Coupling between hydrogeology and deformation of mountainous rock slopes: Insights from La Clapière area (southern Alps, France)

Yves Guglielmi (1) , Frédéric Cappa (1) , Stéphane Binet (2, 3)

1 GEOAZUR 6526 - Géoazur
2 ISTO - Institut des Sciences de la Terre d'Orléans
3 Géosciences : Déformation, Ecoulements, Transferts

Meteoric infiltration influence on large mountainous rock slopes stability is investigated by comparing hydrogeologic and gravitational structures from detailed mapping of the 'La Clapière' slope. The slope infiltrated waters are trapped in a perched aquifer that is contained in deposits inside tensile cracks of the upper part of the slope. Flow rates of 0.4 to 0.8 l s−1 from the perched aquifer to the landslide cause landslide accelerations. Numerical modeling shows that a 0.75 l s−1 infiltration yield increases conditions for toppling with failure through tilting of large rock volumes from the perched aquifer bottom down to the foot of the slope.

Keywords: Toppling; Hydromechanical coupling; Gravitational; Modelling; Long-term

Domains: Hydrology; Global Changes

Yves Guglielmi, Frédéric Cappa, Stéphane Binet. Coupling between hydrogeology and deformation of mountainous rock slopes: Insights from La Clapière area (southern Alps, France). Comptes Rendus Géoscience, 2005, 337 (13), pp.1154-1163. ⟨10.1016/j.crte.2005.04.016⟩. ⟨insu-00617196⟩