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Were merely storm-landslides driven by the 2015-2016 Niño in the Mendoza River valley?

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Abstract

Since Holocene time, above-mean precipitations recorded during the El Niño warm ENSO phase have been linked to the occurrence of severe debris flows in the arid Central Andes. The 2015–2016 El Niño, for its unusual strength, began driving huge and dangerous landslides in the Central Andes (32°) in the recent South Hemisphere summer. The resulting damages negatively impacted the regional economy. Despite this, causes of these dangerous events were ambiguously reported. For this reason, a multidisciplinary study was carried out in the Mendoza River valley. Firstly, a geomorphological analysis of affected basins was conducted, estimating morphometric parameters of recorded events such as velocity, stream flow, and volume. Atmospheric conditions during such events were analyzed, considering precipitations, snow cover, temperature range, and the elevation of the zero isotherm. Based on our findings, the role of El Niño on the slope instability in the Central Andes is more complex in the climate change scenario. Even though some events were effectively triggered by intense summer rainstorm following expectations, the most dangerous events were caused by the progressive uplifting of the zero isotherm in smaller basins where headwaters are occupied by debris rock glaciers. Our research findings give light to the dynamic coupled system ENSO–climate change–landslides (ECCL) at least in this particular case study of the Mendoza River valley. Landslide activity in this Andean region is driven by wetter conditions linked to the ENSO warm phase, but also to progressive warming since the twentieth century in the region. This fact emphasizes the future impact of the natural hazards on Andean mountain communities.

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Acknowledgments

Research activities were developed in the framework of the ANLAC program: Natural Hazards of the Central Andes: prediction, analysis and economical valuation funded by the National University of Cuyo and led by Prof. Moreiras. We are grateful to Stella Barrera Oro for English checking. We would like to thank anonymous reviewers; their comments helped us to improve the original manuscript version.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. IANIGLA-CONICET, Av Ruiz Leal s/n. Parque Gral. San Martin, Cuidad, Mendoza, Argentina

    Stella M. Moreiras, Ivan Vergara Dal Pont & Diego Araneo

  2. Facultad de Ciencias Agrarias, Universidad Nacional de Cuyo, A. Brown 550. Chacras de Coria, Mendoza, Argentina

    Stella M. Moreiras

  3. Facultad de Geología y Paleontología, Universidad Nacional de Río Negro, Gral. Roca, Rio Negro, Argentina

    Ivan Vergara Dal Pont

  4. Facultad de Ciencias Naturales, Universidad Nacional de Cuyo, Ciudad Universitaria, Parque Gral. San Martin, Ciudad, Mendoza, Argentina

    Diego Araneo

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  1. Stella M. Moreiras
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  2. Ivan Vergara Dal Pont
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Correspondence to Stella M. Moreiras.

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Moreiras, S.M., Pont, I.V.D. & Araneo, D. Were merely storm-landslides driven by the 2015-2016 Niño in the Mendoza River valley?. Landslides 15, 997–1014 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10346-018-0959-3

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