Guizhou improves disaster prevention, reduces geological risks

During the 14th Five-Year Plan period (2021-25), Southwest China's Guizhou province avoided 183 geological disasters, prevented 6,520 casualties, and averted more than 740 million yuan ($103.6 million) in direct economic losses. The proportion of avoided disasters compared to actual occurrences steadily increased from 57.12 percent in 2021 to 86.79 percent in 2025.

Guizhou's mountainous and hilly terrain makes it highly prone to geological disasters. High- and medium-risk areas cover 152,800 square kilometers, accounting for 86.8 percent of the province's total area. To improve disaster monitoring, Guizhou relies on advanced technologies such as satellite remote sensing and synthetic aperture radar interferometry. These methods have identified 5,809 new deformation zones and confirmed 725 geological hazard risk points, with data promptly shared with transportation, water conservancy, and other relevant departments for early detection and coordinated response. More than 10,000 automated monitoring stations now provide real-time hazard surveillance and early warnings.

During each flood season, Guizhou dispatches over 400 professional technicians to counties to provide technical guidance and strengthen grassroots disaster prevention capabilities.

In addition, the province is advancing engineering measures and organizing relocations to reduce risk. In 2025, the provincial government issued guidelines for graded relocations, planning to relocate 78,600 households (318,800 people) from 3,037 high-risk geological hazard sites over the next five years.