Francisco Javier Roldán

Curved fold‐and‐thrust accretion during the extrusion of a synorogenic viscous allochthonous sheet: The Estepa Range (External Zones, Western Betic Cordillera, Spain)

[1]xa0New structural, borehole, and time domain electromagnetic data allow us to reconstruct the 3-D geometry of the Estepa range (External Zones of the Western Betic Cordillera), which constitutes an isolated curved fold-and-thrust range made up of Jurassic shallow marine carbonates and Cretaceous to Paleocene marls and marly limestones. Contraction and rising load linked to the accretion of the Subbetic nappe enhanced the expulsion of Triassic evaporites and overpressured clays during the early and middle Miocene, finally forming part of a highly deformed melange unit. This plastic extrusion favored the disconnection of External and Middle Subbetic blocks, including the Sierra de Estepa Range. There, deformation is characterized by northwest-vergent curved folds-and-thrusts associated with NE-SW frontal ramps and NW-SE lateral transfer faults that segmented the folds active between 18 and 12 Ma. At a local scale, curvature was achieved under a nearly uniform NW/WNW transport direction suggesting a primary arc type. Friction variation across the heterogeneous detached plastic basal Triassic unit mainly controlled the curvature and segmentation of the fold systems. Transport direction is consistent with previously published slip data from the Internal Subbetic and the Campo de Gibraltar units. After the Late Serravallian, accretion slowed down and a shallow marine unit deposited unconformably placed over the main thrust and folds. The sequence of deformation and emplacement of these ranges is interpreted as a continuous process linked to the early Miocene E continental collision of the Iberian margin thin continental crust and subduction of the Flysch trough oceanic crust beneath the Alboran continental domain.

The combined use of PSInSAR and UAV photogrammetry techniques for the analysis of the kinematics of a coastal landslide affecting an urban area (SE Spain)

In the present work, the case of the Cármenes del Mar resort (Granada, Spain) is shown. It can be considered one of the most extreme examples on the Mediterranean coast of severe pathologies associated with urban development on coastal landslides. The resort, with 416 dwellings, was partially built on a deep-seated landslide which affects a soft formation composed of dark graphite schists. In November 2015, the City Council officially declared a state of emergency in the resort and 24 dwellings have already been evacuated. We have used two remote sensing techniques to monitor the landslide with the aim of identifying and measuring a wide range of displacements rates (from mm/year to m/year): (1) PSInSAR, exploiting 25 ENVISAT SAR images acquired from May 2003 to December 2009, and (2) photogrammetry, considering the output from two Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) flights made in June 2015 and January 2016 and the outdated photos from a conventional flight in 2008. The relationship between the geology of the site, data from PS deformation measurements, building displacements, rainfall and damage observed and their temporal occurrence allows a better understanding of the landslide kinematics and both the spatial and temporal evolution of the instability. Results indicate building displacements of up to 1.92xa0m in 8xa0years, a clear lithological control in the spatial distribution of damage and a close relationship between the most damaging events and water recharge episodes (rainy events and leaks from swimming pools and the water supply network). This work emphasises the need to incorporate geohazards into urban planning, including policies to predict, prepare for and prevent this type of phenomenon.

A-DInSAR Monitoring of Landslide and Subsidence Activity: A Case of Urban Damage in Arcos de la Frontera, Spain

Terrain surface displacements at a site can be induced by more than one geological process. In this work, we use advanced differential interferometry SAR (A-DInSAR) to measure ground deformation in Arcos de la Frontera (SW Spain), where severe damages related to landslide activity and subsidence have occurred in recent years. The damages are concentrated in two residential neighborhoods constructed between 2001 and 2006. One of the neighborhoods, called La Verbena, is located at the head of an active retrogressive landslide that has an extension of around 0.17 × 106 m2 and developed in weathered clayey soils. Landslide motion has caused building deterioration since they were constructed. After a heavy rainfall period in winter 2009–2010, the movement was accelerated, worsening the situation. The other neighborhood, Pueblos Blancos, was built over a poorly compacted artificial filling undergoing a spatially variable consolidation process which has also led to severe damage to buildings. For both cases, a short set of C-band data from the “ENVISAT 2010+” project has been used to monitor surface displacement for the period spanning April 2011–January 2012. In this work we characterize the mechanism of both ground deformation processes using in situ and remote sensing techniques along with a detailed geological interpretation and urban damage distribution.