TBILISI, September 3 – Georgia has begun installing early warning systems in mountainous areas at risk from landslides.
The move comes as a deadly disaster in Nepal, which killed hundreds of people, has renewed attention on risks facing mountain communities. Nino Chkhobadze, chair of the environmental group Georgian Greens – Friends of the Earth, told Rezonansi on Thursday that similar events are possible in Georgia’s mountain ecosystems.
She said Swiss and Georgian specialists have begun installing warning systems, particularly near populated areas, similar to a system already operating at Devdoraki.
According to Chkhobadze, the first systems are being placed in mountainous areas of the Greater and Lesser Caucasus where natural hazards are present. She said their number remains limited partly because of financial constraints.
Georgia has experienced its own deadly mountain disaster. Chkhobadze pointed to the August 2023 disaster at the mountain resort of Shovi, saying the event developed very rapidly and could have caused even greater loss of life if more people had been in its path.
She said climate change and increasingly intense rainfall are among factors behind many such events and stressed that warning equipment alone would not remove the danger.
Chkhobadze called for continuous monitoring of vulnerable areas, regular scientific assessment and specialists on the ground to watch for signs of danger. She also said residents need to be repeatedly informed about risks and taught how to respond when an emergency develops.
The Nepal disaster showed that even where monitoring systems exist, events can unfold too quickly for warnings to work effectively, she said.
Chkhobadze described the installation of early warning systems as an important step for Georgia but cautioned that mountainous areas can never be completely protected from rapidly developing natural hazards.
