Villerville landslide

Introduction

Location

In Normandy, along the Calvados coast, 50 km of cliffs are partly and periodically affected by landslides for several centuries. On the eastern side, the 12 km long Pays d'Auge section between Trouville-sur-Mer and Honfleur, has been particularly affected. Two spectacular landslides are investigated: the "Fosses du Macre" and the "Cirque des Graves" landslides near the municipality of Villerville-Cricqueboeuf.

Location of the Villerville-Cricqueboeuf landslides and of the monitoring networks

            
Aerial view to the West on the Villerville-Cricqueboeuf landslides (1988)

Morphological situation

The Pays d'Auge plateau is bordered in the North by high cliffs of up to 140 m. The topography and geology of the cliffs is inhomogeneous. The main scarp is composed of chalk overlying sands. Below, a thick series of marls on top of sandy limestone shape the cliff toe and constitute a flat rocky reef between Trouville and the Pointe du Heurt. Below the scarp, the slope is more gentle and relatively straight. It is composed of blocks and debris of chalk and flints as well as loess which fill the voids between the chalk blocks. These formations have been placed during the Upper Pleistocene period.

         
Geological profile of the present coastal slope of Villerville