Contribution of the collaborative effort of the Czech WCoE to landslide risk reduction at the Machupicchu, Peru

The paper presents the long-term collaboration of the Czech research group organized under the World Centre of Excellence with Peruvian experts from the National Archaeological Park of Machupicchu (Parque Arqueologico Nacional de Machupicchu). The collaboration monitored potentially dangerous slope movements at the archaeological site. This was achieved with the installation of an environmentally friendly network of dilatometric instruments, taking into consideration the strict requirements for site protection and the provision of long-term, reliable results. The 17-year-long monitoring (not continuous) identified no major hazard to the archaeological site which used to support decision of site managers to limit the entrance of tourists to the Intiwatana hill since 2019. Historical photographs of Czech travellers (from 1949, 1950, 1954, and 1961) were shared with Peruvian experts, who compared them with the oldest photos from the explorer Hiram Bingham and the most recent situation. The photographs were used to document the historical development of selected structures inside Machupicchu as well as landslide occurrences on the surrounding slopes. We think this is a good example of a successful collaboration in the adoption of a robust and reliable monitoring approach into the regular practices of the site mangers.