Landslides and climate change in the Dolomites since the Lateglacial

The conference

The lecture deals with the influence of climate changes on landslide occurrence in mountain regions since the Lateglacial. After some methodological considerations, the results of long-term geomorphological investigations and landslide dating carried out in two study sites of the Eastern Dolomites (Italy) will be illustrated. By analysing the temporal distribution of landslides, it was possible to correlate increased landslide activity with the climate changes occurring at the boundary between the Late glacial and the Holocene and between the Atlantic and the Subboreal, and to compare the results with those derived from other European regions. The causes and types of mass movements taking place during these periods were substantially different, reflecting the different morphoclimatic conditions that characterized the region when these landslides were triggered. Finally, notwithstanding the importance of non-climatic causes, such as geological factors and possible human influences, it will be shown that most of the dated landslides can be considered as indicators (or even proxies) of climate changes.

The speaker

Mauro Soldati is Professor of Geomorphology at the University of Modena and Reggio Emilia. Since 2017, he is president of the International Association of Geomorphologists (IAG). His research focuses on geomorphological mapping, slope instabilities, relationships between landslides and climate change, as well as coastal and mountainous hazards. The investigations have mainly been carried out in the Italian Dolomites, in the Northern Apennines and in the Maltese archipelago