ИСТИНА

The role of landslides in mountains goes beyond destructive activity. Landslides are considered as a potential hazard for loose sedimentary cover, as a resource of loose mineral material, and as a factor of scientific information preservation. Landslides contribute to losses of loose material, soils and their most important constituent – fine earth; it is still uncertain how to estimate that damage. Eventually, that loss signifies a dramatic reduction of ecosystem productivity and depopulation of the territory. Why do people continue to return to the landslide-hazardous areas? Landslides create new habitats for biota and humans, and the newly formed landforms are being adapted to the people needs. The 15-100 year chronosequence of landslides was studied in the Caucasus (Georgia). Under cultivable land shortage people would colonize and cultivate landslide accumulations within a few decades. Then 50–60 years after the event, the sediments appear to be essentially altered by remediation and the resulting soils are suitable for agriculture. In those cases sliding processes may be considered as a mechanism of long-term compensation for rapidly inflicted damage. Landslides “seal” information on the past environments and historical events recorded in buried soils and cultural layers. Bronze Age archaeological sites (North Caucasus, Russia) are such the examples.