FEATURESOFTHEDEVELOPMENTOFGEOMORPHOLOGICALPROCESSES(CREEPANDEROSION)INMOUNTAINAREAS:EVIDENCEFROMUZBEKISTAN
Abstract
MountainenvironmentsinUzbekistanarecharacterizedbyhighreliefenergy,activeneotectonics,andsharphydro‑climaticgradients,whichtogethercreatefavorableconditionsforslopedeformationandaccelerateddenudation.Thisarticlesynthesizesthespatialpatternsandcontrollingnaturalfactorsoftwokeygeomorphologicalprocesses—creep(includingslowlandslidesandperiglacialsolifluction)anderosion(sheet,rill,gully,andchannelerosion)—usingevidencefrompublishedcasestudiesandrecentremote-sensingapplicationsintheWesternTienShanandPamir–Alaysectors.Aconceptualframeworkisproposedinwhich(I)lithologyandweatheringstatesetthethresholdstrengthofhillslopes,(II)topographyandstructuraldiscontinuitiesregulatestressanddrainagepathways,and(III)hydro‑meteorologicalforcing(rainfallintensity,snowmelttiming,andgroundwaterresponse)triggersseasonalaccelerationandepisodicfailures.Thereviewhighlightsthatmosthazardousslopeeventsclusterinfoothill–mid‑mountainbeltswhereloessandcolluvialcoversoverlieweakerbedrockandwhereanthropogenicdisturbances(roadcuts,irrigationseepage,reservoirwater-levelfluctuations)amplifynaturalsusceptibility