Ignimbrite

After deposition, ignimbrites can undergo welding and be anything from loose sandy ash to

a solid rock with the appearance of glass, termed vitraphyre. They can cover a wide range

of areas and a large-scale ignimbrite deposit may give rise to a distinctive topography.

They often give rise to near flat-topped plateaus dissected by channels. Ignimbrites are

gravity-driven flows and therefore tend to concentrate as flat-topped deposits in valleys

and lowland. Its distribution, unlike that of ash fall, is guided by the topography. Only in

exceptional cases does ignimbrite climb over topographic barriers. Even then the thickness

of the deposit varies considerably between the topographic highs and the valleys. Sumatra

has striking ignimbrite deposits from past pyroclastic eruptions. Canyon-like river valleys,

for example, have developed near Bukittingi in West Sumatra, between it and the neigh

bouring village of Kota Gadang, which is well known for silver artefacts. Rivers have

eroded ignimbrite to create valleys with flat floors and cliff-like walls. The river itself is

entrenched within the flat valley floor. Landforms in ignimbrite are also prominent in north

Sumatra, where there have been several huge explosions from the Toba Volcano. The last

eruption about 75 000 years ago released 2000 km; of ash which reached India. This cre-

ated Lake Toba, which is the subsiding caldera of the old volcano with the subsequent rise

ofthe island of Samosir in its middle. This is an example of a resurgent caldera. Ignimbrites

from the catastrophic 1 8 15 eruption ofTambora formed vertical coastal cliffs on Sumbawa,

Indonesia.
Pyroclastic surge deposits

Pyroclastic surges have been described by Francis (1993). They consist of low density

dilute material. As a result, pyroclastic surges travel with high velocity, are turbulent and

less constrained by topography. Fast surges that emerge radially from the base of the

erupting column are known as base or ground surges and are probably the best-studied.

In general, they form a wedge-shaped body that thins from the volcano with cross-bedded

dune structures in sand that change with distance into structureless material. This is then

replaced by planar deposits of fine grains at a further distance. Surges are extremely vio-

lent and turbulent, and erosive features are common in the deposited sand. The destructive

effects of the pyroclastic surges have been studied in detail for the 1965 one from Taal in

Luzon, the Philippines.

Taal is a volcano south of Manila on an island within a lake. There is another small

lake inside its caldera, It has an explosive history, but the region is highly populated with

paddy fields and fishing in the large lake. The eruption took place on 28 September 1965

when for 48 hours powerful surges swept out from the base of the empting column. It

killed about 200 people, damaged trees on the mainland and left thick mud around the

Block and ash flow deposits

Denser block and ash flows are deposited by pyroclastic flows from a hot avalanche, often

dcscribcd as nuées amentes. Pyroclastic flows on the Merapi in 2006 arc dcscribcd latcr in

lhc chaplcr. Block and ash deposits, as the Icilll dcscribcs, includc Illagmalic clasls ill an
ash matrix. They flow under gravity and are therefore usually confined in valleys radiating

out from volcanoes. The material originates from viscous andesitic and dacitic lavas of

convergent-plate volcanoes. The clasts can be as big as boulders, metres in diameter. Such

boulders are often seen on top ofthe block and ash deposits, The front of a pyroclastic flow

is turbulent and highly nuidised. This leads 10 finer particles being elutriated up into the

ash cloud. The cloud then descends down the valley with a proclastic flow emerging from

its base. This gives rise to thin and fine-grained ash-fall deposits which are not preserved

as well as the denser flows.

Pyroclastic deposits therefore cover the slopes of a subduction-related volcano, with

thicker accumulation in the radiating valleys. This material with the addition of water gives

rise to volcanic debris flows called lahars, a term from Bahasa Indonesia. The material in

dry state may also avalanche down the slopes of a volcano.

14.4 Volcaniclasticfiows: debris avalanches and flows

A continuum exists between dry debris avalanches and wet mudflows called lahars. Debris

avalanches can occur in a range of sizes; almost an entire side of a volcano failed at Mount

St. Helens in the May 1980 eruption. Francis (1993) listed three types of collapse event

that lead to debris avalanches: magmatic eruptions that blow out the side of a volcano, non-

magmatic explosions due to phreatic steam escapes, and earthquakes and any other event

which may cause the volcanic slope to fail in a cold state. The areal size of the large debris

avalanche deposits range from I to 20 km3 (Francis, 1993).

Past failures are indicated by distinctive crescent-shaped scars on the mountainside,

although later eruptions of lava may repair the damage. The debris avalanche deposits,

however, give rise to a characteristic hummocky terrain at the base of the volcano. The

oft-quoted example of such terrain is the 250 km: on the lower slopes of the Galunggung

Volcano in west Java, popularly known as the ten thousand hills of Tasikmalaya. The 1982

eruption ofGalunggung is notorious for blocking the engines of aircrafts that flew through

the eruption column. About 500 km2 ofthe surface ofthe Atacama Desert is covered by the

deposit of an avalanche that occurred on the Socompa Volcano, north Chile. Kilometre-size

blocks, known as torevas, were detached and slid downslope. In general the blocks slid

undisturbed. Part of the mass has been estimated to travel at velocities of kmhr-l

and reach a distance of 35 km, but the original stratigraphic features were maintained

within the deposit (Francis, 1993). In general, the finest grains in a debris avalanche occur

at its base with boulders towards the top. Most of the material tends to travel as a plug with-

out much disturbance. Their long travel tracks have been explained by fluidisation and the

conversion of potential energy to kinetic energy, as discussed earlier. The presence of any

hydrothermally spread surges, ignimbrites or water acts as a lubricant.

Lahars are volcanic mudflows that can be described as slurries that carry boulder-sized

material and mud (Fig. 6.6). They originate from water coming into contact with tephra

that has accumulated on volcanic slopes and especially with the material in the channels

cut into the slopes of a volcano. Hence, material from pyroclastic flows deposited on upper

slopes may build lahars on lower ones. The arrival of water could be from rainstorms, the

spilling of water from crater lakes, snowmelt on the high volcanoes and pyroclastic flows

reaching a stream.
Lahars are common on tropical volcanoes during the wet season. The heavy monsoon

rainfall over the volcanic slopes of Indonesia and the Philippines and many other places

in the humid tropics periodically give rise to destructive lahars which may travel at a very

fast pace. The speed of lahars has been listed up to 90 kmph, but is usually much less at

4—8 ms l. A tropical cyclone in 1991 that caused heavy rain to fall on the newly erupted

ashes on the slopes of Pinatubo gave rise to catastrophic lahars over a wide arca that

destroyed life and property. Unlike Pinatubo, several volcanoes remain active in Southeast

Asia and on these volcanoes, such as Merapi, lahars are a perpetual hazard.

Mount Semuru, at 3676 m the highest volcano in east Java, is a persistently active vol-

cano (Thouret et al., 2007). Eruptive activities are common with short-lived eruption col-

umns appearmg several times a day, frequent explosive eruptions and an unstable summit.
cone. Small lahars travelling down channels are regular events, due to the daily supply

of pyroclastic debris over the summit cone and the high runoff during the rainy season.

Large pyroclastic flows tend to occur once in every five years. At least five large lahars,

each exceeding 5 x 106 m', have occurred since 1884. This is a permanent threat to a

number of settlements at the foot of the volcano, including Lumajang, a town of 85 000

people. The threat of lahars is especially high towards the southern and southeastern val-

leys. which annually experience tens of rain-triggered lahars for a distance of 20 km from

Mount Scmuru. The annual rainfall is 3700 mm, and 500 mm of rain has fallen in 48-hour

storms. The rain obviously falls on a plentiful supply of loose volcanic material, including

fine-grained ash which leads to hyperconcentrated flows. Thouret et al (2007) determined

the annual sediment yield in the local Curah Lengkong river valley to be 2.7 x 105 m3km•2

with an annual denudation rate of 4 x I (Pt km-u. This is a very high rate and so is any rate
approaching it. We may conclude that the slopes ofpyroclastic volcanoes that are subjected

to high rainfall in the tropics contribute a huge amount of material to the lowlands and

ultimately to the coast (Fig. 13. l).

Volcanic mudflows are also created, very destructive ones at times, when water and

mud escape from crater lakes due to volcanic eruptions. Perhaps the best-studied example

comes from the Kelud Volcano on Java which has a deep crater lake. Lahars originate from

the lake periodically, unless the level of the lake is lowered. A system oftunnels was engi-

necrcd to do so, but latcr volcanic eruptions damaged the arrangement so the lower slopes

of the Kelud remain vulnerable to a mixed flow of mud and hot, acidic, sulphurous water.

Eruptions on high volcanoes with a snow cover on their upper slopes also give rise

to lahars. A catastrophic one occurred in November 1985 tOllowing a small eruption on

Nevado del Ruiz in Colombia (Fig. 14.5). The incident illustrates not only the origin of

this type ofvolcanic mudflow but also the need to have an effective hazard prevention sys-

tem which would have prevented the loss of life and property in the valleys. As described

below, the disaster killed 23 000 people and destroyed settlements, including the town of

Armero, communication links, and crops and livestock. In terms of people killed from a

volcanic hazard it ranks 4th (Voight, 1996) surpassed only by Tambora ( 1815), Krakatau

(1883) and Pelée(1902).

A small eruption on the 5200 m high Nevado del Ruiz generated a number of pyroclas-

tic flows and surges that scoured and melted ice and snow on the volcano. The meltwater

and pyroclastic debris descended the slopes and accumulated in narrow channels to form

lahars that reached the settlements within two hours ofthe eruption. West of the volcano,
lahars originated in the headwaters of the rivers Molinos and Nereidas and swept down

destructively along the River Chinchinå (Fig. 14.5). Lahars coming down both headwa-

ters reached the River Chinchinå with a flow rate of 13 000 m3el and travelled for 70 km

more to reach the River Cauca. Towards the east, lahars came down the River Lagunillas

to destroy Armero and the River Guali to pass Mariquita. The eastern lahars were big-

ger, about 20 000 m3s-l on the River Guali and an average of 25 000—30 000 along the

River Azufrado, which was the main supplier of lahars to the River Lagunillas. The peak

value attained was 47 000 m3s-l, one-fifth of Amazon's discharge (Francis, 1993; Voight,

1996).

The peak flow velocity in most of the lahar-scoured channels ranged between 5 and

15 ms-I. Flow depths, except in the River Nereidas, exceeded 10 m. The depth and vel-

ocity of the lahars produced a high boundary shear stress and eroded the channel walls

to transfer sediment and interstitial water. This in turn increased their flow volumes and

velocities.

The event showed that a small eruption can produce lahars of huge dimensions and

destructive capability. It also illustrated the failure of disaster management in spite of

the expectedness ofthe event. As Voight described it, the 'disaster happened because of

cumulative human error — by misjudgment, indecision and bureaucratic shortsightedness'

(Voight, 1996:764). The inhabitants ofArmero could have been saved if an alarm had been

raised in time.

Lahars are thus extremely dangerous, and effectively modify the lower slopes of a vol-

cano, especially the channels. They can travel long distances; lengths of over I (H) km have
been reported. In sum, material from inside the Earth's crust that erupts through craters,

shapes the volcano and the lower grounds at its foot and, in suitable locations, a high sedi-

ment load reaches the sea via the regional streams. The chain of eruption, ash falls, pyro-

clastic flows and lahars can be seen clearly in high-resolution satellite images. Box 14. I is

an example on the Merapi.

Volcanoes have smooth slopes on ashes and fragmentary material. Verstappen (2005)

mentioned that although slopes on the stratovolcanoes of Southeast Asia appear to be con-

cave, overall they can be divided into three sections. The top part is straight and essentially

formed by the transfer downslope ofashes and coarser material under gravity. These slopes

may reach 340. The middle section is straight with about 8—120 of slope. Most of the vol-

canic slope may belong to this section which is modelled by deposits from lahars. Valleys

are filled and overflows may happen, but this phase of deposition is followed by rapid

erosion after an eruption. The lower slope of a volcano is modified by sediment deposited

in small radiating ravines in rainstorms. The approximately 20 slope of this section merges

with an alluvial plain below.

14.5 Landscape on flood basalts

At certain periods of the Earth's history, continental flood basalts (CFBs) emerged through

innumerable fissures fed by dyke swarms to cover extensive areas. The basaltic lava flowed

out in sheets and piled up to form highlands. Weathering and deep dissection give such

areas a characteristic stepped topography over time (Fig. 14.8). The upper part of each
lava flow is scoracious and softer than the lower parts. The lower part of a flow therefore

gives rise to a vertical step, whereas the upper flow is eroded to create a flatter tread-like

surface. Cumulatively, this creates a staircase-like appearance, described as a 'trap' in old

Swedish (Francis, 1993). The term is in common use. For example, the landscape ofCFBs
In deccan, india is known as the deccan traps. The deccan trap are 65 million years old

and they are estimated to have had an original extent of 1.5 x 106 km2, ofwhich 0.5 x 106

km2 survives. The average thickness of the Deccan traps is more than I km. Other areas

in the tropics where large stepped plateau-like features on CFBs occur are Paranå, south-

eastern Brazil; an area centred on the Walvis Bay in Southwestern Africa; the Ethiopian

and African Highlands; and the l)rakensherg of South Africa (Fig. 141).

Figure 14.9 is a schematic representation of trap rivers from India. Most of the Dcccan

trap is in a low-rainfall area. The rain shadow ofthe escarpment marks the edge ofthe CFB

plateau, which rises steeply from the narrow coastal plain ofthe Arabian Sea. At the top of

the escarpment, known as the Western Ghats, the rainfall is from the southwestern mon-

soon and exceeds 5000 mm annually. Towards the east in the rain shadow of the Western

Ghats, the figure drops to 500 mm within a distance of 200 km. As expected, the seasonal

pattern persists. The trap rivers tend to have low-gradient wide valleys. Within such val-

leys, the major rivers have channels incised into bedrock or alluvium. The tributaries, in

contrast, have steep upper courses with a change of gradient as they reach the valley flat of

the trunk streams. The channels are stable and, apart from seasonal high discharges, they

may, as in the Dcccan, carry high flows of low-frcqucncy floods. The landforms of stcppcd

plateaus in the CFB areas, as displayed in Figure 14.9, are associated with deep weathering

and soil formation. Wide trunk valleys with the river channels meandering in and out of
bedrock canyons and incised upper courses oftributary streams are common. The channels

carry a fine suspended load of silt and clay and a coarse bed load, mainly of pebbles and

cobbles, derived from the jointed bedrock. The coarse material is generally contributed

by the tributaries draining the high side slopes of the valley and also by the trunk streams

flowing over jointed basalt in locally steep sections. The bar material is therefore coarse

and bed armouring is common. Floodplain building does not occur in many rivers and

an accumulation of old sediment may form terraces along with gravel fans at tributary

mouths, both of which are eroded in low-frequency, high-magnitude floods.

The main channels are box-shaped (see Chapter 7). Gorges in bedrock and deep chan

nels in alluvium deposited over basalt arc typical, but arc not scen cvcry.vhcrc. In places,

rivers may be very wide with multiple channels and rocky islands where it flows over the

exposed bedrock. Such features have been described for the Mekong River where it crosses

an exposure of Mesozoic basalt at 4000 Islands near the Lao PDR—Cambodia border. The

maximum river width measured for the Mekong across islands and sub-channels is 1 5 km

(Gupta and Liew, 2007). Deodhar and Kale ( 1999) provide a list of erosional features such

as potholes, grooves, inner channels, scablands and boulder berms. There is almost no sedi-

ment on the channel floor at bedrock reaches because of secondary eddies, flow separation

and the formation of vortices during large floods (Kale and Hire, 2004).

14.6 Conclusion

Volcanic activities do not only form a distinctive landscape and provide a huge and wide-

spread volume of sediment; they also influence the local population. Surrounding areas may

be devastated periodically and the deposited pyroclastic ash fall and flow material is eroded
by rills and gulleys across the slopes. Volcanism, however, has its beneficial aspect. It provides

fertile black soils with a high water holding capacity which are extensively cultivated. This

may lead to areas close to volcanoes being densely populated, thus exposing a large number

of people to volcanic hanrds from time to time. Farming and high-density rural settlements

are also encouraged by the huge amount of groundwater that is stored in many places in the

large stratovolcanoes. The groundwater appears in a series of springs around the edifice where

the slope changes. Faults and old lava flows may complicate the picture (Verstappen, 2005).

Volcanoes may dominate a single island such as Montserrat or Lombok. where coralline lime-

stone surrounds the volcano to provide the island with its final shape.