ONE OF THE HAZARDOUS NEIGHBOURS OF THE VAJONT LANDSLIDE: THE HISTORICAL M. SALTA ROCK-BLOCK SLIDE-ROCK FALL.

Abstract

In the Vajont Valley (north-eastern Alps), the everlasting interactions between endogenic (tectonic, seismic, isostatic) and exogenic (glacial, slope, anthropogenic) processes have resulted in a hazardous environment. The most striking geomorphological feature of the valley is the evidence of several landslide processes of different type, age, and size. The October 1963 catastrophic landslide is undoubtedly the most notorious one. However, the Pineda and Salta landslide events have left enduring signatures in the landscape of the valley. In particular, the wide landslide deposit upslope Casso, on the southern slope of M. Salta, derives from multiple overlapping events. Rock planar slides, topples, and rock falls occur since centuries, displaying a complexcomposite style of activity. Nowadays, in this area, slope processes are still active and are threatening the village of Casso and the visitors of the 1963 disaster site.