MASS MOVEMENTS IN THE PARKS: GEOCORPS AND GEOHAZARDS AT THE TOP OF NORTH AMERICA

Changing climate and growing infrastructure are increasingly making mass movement events an object of study across professional disciplines. Debris flows and landslides are relevant to everyone from road crews to real estate agents, but the number of driving factors involved in understanding and predicting them can be dizzying—especially with the added variable of frozen ground. In Alaska and similar high-latitude climates this is becoming a persistent problem.

Following a massive debris slide in October, 2013, Geocorps and Denali National Park and Preserve provided the opportunity for a Geohazards Specialist to assist in mass movement inventorying, monitoring, and mitigation planning. In the first year, this led to the development of a catalog, maps, and risk analyses based on known mass movement events in the park, geohazard education and outreach programs, publishing of a publicly available educational fact sheet, presentation of risk analyses and mitigation plans at a regional geotechnical conference, and extensive discussion to determine the needs and capabilities of a park monitoring program. The second year provided an opportunity to build on the work of the first, as well as work with other federal agencies to develop an inter-agency, nation-wide Unstable Slope Management Program, develop and implement an interpretation scheme based around natural hazards, and explore more remote hazards for integration into existing databases.

Though some variables are still not well-constrained, valuable advances have been made in beginning to determine the origin, cause, and potential effects of mass movements along the park road corridor. These combined efforts and experiences demonstrate a thorough commitment to furthering the respective missions of the National Park Service and the Geological Society of America by serving both science and the users of our National Parks.