Geographic Setting

Leyte is one of the largest provinces in the Eastern Visayas Region. It is bounded to the north
by
the
province
of
Biliran
separated by the Biliran Strait and bounded to the south by Southern Leyte. To the west,
across
the
Camotes
Sea
lies
the island of Cebu. To the east and northeast is the San Juanico Strait that separates Leyte
with the island of Samar (Figure 1B). The latter is the easternmost island in the Visayas and
forms the barrier between the Visayan Sea and the western portion of the Philippine Sea.
Southeast of Leyte lies the Leyte Gulf.
1.2. Geomorphology
1.2.1. Relief and Topography
The province of Leyte is generally mountainous and broken by steep slopes, especially at the
central portion of the island. These are expressions of a chain of volcanoes trending
NNWSSE, straddling the trace of the Philippine Fault. This also gives the island wellexpressed linear depressions, including elongated lakes and displaced or o
set rivers. In the Tongonan area, a volcanic cone is observed to be displaced left-laterally
(Lagmay et al., 2003), and deep escarpments along sag ponds and pressure ridges are also
seen to align with the orientation of the fault (Aurelio et al., 1994). Where there are no
mountain ranges, the topography of the island is generally flat to gently rolling. To the east
and west of these are narrow plains that transition to hilly and rolling terrains going to the
coasts on both sides of the island (Figure 1B).
1.2.2. Drainage Patterns
The drainage system is largely influenced by the geology and topography of the province
having a volcanic central highland flanked on both sides by large plains. The Leyte Valley
is drained into the sea by the Binahaan, Daguitan, Guinaroma, and Marabang Rivers. The
headwater of Binahaan River is Lake Danao. The accordant drainage patterns are generally
either subparallel or dendritic. Most of the streams on the central part are o
set along the traces of the Philippine Fault. Subparallel streams on the western side drains
toward the Visayan Sea. Other areas has generally dendritic patterns following the slope of
the terrain and implying a homogeneous underlying rock material. The rivers are usually
short and intermittent and drainage is excessive on cultivated hills. Radial drainage patterns
are also evident especially on volcanic edifices. Streams on the eastern side merge with the
Pagsangahan
River
emptying
into
Ormoc
Bay. Steep slopes in the area contribute to its highly unstable state and high channel failure
potential. The transition from a high to a moderate inclination of side slopes along its
channel indicate a continuous and progressive downflow of water towards Ormoc City.
1.3. Geologic Setting
1.3.1. Regional Geology
Northwestern Leyte is part of the Visayan Sea Basins northeastern portion (MGB, 2004). The
Malitbog
Ophiolite
forms
the basement rocks of western Leyte, is an almost complete ophiolite sequence that
includes serpentinized harzburgite, minor dunite, cumulate and isotropic gabbro, diabase
dike complex, pillow basalts, and pelagic sedimentary rocks. Overlying this sequence are
conglomerates,
sandstones,
siltstones,
tuf
, and limestones. Occurrence of a turbidite sequence composed of sandstone, siltstone, and
mudstone was also described (Florendo, 1984; Jurgan, 1980; Corby et al., 1951a; Pilac,
1965).

Figure
2:
Active
faults
and
geologic
map
of
Leyte
(Edited
from: http://www.phivolcs.dost.gov.ph). (R) to (PG1) are sedimentary rocks while (BC) is for
pre-Jurassic
basement
complex
of
undi
erentiated amphibolites, mics schists, quartzofeldspars and phylliste-slates. (NI) to (UC) are
intrusive rocks while (QVP) to (N1) are volcanic rocks. Map modified from the Phivolcs active
faults map and MGB geological map.
Central Leyte is primarily composed of igneous rocks owing to the presence of the volcanic
chain (Figure 2A). Diorite, andesite, basalt, dacite, and pyroclastic rocks have been identified
in this area. In addition, occurrences of sedimentary rocks such as conglomerate, sandstone,
shale, and limestone have been noted. Intruding and covering older volcanics are late
Pliocene to Recent andesitic volcanic cones and flows, later named the Leyte Volcanic Arc
Complex (MGB, 2004; Aguilar, 1995; Cabantog and Escalada, 1989; Pilac, 1965).
Eastern Leyte is host to the Cretaceous-aged Tacloban Ophiolite, characterized by
serpentinized harzburgites, dunites, gabbro, sheeted dikes, basalts, pillow basalts, and
pelagic sedimentary rocks (MMAJ-JICA, 1990; Balce and Cabantog, 1998). Early Miocene
sedimentary rocks, composed of conglomerates, sandstones, shales and fine tu
aceous sequences with intercalations of volcanic flows, are found found overlying older
volcanic rocks. Middle Miocene limestone interbeds have also been noted to occur within the
area,
along
with
sandstones
and marly
tu
aceous shales with basal conglomerates, and is dated Late Miocene to Pliocene (MGB, 2004;
Pilac, 1965).
1.3.2. Tectonic Setting
Leyte Province is traversed by the Central Leyte Fault (PHIVOLCS, 2008), a segment of the
Philippine Fault (Figure 2A). The Philippine Fault is a 1,200-km-long left-lateral strike slip fault
which cuts across the Philippines. The fault was identified using aerial photographs because
the trace is evident in the morphology of landforms (Kimura et al., 1968; Aurelio, 1992). The
fault is typically manifested in fault scarps, elongated depressions, sag ponds and
compressive
ridges.
Mountain
range
o
sets, drainage system patterns also present evidence that the fault movement is left-lateral
although a vertical component has been noted as well (Pinet and Stephan, 1990; Barcelona,
1981; Nakata et al., 1977; Allen, 1962; Rutland, 1968). There are 2 to 3
welldefined branches with curvilinear trace convex to the northeast, and striking N25-30W
(MGB, 2004). West of the Philippine Fault in Leyte, the trends range from 28 to 42 degrees,
while east of the Philippine Fault in Leyte, the trends have a 298-degree to 318-degree range
(Lagmay et al., 2003).
Folds are also notable in Leyte Island, particularly in the Batang Formation, the Taog
Formation, and the Babatngon Schist. The Batang Formation, composed of a sedimentary
sequence, is observed to be composed of two thrust slabs that are erosional remnants of an
antiform having a northeast trend (Florendo, 1987). Taog Formation in western Leyte is also
a folded sequence of sedimentary rocks (Corby et al., 1951b), while Babatngon Schist has
highly folded, well-foliated, and crenulated schists with schistose planes verging steeply in
an east-west direction (Pilac, 1965).
According to PHIVOLCS (2008), there are 18 volcanoes within the province, although only
one is potentially activeCancajanag Volcanoand the rest are inactive (Figure 2a).
Cancajanag is a 0.9-kilometer high dome complex, composed mainly of andesite. There is an

active volcano in the southeastern-most tip of the island, Cabalian Volcano, however it is
outside the province.
1.4. Soil Series
The soils of Leyte Province (Figure 2B) are categorized as poorly drained flat lowland,
moderately drained flat lowland, well-drained flat lowland, and well-drained rolling
uplands (Barrera
et
al.,
1954).
The
poorly
drained
soils
in
Leyte
are found in the low-lying areas around Palo, Tanauan, and Alangalang (Pawing Series);
around the municipality of Palo, and extending to the inner regions at the foot of the
central Cordilleras near Jaro and Dagami, Alangalang and Barugo to the north, and in
Abuyog to the south (Palo Series). Both the Pawing and Palo series developed from recent
alluvial deposits and exhibit minimal soil profile development (Barrera et al., 1954).
The moderately drained flat lowland soils belong to the soil series of San Manuel, Umingan,
Dagami, Mandawe, and Bantog series. These soils are found in Babatngon, Palompon,
Hilongos, in the alluvial soil formation on Western Leyte from Ormoc to Baybay, in the
municipality of Dagami, on the riverbanks along the Hilongos and Bangerahan Rivers, and in
the municipality of Villaba. These soils, which are mostly cultivated for agriculture,
developed from alluvial deposits. They exhibit moderate soil profile development and level
to nearly level topography (Barrera et al., 1954).
Under well-drained flat lowland soil are the Obando, Umingan, and Taal series. These series
developed from marine deposition. These are found on the eastern shores of Leyte,
occupying the narrow coast from Palo to Abuyog. In addition, this soil has low organic matter
content and a texture that ranges from coarse sand to fine sandy loam allowing water to
freely percolate through the profile (Barrera et al., 1954).
The well-drained rolling upland soils are divided into noncalcareous and the calcareous soils.
The
noncalcareous
soils
include the Guimaras, Tacloban, Guimbalon, Luisiana, Palompon, Malitbog, and Maasin soil
series. These soils are found in the foothills of the eastern slope of the range running from
Palo to Babatngon, in the low range of hills and mountains between Palo and Babatngon, in
Ormoc and in between Capoocan and Dagami, in the upper area of Ormoc and in Barugo, in
the municipalities of Villaba and Palompon, in the small area south of Baybay, and in the
interior regions from Inopacan to Malitbog. Another soil series found in Leyte is the Lugo
series, which is a calcareous soil. This soil is found in the municipalities of San Isidro,
Calubian, and in some areas of Villaba (Barrera et al., 1954).
2. Methodology
2.1. Landslide Inventory
The landslide inventory map produced for the province of Leyte was created through the use
of
high-resolution
satellite
imagery. Sets of satellite images covering the study area were inspected for landslides,
which were then delineated as polygons and marked with points using ArcGIS. Data such as
the total area of landslides (total damaged area in the province) and the total area of
landslides with respect to the area of the province were also computed (Fig. 3)
Figure 3: Landslide inventory process flow.
Satellite imagery used include SPOT, Quickbird, and Worldview. SPOT imagery has a spatial
resolution of 5 to 10 meters. Quickbird has a spatial resolution of 0.6 to 2.4 meters.
Worldview has a spatial resolution of 0.5 meters. The satellite images used are from the

years 2002 to 2012. The dates of the satellite images, however, are not uniform throughout
the study area. Satellite images were selected based on their availability in Google Earth, a
freeware program.
Landslides detected in the satellite image were marked with dots and delineated as
polygons. These were saved as vector files so that they could be easily accessed and
analyzed using GIS programs. The types of landslides that were easily identified in satellite
imagesand that were mainly considered in this inventorywere flows and slides. Both the
total area of landslides in the study area and the total area of landslides with respect to the
area of the province were computed.
2.2. Shallow landslide susceptibility
The shallow landslide hazard map was produced using SINMAP (Stability Index MAPping)
software, an ArcGIS 9.3 extension developed by Pack et al. (1998). SINMAP computes a
factor of safety using the infinite slope model (Pack et al., 1998; Hammond et al., 1992) and
based on the input data for hydrologic and geotechnical data of the soil and
topographic data (Figures 4) for each pixel on a digital elevation model. The factor of safety
(FS) is a dimensionless number that represents the ratio of the stabilizing forces to
destabilizing forces at a location. Applying the infinite slope model, it can be expressed by

Table 2: Inventory of landslides per municipality in Leyte

Most of the landslides that were identified were located in elevated regions especially beside
rivers that cut through mountainsides. In the municipalities of San Isidro and Tabango, most
of the landslides were located on rolling hills that had been modified for farming and/or had
experienced vegetation loss. On the other hand, at the municipalities of Merida
and Tacloban, landslides were observed to occur near roadcuts. This is a very common
pattern found in landslide inventories all throughout the Philippines. Due to the roadcuts
susceptibility for slope instability, road blockage due to landslides during typhoons is a
recurring hazard.

Figure 9: Landslide Inventory for Leyte Province

3.2. Shallow Landslides
A summary of the results of the SINMAP model shows that the total land of Leyte, with an
area of 5,562.1 sq. km has 2.8% high landslide susceptibility: 30.5% under moderate and
8.5% under low landslide susceptibility. High susceptibility areas are found mostly on the
central mountain range area. Unstable areas are concentrated on the western part of
Villaba, San Isidro and Merida which are dominantly hilly. Low to moderate susceptibility are
observed on moderately inclined areas of the whole province. Flat areas did not register as
susceptible to landslides (Fig. 10).

Figure 10: Shallow Landslide Susceptibility Map of Leyte

Figure 11: Landslide points within hazard maps produced from dif
erent models

Figure 12: Lineament Analysis for Southern Leyte

Figure 13: Di
ferent rose diagrams for a segment of the Philippine fault and some parts of Leyte
3.3.2. Potential Rockslide Zones and Propagation
Failure zones generated by Matterocking are classified as highly susceptible areas for
structurally controlled landslide (Fig. 14). High activity of the Philppine fault segment in the
province of 0.55cm/year (Cole et al., 1989) up to 3.5cm/year (Duquesnoy, 1997) tracks the
line of high susceptibility in the mountain ranges of the province. Generally steep slopes and
presence of discontinuities are the main factors that would cause instability as specified in
the model. It is the case of wedge failure that could trigger most rockslides. This is due to
the persistence of intersecting discontinuity sets. A total of 5 percent of the provinces area
is classified as potentially unstable slope. Large portion of the municipalities of Leyte,
Capoocan, Carigara, Jaro, Ormoc, Dagami, Albuena, Burauen, La Paz, Baybay City, Javier,
Inopacan, Mahaplag, Abuyog, Hindang, Babatngon and Tacloban are susceptible areas.
These slopes are used as sourcepoints to propagate in the digital terrain model. Rock mass
propagation extent generated by Conefall (Fig. 15) have increased the susceptible areas due
to structural failure to 21 percent of total area of the province.

Samar
Samar Island has two stratigraphic groupings namely the Samar Block and the Leyte Gulf. Samar block
constitutes the whole island except for southwestern Samar since it is part of the Leyte Gulf together with
the
islands
of
Bucas
Grande,
Dinagat,
Homonhon
and
Siargao.
Samar
ophiolite
constitutes
the
basement
rocks
overlain
by di
erent formations. Balo, Hagbay and Catbalogan formations are distributed in areas of Samar. Late
Cretaceous Balo formation, found in Bagacay and San Jose de Buan, consists of lime- stones,
conglomerate, sandstone, mudstone and shale. Middle Miocene Hagbay formation, distributed in Barrio
Hagbay, San Jose de Buan, consists of reefal limestone and siltstone. Middle Miocene Early Pliocene
Catbalogan formation is found in Catbalogan, Loguilocan and Bassey. It is composed of marl, siltstone,
sandstone, pebble and conglomerate [11].