Little information is available about typical shear strength parameters of tills in southern Saskatchewan even though till is the most common earth material used for construction in this region. The Warman landslide in the South Saskatchewan River Valley provides some insight into the shear strength characteristics of a till, and the results are compared with laboratory tests. The till is from the Upper till of the Sutherland Group, which has a high clay content relative to the underlying and overlying tills. A back analysis of the landslide produced [Formula: see text]′ = 27° assuming c′ = 0. Comparison with laboratory test data and results from a similar landslide near Lebret, Saskatchewan, suggests that [Formula: see text]′ = 22.5° with c′ = 7 kPa may be appropriate "residual" shear strength parameters. A rising water table appears to have been the main contributing factor to instability between 1969 and 1984. There is a possibility, however, that at the 1:50 return interval for flood levels on the river, erosion at the toe of the landslide debris may be a significant factor. Numerous slump scars in the form of small amphitheatres, presently inactive, can be observed in the aerial photographs of the adjacent area. These failures likely occurred intermittently, depending on fluctuating water table and river flood levels. Key words: landslide, till, correlation, stratigraphy, back analysis, shear strength, residual, aerial photographs.
Determination of Multilayer Soil Strength Parameters Using Genetic Algorithm
