Landslides in Nebraska
Compiled by Duane A. Eversoll, Research Geologist, Emeritus
Introduction
Welcome to Landslides in Nebraska. Here you will find an overview of landslides in Nebraska, including selected photographs and illustrations. In addition, you can query the Landslides in Nebraska Data Base. The data base includes photographs of many of the landslides.
Part I: The Birth and Development of a Landslide Located Five Miles West of Lincoln on Interstate 80 (a five photograph series)
March 4, 1987 (photo 1 of 5)
March 19, 1987 (photo 2 of 5)
April 17, 1987 (photo 3 of 5)
March 20, 1990 (photo 4 of 5)
July 8, 1993 (photo 5 of 5)
Part II: Five Types of Landslides Identified Along Nebraska Roadways
Geologic materials and the type of movement involved were used to identify types of landslides in Nebraska. A landslide is defined in general terms as the downward and outward movement of earth materials. The five types of landslides identified--using the Varnes Classification of Slope Movements, 1976--along Nebraska roadways are:
Rock Falls are defined as free falling rocks from a steep cliff or slope, along an undercut stream bank or an eroding valley wall (Figure 2.1). They occur mainly in the Greenhorn Limestone of Cretaceous age and in the Permian and Pennsylvanian aged rocks in eastern Nebraska and in the Arikaree, and Ogallala groups of Tertiary age in western Nebraska. Seventeen rockfalls were recorded in this study.
Source: Landslide Inventory Along Nebraska State-Federal Roadway System (MP-39), Section 2.2, by Duane A. Eversoll, CSD Research Geologist, 1991.
Earth Slumps are defined as non-bedrock deposits (loess, glacial materials, etc.) that move downward on a rotational failure plane. Of the 209 landslides inventoried, 108 were classified as earthslumps. Earthslumps are the most widespread and common type of landslide found in Nebraska. They develop mainly in loess and glacial deposits. One landslide was classified as a debris slump.
Source: Landslide Inventory Along Nebraska State-Federal Roadway System (MP-39, Section 2.4, by Duane A. Eversoll, CSD Research Geologist, 1991.
Rock Spreads are defined as blocks or slabs of bedrock that move laterally usually without a well-defined controlling basal shear surface or zone of plastic flow. Examples in Nebraska were observed along the south-central border and involved Cretaceous Greenhorn Limestone with lateral extension (movement) on the underlying Graneros Shale of Cretaceous age. Only one landslide was classified as a rockspread in this study.
Source: Landslide Inventory Along Nebraska State-Federal Roadway System (MP-39), Section 2.5, by Duane A. Eversoll, CSD Research Geologist, 1991.
Rock Slumps are defined as a mass of bedrock that moves downward on a rotational failure plane. Seventy of the landslides inventoried for this study were classified as rockslumps. A majority of these rockslumps, occurred in the Pierre Shale of Cretaceous age.
Source: Landslide Inventory Along Nebraska State-Federal Roadway System (MP-39), Section 2.3, by Duane A. Eversoll, CSD Research Geologist, 1991.
According to Varnes (1978) movement is by a combination of one or more of the principal types of landslides. Many landslides are complex, although one type of movement dominates over the other types in certain areas of a slide or at a particular time. Older and larger slides such as those observed along major river bluffs involving younger deposits overlying older bedrock were classified as complex. Thirteen landslides were classified as Complex.
Source: Landslide Inventory Along Nebraska State-Federal Roadway System (MP-39), Section 2.6, by Duane A. Eversoll, CSD Research Geologist, 1991.
Varnes Classification of Slope Movements (1976)
Part III: Examples of the Five Types of Landslides Found in Nebraska
Urban Rock Fall in Wildcat Hills area near Scottsbluff, Nebraska. Photo by Jack Shroeder, University of Nebraska-Omaha.
Rock Fall at Ponca State Park, Nebraska. The boat ramp to the Missouri River is on the left.
Urban Earth Slump in Omaha, Nebraska near 106th and Pacific Streets.
Earth Slump, Fremont, Nebraska. A close-up of the homes on top of the landslide is in the next photograph.
Close-up from the previous photograph of the Earth Slump near Fremont, Nebraska. At least three houses were moved due to this threatening landslide. The slide was probably caused by individual septic systems and underground sprinkler systems saturating the bluff overlooking the Platte River.
Knox County. A county road Earth Slump, north of Center, Nebraska.
Rock Spread in Hitchcock County, Nebraska. Note the blocks of Ogallala.
Rock Slump in Pierre Shale on Highway 13, Knox County, Nebraska.
West of Lynch, Nebraska, Highway 12, Knox County. A large Rock Slump in Cretaceous Pierre Shale. Note the old road in left foreground being destroyed by the slide. The new road (far right, center) is not impacted.
Complex landslide on Highway 14, two miles South of Niobrara, Nebraska. See an enlargement of this photograph which includes details of this complex landslide. The next photograph is a close-up of the area in the yellow rectangle.
Overnight settlement on Complex landslide on Highway 14, two miles South of Niobrara, Nebraska. This photograph is a close-up of the area in the yellow rectangle from the previous photograph.
Highway 14, Knox County, Nebraska. Close-up of the area featured in the green rectangle. Same Complex landslide as the above two photographs, but two years later. The highway dropped over six feet just after it was re-routed through the hills on the left.
Miscellaneous Photographs of Other Landslides in Nebraska
Slide Area Sign, East of Lynch, Nebraska, Highway 12, Boyd County. The next photograph is a close-up of the landslide in the yellow rectangle.
Highway 12, Boyd County, Nebraska. This landslide is a combination of an Earth Slump and Rock Slump. Pleistocene sand and gravels overlying Pierre Shale.
Falling Rock Sign, Thayer County, Nebraska. The road was developed in the Cretaceous-Greenhorn-Graneros formations. The road was temporarily closed by a landslide in the Spring of 1997.
For More Information
Duane A. Eversoll, Research Geologist, Emeritus
611 Hardin Hall
School of Natural Resources
University of Nebraska-Lincoln
Lincoln, Nebraska 68583-0996
Phone 402-472-7524
Fax 402-472-2946
E-mail Duane Eversoll
Additional Resource
The University of Sannio (Italy), the University of Durham (UK) and the Tribhuvan University of Kathmandu (Nepal) are involved in a project called Land-Man, and is funded by the European Union, to develop a new curriculum in the field of Landslides Management at http://www.land-man.net.
