T82 A Showcase of Undergraduate Research in Hydrogeology (Posters)

Sunday, 22 October 2017
9:00 AM - 5:30 PM
Halls 4EF

POTENTIAL EXTENTS AND VOLUME SCENARIOS OF LANDSLIDE INDUCED IMPOUNDMENT LAKES WITHIN DEER CREEK DRAINAGE, WASHINGTON

Paper number: T82-2
Program: Technical Sessions
Time: 9:00 AM – 5:30 PM

Authors

Abstract

Landslides are prevalent geologic hazards which can cause injury or death, and result in significant damage to property and infrastructure annually. The steeply walled valley of Deer Creek, directly upstream from the town of Oso, WA, experiences high annual precipitation, driving rapid incision of a thick sequence of young unconsolidated glacial sediments, resulting in regular and ongoing slope failures. When a landslide occurs along a streambank, debris can partially or completely obstruct the stream’s flow, creating an impoundment lake and flooding upstream. Overtopping is the main cause of failure of landslide dams which can lead to an outburst flood, endangering populations and infrastructure downstream. Our research investigates potential slope failure scenarios, ensuing landslide dams, and extent of corresponding impoundment lakes in the Deer Creek drainage. Several models considering a range of landslide scenarios were generated by modifying the High-resolution LiDAR digital terrain model (DTM) to assess potential impoundment lake volumes. This project was developed to contribute to disaster risk reduction efforts of city planners and emergency personnel with the ambition of providing vital information about the nature of landslide dam related hazards in this locality.

Geological Society of America Abstracts with Programs. Vol. 49, No. 6

doi: 10.1130/abs/2017AM-301550

© Copyright 2017 The Geological Society of America (GSA), all rights reserved. Permission is hereby granted to the author(s) of this abstract to reproduce and distribute it freely, for noncommercial purposes. Permission is hereby granted to any individual scientist to download a single copy of this electronic file and reproduce up to 20 paper copies for noncommercial purposes advancing science and education, including classroom use, providing all reproductions include the complete content shown here, including the author information. All other forms of reproduction and/or transmittal are prohibited without written permission from GSA Copyright Permissions.