Earth flows are mass movements of fine-grained soils that range from rapid earth flows formed in highly sensitive clay deposits to relatively slower and drier earth flows common in plastic, fine-grained soils (Sharpe, 1938; Varnes, 1978; Cruden and Varnes, 1996). Common and widespread, earth flows can cause extensive damage to property and infrastructure; rapid earth flows have taken the lives of scores of people. Earth flows are a primary agent of erosion in many areas and contribute large amounts of sediment to streams and rivers. Scientists have recognized earth flows as a distinct type of mass movement from at least the early twentieth century; since then, many investigators have studied individual earth flows, their geology and underlying physical processes (e.g., Keefer and Johnson, 1983; Lefebvre, 1996). Earth flows as defined in older classifications, such as Sharpe's (1938), cross the divisions of modern landslide classification schemes to include earth flows, earth slides,...
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Baum, R.L. (1978). Earth flows. In: Middleton, G.V., Church, M.J., Coniglio, M., Hardie, L.A., Longstaffe, F.J. (eds) Encyclopedia of Sediments and Sedimentary Rocks. Encyclopedia of Earth Sciences Series. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4020-3609-5_74
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