Abstract
In Argentina , in both mountain and piedmont basins , generally with insufficient hydrological data , flash floods are recurrent . The objective of this paper is to evaluate the flash flood hazard of a typical ungauged piedmont basin , the Arroyo (= creek) Chuchiras, province of Córdoba , Argentina , through the analysis of geomorphological , sedimentological , hydrological , and anthropogenic variables that control the behavior of these fluvial systems . The concept of hazard represents the susceptibility and natural fragility of a region exposed to a threat. The susceptibility was evaluated through the following indicators: slope, aspect, valley depth, landscape and landforms, and road networks. Five classes of flash flood susceptibility and hazard were defined. To assess the threat, analysis was made taking into account temporal distribution and intensity of precipitation , field hydrological evidence , and eyewitness reports. The Manning and the paleo-hydraulic methods were used to estimate mean velocity values during the extraordinary event flash flood which occurred on February 4, 2014. The flash flood hazard in the western piedmont of the Sierras Grandes de Córdoba is the result of the combination of variables: low permeability rocks in the upper basin; important topographical contrasts between the fault scarp and piedmont area ; and streams with torrential regime and high energy (velocity, competence, and transport capacity ) that make up distributary systems in the distal-middle piedmont and high intensity rainfalls . A 26% of the study area presents high/moderately high flash flood hazard , associated with the lower reaches and proximal-middle active alluvial fan of Arroyo Chuchiras; 64 and 10% of the investigated sector correspond to low/moderately low and moderate classes of flash flood hazard , respectively.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Ambrosino S, Barbeito O, Bertoni JC, Daniele A, Maza JA, Ubaldo Paoli C, Serra JJ (2004) Inundaciones urbanas en Argentina. INA, Córdoba, Argentina
Anquetin S, Braud I, Vannier O, Viallet P, Boudevillain B, Creutin JD, Manus C (2010) Sensitivity of the hydrological response to the variability of rainfall fields and soils for the Gard 2002 flash-flood event. J Hydrol 394:134–147. doi:10.1016/j.jhydrol.2010.07.002
Bajabaa S, Masoud M, Al-Amri N (2014) Flash flood hazard mapping based on quantitative hydrology, geomorphology and GIS techniques (case study of Wadi Al Lith, Saudi Arabia). Arab J Geosci 7:2469–2481
Beckwith DD (2001) Sedimentologic processes and glaciogenic landforms at the Herbert Glacier Ice Front, southeast Alaska: Colorado Springs, Colorado, Colorado College, Unpublished B.S. thesis, 93 p
Bonalumi A, Martino R, Baldo E, Zarco J, Sfragulla J, Carignano C, Kraemer P, Escayola M, Tauber A (1999). Hoja Geológica 3166-IV, Villa Dolores. Programa Nacional de Cartas Geológicas de la República Argentina, 1:250.000, 122 p., Córdoba
Borga M, Stoffel M, Marchi L, Marra F, Jakob M (2014) Hydrogeomorphic response to extreme rainfall in headwater systems: flash floods and debris flows. J Hydrol 518:194–205. doi:10.1016/j.jhydrol.2014.05.022
Busnelli J, Horta LR (2014) Morfometría de cuencas montanas y metamorfosis fluvial, Tucumán. Revista de la Asociación Geológica Argentina 71(1):11–20 (Buenos Aires)
Capitanelli RG (1979) Clima. In: Geografía física de la Provincia de Córdoba. Editorial Boldt, Córdoba, Argentina
Carpenter TM, Sperfslage JA, Georgakakos KP, Sweeneyc T, Fread DL (1999) National threshold runoff estimation utilizing GIS in support of operational flash flood warning systems. J Hydrol 224:21–44
Catane SG, Abon CC, Saturay RM Jr, Mendoza EPP, Futalan KM (2012) Landslide-amplified flash floods—the June 2008 Panay Island flooding, Philippines. Geomorphology 169–170:55–63. doi:10.1016/j.geomorph.2012.04.008
Cendrero A (1987). Riesgos geológicos, ordenación del territorio y protección del medio ambiente. 1° Curso de riesgos geológicos. Instituto Geológico Minero de España, Madrid, pp 327–333
Chow VT (1959) Open-channel hydraulics. McGraw-Hill, New York
Conrad O (2006) SAGA—program structure and current state of implementation. In: Böhner J, McCloy KR, Strobl J (eds) SAGA—analysis and modelling applications, vol 115. Göttinger Geographische Abhandlungen, pp 39–52
Costa JE (1983) Paleohydraulic reconstruction of flash-flood peaks from boulders deposits in the Colorado Front Range. Geol Soc Am Bull 94:986–1004
Dawod GM, Mirza MN, Al-Ghamdi KA (2011) GIS-based spatial mapping of flash flood hazard in Makkah City, Saudi Arabia. J Geogr Inf Syst 3:225–231. doi:10.4236/jgis.2011.33019
De Waele J, Martina MLV, Sanna L, Cabras S, Cossu QA (2010) Flash flood hydrology in karstic terrain: Flumineddu Canyon, central-east Sardinia. Geomorphology 120:162–173. doi:10.1016/j.geomorph.2010.03.021
Elkhrachy I (2015) Flash flood hazard mapping using satellite images and GIS tools: a case study of Najran City, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA). Egypt J Remote Sens Space Sci 18:261–278. doi:10.1016/j.ejrs.2015.06.007
Esper Angillieri MY (2007) El aluvión del 13 de febrero de 1944 en la Quebrada del Carrizal, Departamento Iglesia, provincia de San Juan. Revista de la Asociación Geológica Argentina 62(2):283–288 (Buenos Aires)
Fernández Lavado C, Furdada G, Marqués MA (2007) Geomorphological method in the elaboration of hazard maps for flash-floods in the municipality of Jucuarán (El Salvador). Nat Hazards Earth Syst Sci 7:455–465
Gallardo G, Colombo F (1996) Caracterización paleohidráulica de algunos litosomas conglomeráticos paleógenos de la cuenca del Ebro. Ejemplos en la Conca de Barberá (Tarragona). Geogaceta 19:109–112
Garambois PA, Larnier K, Roux H, Labat D, Dartus D (2014) Analysis of flash flood-triggering rainfall for a process-oriented hydrological model. Atmos Res 137:14–24. doi:10.1016/j.atmosres.2013.09.016
Garambois PA, Roux H, Larnier K, Labat D, Dartus D (2015) Parameter regionalization for a process-oriented distributed model dedicated to flash floods. J Hydrol 525:383–399. doi:10.1016/j.jhydrol.2015.03.052
Gaume E, Livet M, Desbordes M, Villeneuve JP (2004) Hydrological analysis of the river Aude, France, flash flood on 12 and 13 November 1999. J Hydrol 286:135–154. doi:10.1016/j.jhydrol.2003.09.015
Gaume E, Bain V, Bernardara P, Newinger O, Barbuc M, Bateman A, Blaškovicová L, Blöschl G, Borga M, Dumitrescu A, Daliakopoulos I, Garcia J, Irimescu A, Kohnova S, Koutroulis A, Marchi L, Matreata S, Medina V, Preciso E, Sempere-Torres D, Stancalie G, Szolgay J, Tsanis I, Velascom D, Viglione A (2009) A compilation of data on European flash floods. J Hydrol 367:70–78. doi:10.1016/j.jhydrol.2008.12.028
Gil V (2011) Geomorfología fluvial de la cuenca del arroyo El Negro, Buenos Aires, Argentina. Revista Universitaria de Geografía 20:151–169
Gutiérrez F, Gutiérrez M, Sancho C (1998) Geomorphological and sedimentological analysis of a catastrophic flash flood in the Arfis drainage basin (Central Pyrenees, Spain). Geomorphology 22:265–283
Halcsik CR (2013) Investigating late Pleistocene and Anthropocene flood deposits along North Boulder and Caribou Creek, Colorado Front Range. Unpublished graduation thesis. Beloit College, Wisconsin
Hermelin M (1991) Introducción a la Geología Ambiental. Geología Ambiental y Geomorfología aplicada en Colombia. Asociación de Geocientíficos para el Desarrollo Internacional (AGID) Reporte 16:3–20
Hooke JM, Mant JM (2000) Geomorphological impacts of a flood event on ephemeral channels in SE Spain. Geomorphology 34:163–180
Instituto Geográfico Agustín Codazzi (IGAC) (1982) Estudio general de suelos y zonificación de tierras. Estudio general de suelos de la región nororiental del departamento del Cauca. Bogotá, Colombia
Jha AK, Bloch R, Lamond J (2012) Cities and flooding. a guide to integrated urban flood risk management for the 21st century. International Bank for Reconstruction and Development and International Development Association, Washington, DC
Koutroulis AG, Tsanis IK (2010) A method for estimating flash flood peak discharge in a poorly gauged basin: case study for the 13–14 January 1994 flood, Giofiros basin, Crete, Greece. J Hydrol 385:150–164
Lang M, Fernández Bono JF, Recking A, Naulet R, Grau Gimeno P (2004) Methodological guide for palaeoflood and historical peak discharge estimation. In: Benito G, Thorndycraft VR (eds) Systematic, Palaeoflood and historical data for the improvement of flood risk estimation. Methodological guidelines. CSIC—Centro de Ciencias Medioambientales, Madrid
Maizels JK (1983) Paleovelocity and palaeodischarge determination for coarse gravel deposits. In: Gregory KJ (ed) Background to palaeohydrology: a perspective. Wiley, pp 101–139
Maizels JK (1986) Modeling of Paleohydrologic change during deglaciation Géographie physique et. Quaternaire 40(3):263–277. doi:10.7202/032648ar
Marchi L, Borga M, Preciso E, Gaume E (2010) Characterization of selected extreme flash floods in Europe and implications for flood risk management. J Hydrol 394:118–133. doi:10.1016/j.jhydrol.2010.07.017
Martín Vide JP, Martín Moreta PJ, López Querol S, Machado MJ, Benito G (2002) Tagus river: historical floods at Talavera de la Reina. In: Thorndycraft VR, Benito G, Barriendos M, Llasat MC (eds) Palaeofloods, historical data & climatic variability. Applications in flood risk assessment, CSIC—Centro de Ciencias Medioambientales, Madrid
Nikolopoulos EI, Anagnostou EN, Borga M, Vivoni ER, Papadopoulos A (2011) Sensitivity of a mountain basin flash flood to initial wetness condition and rainfall variability. J Hydrol 402:165–178
Ogden FL, Sharif HO, Senarath SUS, Smith JA, Baeck ML, Richardson JR (2000) Hydrologic analysis of the Fort Collins, Colorado, flash flood of 1997. J Hydrol 228:82–100
Panizza M (1993) Riesgo geomorfológico y vulnerabilidad ambiental. Quaderni Instituto Italo Latino Americano (IILA), Serie Scienza 6. México
Phillips JD (2002) Geomorphic impacts of flash flooding in a forested headwater basin. J Hydrol 269:236–250
Thornthwaite C (1948) An approach towards a rational classification of climate. Geogr Rev 38(1):221–229
Williams GP (1984) Paleohydrologic equations for rivers in developments and applications of geomorphology, pp 343–367
Acknowledgements
This chapter has been completed within the framework of research projects funded by the Secretaría de Ciencia y Técnica of the Universidad Nacional de Río Cuarto (SECyT-UNRC), the Agencia Nacional de Promoción Científica y Tecnológica of Argentina (ANPCyT), and the Ministerio de Ciencia y Tecnología of the province of Córdoba (MINCyT).
The authors would like to express their gratitude to Jorge Rabassa for his invitation to publish this chapter and for his constructive and generous review of the English text and to Mariana Chiuffo for her help with a preliminary version of the English text.
Finally, the authors thank the residents of the towns of Villa de las Rosas, Villa Dolores, and Las Tapias, for providing information of interest.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2017 Springer International Publishing AG
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Echevarria, K.V., Degiovanni, S.B., Blarasin, M.T., Andreazzini, M.J. (2017). Flash Flood Hazard Assessment in an Ungauged Piedmont Basin in the Sierras Pampeanas Western Region, Province of Córdoba, Argentina. In: Rabassa, J. (eds) Advances in Geomorphology and Quaternary Studies in Argentina. Springer Earth System Sciences. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-54371-0_7
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-54371-0_7
Published:
Publisher Name: Springer, Cham
Print ISBN: 978-3-319-54370-3
Online ISBN: 978-3-319-54371-0
eBook Packages: Earth and Environmental ScienceEarth and Environmental Science (R0)