is from late Pleisto- cene to Holocene. During the field trip to the village of Kaiso, an area close to the shores of Lake Albert was visited where damage to houses and huts had been reported due to unfavourable soil properties (see Fig. 2). The soils in focus here are clay rich vertisols ( lat. turn- over soils), also known as black-cotton soils. Verti- sols are typical soils of the savannah and are often found in depressions or lowlands (Stahr 2001). These soils are characterized by a clay content of 30% or more in all horizons to a depth of at least The Bududa landslide incident of 1 March 2010 in the village of Nametsi is the most disastrous that has occurred in Uganda in recent years. Even though landslides are common in the country, es- pecially in the Mt. Elgon area, such a severe inci- dent has not happened before. The disaster started at 8:10 pm, after heavy rainfall throughout the day. In addition to the inhabitants of the village, numerous travellers sought shelter from the rain, The Katwe-Kikorongo Volcanic Field stretches from the NE shore of Lake Edward to the western shore of Lake George. The field contains several tuff cones and maars, some of which have lakes. Here, local folk tales also suggest that there has been volcanic activity in historical times. Additional information about the volcanic fields of Western Uganda was obtained by the website of the Smithsonian Institution (Siebert et al 2002). 50 cm. Vertisols develop cracks from the soil sur- face ...