Frequency of debris flows and their relation with precipitation: A case study in the Central Alps, Italy (original) (raw)
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Geomorphology, 2010
Growth disturbances in tree-ring series have been regularly used to date debris-flow events in mountain environments. In contrast, no studies are available to date that have reconstructed debris floods by means of dendrogeomorphology. Therefore, the aim of this study was to determine the event frequency and the spread of debris floods in the Gratzental (Tyrol, Austria). The analysis of growth disturbances in the tree-ring series of 227 Picea abies (L.) Karst. and Larix decidua Mill. allowed the reconstruction of 37 events for the last 200 years. The lateral spread and preferable avulsion locations of reconstructed debris-flood events were assessed based on the dating of the events and the spatial position of trees affected by an event on the fan. Results show that the Gratzentalbach preferentially avulsed to the east, but affected trees were evenly spread over the fan. Reconstructed data illustrates the high potential of dendrogeomorphology for hazard assessment of debris floods.
Natural Hazards and Earth System Sciences, 2010
In this paper, we examine variations in climate characteristics near the area of Cortina d'Ampezzo (Dolomites, Eastern Italian Alps), with particular reference to the possible implications for debris-flow occurrence. The study area is prone to debris-flow release in response to summer high-intensity short-duration rainfalls and, therefore, it is of the utmost importance to investigate the potential increase in debris-flow triggering rainfall events. The critical rainfall threshold is agreed to be a crucial triggering factor for debris-flows. Data from a monitoring system, placed in a catchment near Cortina (Acquabona), show that debris-flows were triggered by rainfalls with peak rainfall intensities ranging from 4.9 to 17.4 mm/10 min.
Environmental Management, 2007
The reconstruction of triggering conditions, geomorphic effects, and damage produced by historical floods and debris flows significantly contributes to hazard assessment, allowing improved risk mitigation measures to be defined. Methods for the analysis of historical floods and debris flows vary greatly according to the type and quality of available data, which in turn are influenced by the time the events occurred. For floods and debris flows occurring in the Alps a few decades ago (between about 1950 and 1980), the documentation is usually better than for previous periods but, unlike events of most recent years, quantitative data are usually scanty and the description of the events does not aim to identify processes according to current terminology and classifications. The potential, and also the limitations of historical information available for the reconstruction of historical debris flows in the Alps have been explored by analyzing a high-magnitude debris flow that occurred on November 4, 1966 in the Chieppena Torrent (northeastern Italy). Reconstruction of the event was based on the use of written documentation, terrestrial and aerial photographs, and geomorphological maps. The analysis aimed to define the temporal development of phenomena, recognizing the type of flow processes and assessing some basic flow variables, such as volume, channel-debris yield rate, erosion depth, total distance traveled, and runout distance on the alluvial fan. The historical development of torrent hydraulic works, both before and after the debris flow of November 1966, was also analyzed with regard to the technical solutions adopted and their performance.
Possible impacts of climate change on debris-flow activity in the Swiss Alps
Climatic Change, 2014
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Geomorphic Variations of Debris Flows and Recent Climatic Change in the French Alps
Climatic Change, 2000
Much work has been done to show that there is a relationship between the triggering of debris flows and the recorded increase in temperatures or in the number of intense rainy events over the last few decades. The question addressed in this paper is that of the impact of these climate changes on the dynamics of debris flows since the 1950s. 319 debris flows in the Dévoluy and Ecrins massifs located in the French Alps, the triggering of which is independent of the current glacial retreat, have been analysed. In the Dévoluy a reduction in the number of debris flows was observed in the periods 1950-1975 and 1975-2000. In the Massif des Ecrins, we have observed a shift of the triggering debris flow zone toward higher elevations and a lack of significant variation in the number of debris flows. But in the Massif des Ecrins this global result masks two different trends depending on elevation. At low altitude (<2200 m) the number of debris flows and the frequency of debris flows less than 400 m in length have decreased significantly since the 1980s whereas no significant variation was observed at high altitude (>2200 m). At the same time, we have observed a significant increase in the annual and seasonal temperatures for these 20 last years combined with a significant reduction in the number of freezing days. A significant increase in summer rains higher than 30 mm/d has also been observed. In Dévoluy and at low altitude in the Massif des Ecrins, these variations can be explained by the decrease in the number of freezing days related to the increase in the temperatures, which implies a slower reconstitution of the volume of debris stored between two events. But at high altitude it is currently difficult to establish the link between the climatic change and the dynamics of the debris flows because very little is known about the two variables controlling the triggering of the debris flows, i.e., on the one hand intense precipitations and on the other hand the volume of rock debris. 1990; Haeberli et al.At the same time laboratory measurements have enabled a better understanding of how this process operates and have provided various models (Johnson and Ro-
Climatic Change, 1997
Debris flows in the region of Ritigraben (Valais, Swiss Alps), which generally occur in the months of August and September, have been analyzed in relation to meteorological and climatic factors. The principal trigger mechanisms for such debris flows are abundant rain on the one hand, and snow-melt and runoff on the other hand, or a combination of both. Debris flows linked to rain are likely to be triggered when total rainfall amount over a three-day period exceeds four standard deviations, i.e., a significant extreme precipitation event. An analysis of climatological data for the last three decades in the region of Ritigraben has highlighted the fact that the number of extreme rainfall events capable of triggering debris flows in August and September has increased. Similar trends are observed for the 20th Century in all regions of Switzerland. The general rise in temperature in a region of permafrost may also play a role in the response of slope stability to extreme precipitation. At the foot of the Ritigraben, warming trends of both minimum and maximum temperatures have been particularly marked in the last two decades.
CATENA, 2012
The Tyrrhenian side of the Central Apennines is located in a lively geological context, in which uplift/denudation dynamics played a key role in landscape evolution. Intense water erosion and gravitational processes led to the development of spectacular badlands on the widespread clayey hillslopes. The Crete d'Arbia badlands (as part of the Crete Senesi of Southern Tuscany) represent one of the most beautiful examples of these landforms developed on Pliocene clays. On the other hand, these rapidly evolving landforms endanger the artistic heritage of the area, as with the Monte Oliveto Maggiore Abbey that was constructed on the top of a badland hillslope and confers additional value to the landscape. In the perspective of monitoring and reconstructing some significant phases of the relief evolution of this area an integrated approach has been used, which is based on dendrogeomorphology and geomorphological monitoring techniques. In particular, the correspondence between the data from dendrogeomorphological indicators and the measured denudation rates on badland hillslopes was tested. The sampling for dendrogeomorphological analysis has been performed in two stages on 45 trees of the Pinus pinea L. species, on hillslopes affected by soil creep and shallow landslides, in order to identify annual ring growth anomalies, compression wood and roots exposure. Trees' local behaviour is not homogeneous but some common trends have been detected on the basis of the anomaly index and compression wood. Since 1993 several monitoring stations at badland denudation "hot spots" have been equipped with erosion pins; quantitative data from monitoring stations, compared to pluviometric series, indicated critical phases of denudation that were supported by dendrochronological data. The integrated approach between dendrogeomorphology and geomorphological monitoring techniques allowed calibration of both tools in order to extend the analysis in the period preceding the field measurements. This kind of approach, capable of implementation in many contexts, could be particularly helpful in order to forecast the relief evolutionary trend.