Why were residents allowed to build homes in an area prone to massive landslides?
Simply follow the money in Oso, Wash., scene of a massive mudslide that claimed more than 100 lives and destroyed dozens of homes.
Economic and political pressures from developers, builders, landowners and other vested interests trumped common sense and warnings from geologists and other experts.
Dozens of federal and state reports since the 1950s documented past slides and the dire potential for new slides on the hillside abutting the Stillaguamish River's North Fork .
Snohomish County issued building permits despite documented misgivings from the U.S. Corps of Engineers, Environmental Protection Agency and Forest Service and Washington Depts. of Energy and Natural Resources.
A county official, however, said the mudslide area "was considered very safe."
Sadly, what occurred in Oso is replicated in many other parts of America--especially in Southern California.
All you need to build in slide-prone coastal areas is certification from a licensed geologist that the building area is safe.
Your geologist simply conducts several core borings until one is found that shows ground stability. (30 MARCH 2014)
