In this Earthcache you will learn about types of landslides, its causes, effects and what is happening now.
The coordinates will take you to a large parking lot with a view of Lake Michigan. Also right in front of you is a large information plaque.
There is a lot of history on this plaque and most of the questions will come from this plaque. We are going to put the questions here at the top in case your GPS cannot download all of the information. There is a lot of good information here though.
A. Looking through the information below about types of landslides what type do you think this was?
B. At what time and on what day did the first Earth-slide occur?
C. How big was the chunk of land that fell in the first Earth-slide?
D. On what day and at what time did the second Earth-slide occur?
E. How big was the chunk of land that fell in the second Earth-slide?
F. Finish in this sentence, “Environmental experts were confident that they had successfully…( It should be a four word answer)
G. What do you think caused these Earth-slides and why do you think that?
H. Do you think it could/can/ or will happen again?
I. The elevation at Lake Michigan is 574 ft. Check your elevation here. How far could the Earth-slides have slid?
Any pictures or logs giving away the answers will be deleted. THANK YOU for finding our Earthcache. We will email you if you are missing anything.
(This is NOT Saint Joseph. It is just a picture to give you an idea of what an Earth-slide looks like)
On Dec 31, 2008 the Holland Centinel ran this story:
St. Joseph officials ponder hanging house.
A backyard landslide has left a St. Joseph house dangling over the edge of a bluff.
A neighboring home also has lost part of its backyard and could fall down the steep hill.
The landslide happened Sunday after a brief warm spell rapidly melted snow cover and dumped rain on the area.
Both houses have been declared unsafe.
Some debris reached the CSX railroad tracks at the bottom of the bluff. Trains were delayed a short time as workers cleared away the dirt and rocks.
Heavy rains washed out a backyard in the same neighborhood in September.
City Manager Frank Walsh tells The Herald-Palladium that the washouts are unusual because homes have stood safely on the bluff for decades.
These two parks are here now because it is not safe to build houses on the bluff.
Types of Landslides
Shallow landslides are caused sometimes when water can soak into the soil on the top but not the soil on the bottom. When it rains the top soil will get heavy as slide off the bottom soil. Deep-seated landslides usually occur 30 or more feet down in the ground, also usually below the tree roots. Also typically Deep-seated landslides are slower moving than the Shallow landslides. Debris flow also typically occurs when the material gets saturated with water. With a debris flow though it picks up things as it goes, like trees or even houses. At times a Debris flow will block small rivers causing flooding. These are just a few of the different types of landslides.
Causes of Landslides
Sometimes landslides are man-made and at other times it is just a natural occurrence after a lot of rain for example. At times it occurs after making a road; you might have seen signs on the side of the road warning you of falling rocks. Sometimes it will occur after a forest fire, or after an earthquake. Sometimes it can occur after a river erodes part of the bank.
Effects of Landslides
The effects of landslides can be widely different place to place. At times it does not affect anyone other than changing the scenery. At other times it can be very devastating both to structures and at times even claiming lives. The earthquake that just happened in April of 2015 killed more than 8,800 people and injured more than 23,000. It also resulted in an avalanche on Mount Everest in which at least 19 people died and at least 120 others were injured or are still missing. It also resulted a landslide in the Langtang Valley where 329 people were reported missing. Landslides cause between one and two billion dollars in damage just in the US a year.
What is happening now
The USGS a Landslide Hazards Program monitors some selected landslides and hillsides to learn more about the processes that triggers landslides. They have been doing this for about 10 years in cooperation with the National Weather Service.
On a side note check out the Vanishing Lakeshore multi-cache if you are able to. You may be surprised what you see when you get to the final!