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Abstract: Large rock slides frequently cause secondary unstable phenomena. Many such instability processes happened after December 2001, when the Strug rockslide estimated at 95,000 m3 was triggered above the Koseč village near Kobarid in the Julian Alps, W Slovenia. It was initiated at the contact between high permeable calcareous rocks (Cretaceous scaglia) thrusted over nearly impermeable clastic rocks (Cretaceous flysch). Soon after the rockslide initiation, a rock fall with a volume of 45,000 m3 was initiated within the rockslide. The kinetic push of the rock fall caused the movement of a translational soil landslide with a volume of 180,000 m3 that partially slipped into the torrential ravine of the Brusnik Stream. After a sudden drop of 15 m in December 2001, the rockslide average velocity exponentially slowed down to less than 10 m/year till the end of 2002, and came to a practical stillstand in 2003. After the rainfall in spring 2002, small debris flows made of clayey gravels with a volume of up to 1000 m3 started to flow from the zone of accumulation of the rock fall over the soil landslide to and along the channel of the Brusnik Stream. In 2002, more than 20 debris flow events were registered. The statistical analysis of the measured local rainfall intensities showed that debris flows were initiated at daily rainfall reaching from 20 to 30 mm, depending on the antecedent precipitation. This value may be taken as a specific hydrologic threshold for this site. Because in 2003 no more debris flows were registered, a conclusion was drawn that debris flow events were rainfall-induced but governed on the same time by the availability of rock fall debris in its zone of accumulation. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

In two events, on November 15 and 17, 2000, near the Mangart Mountain (2679 m a.s.l.), NW Slovenia, two translational landslides (debris flow slides) with a total volume of more than 1.5 million m3 occurred on the Stozˇe slope composed of morainic material filled with silt fraction. The first landslide was associated with a dry and the second landslide with a wet debris-flow, respectively. The rain gauging station in the village of Log pod Mangartom recorded 1638.4 mm of rainfall (more than 60% of the average annual precipitation) in the 48 days before the events (rainfall intensity of 1.42 mm/h in 1152 h). The recorded rainfall depth has a recurrence interval of more than 100 years. Other recorded rainfall depths of shorter duration (481.6 mm in 7 days, 174.0 mm in 24 h, 70 mm in 1 h) have recurrence intervals of much less than 100 years. A hydrological analysis of the event showed that the increase in runoff coefficients during the wet period in autumn 2000 before the landslide was as high as two- to threefold. An analysis using natural isotopes of δ18O and tritium of water samples from the Stozˇe landslide area has shown permanent but slow exfiltration of underground waters from a reservoir in the slope. In the case of low-intensity and long-duration rainfall in autumn 2000, relatively low permeable (10−7 m/s) morainic material was nearly saturated but remained stable (average porosity 21%, water content 20%, liquid limit 25%) until high artesian pressures up to 100 m developed in the slope by slow exfiltration from the relatively high permeable (10−5 m/s) massive dolomite. The Stozˇe landslide (two debris flow slides) was triggered by high artesian pressures built in the slope after long-duration rainfall. The devastating debris-flows formed from the landslide masses by infiltration of rainfall and surface runoff into the landslide masses and by their liquefaction. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Measurements of precipitation above the canopy, throughfall and stemflow were made on the south and north-facing slopes of a deciduous forest on the experimental watershed of the Dragonja river in SW Slovenia. The Dragonja watershed was chosen for the experimental watershed, being of interest because of intensive natural reforestation in the last decades that caused a decrease in minimum and maximum flows. At the same time no noticeable precipitation and temperature changes were observed. Two forest plots were selected. One is located on the north-facing slope (1419m2) and the other on the south-facing slope (615m2). Analyses and modelling were made for a 1-year period from October 2000 to September 2001. The leaf area index (LAI) was estimated by three methods, one direct and two indirect ones. The obtained values of LAI with the direct method were 6.6 and 6.9 for the south and north slopes, respectively. Measurements and regression analyses gave the mean annual throughfall value (±standard error) on the south plot 67.1 (±9.6)% of gross precipitation, and 71.5 (±11.6)% on the north plot. The average stemflow values were 4.5 (±0.8)% of gross precipitation on the south plot and 2.9 (±0.6)% on the north plot. The average annual interception losses amount to 28.4 (±4.1) and 25.4 (±4.0)% for the south and north slopes, respectively. In the study a significant influence of the south-east wind was proven. With regression analyses and the classification decision tree model it was established that at the events with more than 7mm of precipitation and south-east wind with a speed higher than 4m/s an unusually low amount of throughfall occurred and thus high interception losses. The analytical Gash model of rainfall interception () was successfully applied. The results of the modelling corresponded well to the observed values and were within the limits of the standard error of the observed values. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

• Reconstruction of the rainfall erosivity for Europe for the period 1961–2018. • Annual trend for 1675 stations is positive for 15% and negative for 7% stations. • Station-wise and regional Mann-Kendall tests are conducted. • The rainfall erosivity trend map shows increase in major part of EU. • Rainfall erosivity in Europe has, on average, increased for about 4%. Rainfall erosivity is the driving force of soil erosion and it is characterized by a large variability in space and time. In order to obtain robust estimates of rainfall erosivity, long series of high-frequency rainfall data are needed, which are often not available for large study areas. In this study we reconstructed past rainfall erosivity in Europe for the period 1961–2018, with the aim to investigate temporal changes in rainfall erosivity. As input data, we used the Rainfall Erosivity Database at European Scale (REDES) and Uncertainties in Ensembles of Regional Reanalyses (UERRA) rainfall data. Using a set of regression models, which we derived with the application of the k-fold cross-validation approach, we computed the annual rainfall erosivity for the 1675 stations forming the REDES database. Based on the reconstructed data, we derived a rainfall erosivity trend map for Europe where the results were qualitatively validated. Among the stations showing a statistically significant trend, we observed a tendency towards more positive (15%) than negative trends (7%). In addition, we also observed an increasing tendency of the frequency of years with maximum erosivity values. Geographically, large parts of regions such as Eastern Europe, Scandinavia, Baltic countries, Great Britain and Ireland, part of the Balkan Peninsula, most of Italy, Benelux countries, northern part of Germany, part of France, among others, are characterized by a positive trend in rainfall erosivity. By contrast, negative trends in annual rainfall erosivity could be observed for most of the Iberian Peninsula, part of France, most of the Alpine area, Southern Germany, and part of the Balkan Peninsula, among others. The new dataset of rainfall erosivity trends reported in this study scientifically provides new information to better understand the impacts of the ongoing erosivity trends on soil erosion across Europe, while, from a policy perspective, the gained findings provide new knowledge to support the development of soil erosion indicators aiming at promoting mitigation measures at regional and pan-European level. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary: Rainfall kinetic energy–intensity relationships for rainfall erosivity estimation were established on the basis of raindrop size distribution measurements performed in the Brkini hilly area in southwest Slovenia, a transitional area between the Mediterranean and continental climate conditions. A set of measurement instruments, an optical disdrometer coupled with a rain gauge, was installed on two locations: Koseze and Kozjane. The data set contained raindrop size distribution and rainfall intensity measurements of the rainfall events that occurred during a one-year period in the 2008/2009 season. The rainfall intensities obtained with the rain gauges were used for event rainfall depth control measured by the disdrometers and testing the established kinetic energy–intensity (KE–I) relationships. Two exponential KE–I relationships were established for each measuring site, for 1-min and 5-min rainfall intensity data, respectively. Their performances were tested and compared with the performances of other KE–I relationships proposed by authors throughout the world, which could be recognised as relatively suitable for kinetic energy estimation in the Mediterranean area. The comparison included 11 KE–I relationships expressed with linear, linear-log or exponential formulations. The analyses exposed the rainfall intensity overestimation by the disdrometers and the limited use of the tipping bucket rain gauge for kinetic energy estimation under such climate conditions. According to our results, the established KE–I relationship for 5-min intensity data in Koseze is recommended to be used while estimating rainfall kinetic energy in the Mediterranean part of Slovenia. As input data, rainfall intensities measured with precise weighing rain gauges, as those installed in the Slovenian meteorological network, should be used. However, when using rainfall intensity data obtained with a tipping bucket rain gauge of lower accuracy or insufficient intensity range, the exponential relationship of is expected to deliver better kinetic energy estimations. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]