Recurrent rockfall phenomena affecting the sea-cliffs of the Campania shoreline

Paolo Budetta (a), Claudio De Luca (a) & Antonio Santo (a)
(a) Department of Civil, Architectural and Environmental Engineering, Federico II University of Naples, Piazzale Tecchio, 80, 80125, Naples, Italy. E-mail: paolo.budetta@unina.it

By means of the illustration of two case-histories regarding sea-cliffs located at Agropoli and Palinuro (southern Italy), an overview of the most widely common and recurrent rockfall failures affecting the Campania shoreline is shown. At Agropoli, wedge failures are the most frequent episodic phenomena favoured by the geo-structural and geomechanical layout of the rock mass, and subordinately the assailing force of waves. A probabilistic approach for the slope safety factor calculation, that uses kinematic and kinetic instability assessment of wedge failures, was performed. In order to design suitable supports for the sea-cliff protection, also a wedge probability failure zonation of the cliff was proposed. With reference to the Palinuro case-history, the geostructural layout and geomechanical characterization of a sea arch affected by toppling and slab failures were performed, in order to propose actions through cement-based injection grouts and rock bolting able to reinforce the structure.

Landslide hazard, rockfalls, rocky coasts.