denudation and landslides in coastal mountain watersheds : 10,000 years of erosion
;R. H. Guthrie;J. K. Brown
american journal of clinical dermatologyVol. 63pp. 26-35
168
guthriegeographicadenudation
Abstract
A conceptual model of landslide-induced denudation
for coastal mountain watersheds spanning 10,000 years
of environmental change is presented. The model uses a
constructed paleo-climate based on vegetation records
and an established relationship between landslide frequencies
and precipitation. Landslide frequencies are
determined for the early warm dry Holocene, the warm
wet middle Holocene and modern climates. Average
landslide rates vary between 0.005 landslides·y-1·km-2
and 0.008 landslides·y-1·km-2. Recent human impacts
are calculated by recalculating landslide frequencies
for logged areas in the 20th century. The impact of logging
during the last 100 years is unambiguous as landslide
frequency increased to 0.015 landslides·y-1·km-2.
This suggests that the impact of logging outpaces that
of climatic change. It is estimated that debris slides and
flows eroded an average of 0.7 m·m-2 across Vancouver
Island during the last 10,000 years.