Preliminary Map of Landslide Deposits in the Mesa Verde National Park Area, Colorado

Scientific Investigations Map 3090
By:

Links

Abstract

This report presents a preliminary map of landslide deposits in the Mesa Verde National Park area (see map sheet) at a compilation scale of 1:50,000. Landslide is a general term for landforms produced by a wide variety of gravity-driven mass movements, including various types of flows, slides, topples and falls, and combinations thereof produced by the slow to rapid downslope transport of surficial materials or bedrock. The map depicts more than 200 landslides ranging in size from small (0.01 square miles) earthflows and rock slumps to large (greater than 0.50 square miles) translational slides and complex landslides (Varnes, 1978). This map has been prepared to provide a regional overview of the distribution of landslide deposits in the Mesa Verde area, and as such constitutes an inventory of landslides in the area. The map is suitable for regional planning to identify broad areas where landslide deposits and processes are concentrated. It should not be used as a substitute for detailed site investigations. Specific areas thought to be subject to landslide hazards should be carefully studied before development. Many of the landslides depicted on this map are probably stable as they date to the Pleistocene (approximately 1.8-0.011 Ma) and hence formed under a different climate regime. However, the recognition of these landslides is important because natural and human-induced factors can alter stability. Reduction of lateral support (by excavations or roadcuts), removal of vegetation (by fire or development), or an increase in pore pressure (by heavy rains) may result in the reactivation of landslides or parts of landslides.

Study Area

Publication type Report
Publication Subtype USGS Numbered Series
Title Preliminary Map of Landslide Deposits in the Mesa Verde National Park Area, Colorado
Series title Scientific Investigations Map
Series number 3090
DOI 10.3133/sim3090
Edition Version 1.0
Year Published 2009
Language ENGLISH
Publisher U.S. Geological Survey
Contributing office(s) Earth Surface Processes Team
Description Map Sheet: 44 x 34 inches; Downloads Directory
Projection Polyconic
Scale 50000
Online Only (Y/N) Y
Additional Online Files (Y/N) Y
Google Analytic Metrics Metrics page
Additional publication details