An area in Southern California destroyed due to Mass Wasting.
http://www.flashcardmachine.com/earth-and-theenvironment.html
Specifically in Southern California the steep slopes, the frequency of earthquakes, with patterns of wildfire and rainfall are huge factors to their mass wasting. California receives very sporadic changes in the rainfall that cause dry seasons that create the forest fires which is not good for the outcomes of Mass Wasting.
http://blank005.tripod.com/geology/masswasting.html
*Video of the affects of a landslide in San Diemos, California.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pCMMwQmUjHI&feature=related
Mass Wasting can be detrimental to people living in the area, it can cause devastation to houses, natural resources and other structures built on the area around it. Depending the size of the landslide outcomes can become very serious. Mass wasting can also can cause the acceleration of erosion through the construction causing reducing of the amount of sand on the beaches. Actions can be done to prevent Mass Wasting such as: picking vegetation areas with stable slopes, stabilizing structures, regrading of slopes to lessen the steepness, and installing of drainage and runoff to decrease the moisture on the slope sides.
Work Sited:
http://people.hofstra.edu/j_b_bennington/33notes/mass_wasting.html
http://www.geology.wisc.edu/courses/g112/mass_wasting.html
http://cengagesites.com/academic/assets/sites/4004/DeCourten_1424067871_LowRes.pdf
Hey Kendall!
ReplyDeleteVery interesting post about Mass Wasting. The YouTube video was a very good example and provided a good visual. They say a picture is worth a thousand words, so a video must be worth a million words :).
You briefly touched on an issue about fires in California facilitating the Mass Wasting problem. I was hoping you could expand on this a little more. Do the fires cause the ground to become unstable due to the burning of the vegetation eliminating the stability of the ground? I think it is a good point to bring up but could use a little more elaboration.
The only other thing I am confused about is the part where you state that picking vegetation on areas with stable slopes prevents Mass Wasting. While an area with stable slopes probably won't have Mass Wasting occurring, how would the elimination of the stability of the ground prevent Mass Wasting?
Overall, I think this post was very informative. Your statement about precipitation being a large culprit in Mass Wasting was solidified in the YouTube video when they stated the same thing. It is good to know that Mass Wasting can be caused from precipitation that occurred 4 weeks prior to the event! Thanks for the post, I thoroughly enjoyed it.
Luisa Hesse
Hi Kendall,
ReplyDeleteWe particularly enjoyed your post about mass wasting because we also decided to discuss this topic in our blog! We liked how you began your post by providing a definition, the types, and the factors that influence mass wasting. The first picture that you included really exhibits the effect of mass wasting as well as the landscapes in which it can occur. We noticed the lack of vegetation in the area immediately surrounding the landslide, the steep slope, and it looks as though there has been recent excessive moisture in the area. Great way to provide a clear example of the topic you are discussing!
We agree with Luisa in the fact that we would like to know a little bit more about how forest fires contribute to mass wasting. While it is absolutely a great point to bring up, it would be nice for an uninformed reader to have some extra information on the subject.
The video was also a great visual and informative addition to your blog!
Great job and thanks for the great post!
-Andrew and Melissa