SOIL CREEP DYNAMICS,SOIL MOISTURE AND TEMPERATURE CONDITIONS ON A FORESTED SLOPE IN THE GRANITIC VOSGES MOUNTAINS,FRANCE

Soil creep, soil water tension and soil temperature were monitored at the Schildmatt experimental site over a 7 month period, in order to study the dynamics of creep movements measured with a specially designed strain gauge probe. The limited displacements and the very low signals which had to be measured were taken into account in estimating the uncertainty in measurements. The results obtained emphasize the very discontinuous and highly reversible character of the creep movements and their seasonal nature. Displacements occurred mainly during two events: their size were 10 mm and 2 mm, but the overall displacements for the whole intensive study period (January–July 1985) was only 3 mm. The relationships with soil moisture and temperature conditions indicated that ice segregation and saturated conditions are major influences, but more needs to be known about the way they act on soil creep.