A-DInSAR Monitoring of Landslide and Subsidence Activity: A Case of Urban Damage in Arcos de la Frontera, Spain

Terrain surface displacements at a site can be induced by more than one geological process. In this work, we use advanced differential interferometry SAR (A-DInSAR) to measure ground deformation in Arcos de la Frontera (SW Spain), where severe damages related to landslide activity and subsidence have occurred in recent years. The damages are concentrated in two residential neighborhoods constructed between 2001 and 2006. One of the neighborhoods, called La Verbena, is located at the head of an active retrogressive landslide that has an extension of around 0.17 x 106 m2 and developed in weathered clayey soils. Landslide motion has caused building deterioration since they were constructed. After a heavy rainfall period in winter 2009–2010, the movement was accelerated, worsening the situation. The other neighborhood, Pueblos Blancos, was built over a poorly compacted artificial filling undergoing a spatially variable consolidation process which has also led to severe damage to buildings. For both cases, a short set of C-band data from the “ENVISAT 2010+” project has been used to monitor surface displacement for the period spanning April 2011–January 2012. In this work we characterize the mechanism of both ground deformation processes using in situ and remote sensing techniques along with a detailed geological interpretation and urban damage distribution.Instituto de Geociencias, Universidad Complutense de Madrid, EspañaInstituto de Geociencias, Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas, EspañaCentre for the Observation and Modelling of Earthquakes, Volcanoes and Tectonics, University of Liverpool, UKDepartment of Earth, Ocean and Ecological Sciences, Liverpool University, Reino UnidoInstituto Geológico y Minero de España, EspañaGeohazards InSAR Laboratory and Modeling Group, Instituto Geológico y Minero de España, EspañaEarth Observation and Geohazards Expert Group, EuroGeoSurveys, Bélgic