Holocene Rockwall Retreat in Svalbard: A Triple-Rate Evolution

Abstract

Volumetric calculations of slope deposits, direct measurements of rockwall retreat and chronological control based on lichenometry provide a wide range of rockwall retreat rates in Svalbard (0–1580 mm ka−1) that appears consistent with previous evaluations from other Arctic areas. In northwest and central Spitsbergen (79°N), a triple-rate rockwall retreat is suggested for the last two millennia: very slow biogenic flaking (2 mm ka−1), moderate retreat due to frost shattering (100 ka−1) and rapid retreat associated with post-glacial stress relaxation (c. 1000 mm ka−1). Examination of the distribution of various processes indicates that the Holocene retreat of most rockwalls has not exceeded one or two metres. Bedrock conditions appear to be the main control on retreat rates. The massiveness of igneous and metamorphic outcrops, widespread in Arctic shield areas, largely accounts for the slowness of rockwall retreat, which on these lithologies is primarily due to chemical and biological processes. More rapid rates are usually associated with stress relaxation following glacial surges or with local frost susceptibility of bedrock, often where faulting has induced high joint density. At such sites, rockwall retreat rates are of the same order of magnitude as those reported from Alpine areas (1000–3000 mm ka−1) where both bedrock weakening due to tectonic stresses and the greater height of steep rockwalls account for the more rapid rockwall retreat rate. © 1997 by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.