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Published in:
2019 | OriginalPaper | Chapter
A Statistical Framework for Incorporating Sand Boil Observations in Levee Risk Analysis
Authors : Bryant A. Robbins, M. Doughty, D. V. Griffiths
Published in: Internal Erosion in Earthdams, Dikes and Levees
Publisher: Springer International Publishing
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Abstract
The presence of sand boils near the toe of a levee indicates that backward erosion piping, an internal erosion process, has initiated at a given location. As a primary failure mechanism for levees, backward erosion piping is commonly evaluated as part of levee risk analysis. Currently, sand boil observations are subjectively incorporated into risk analyses through expert judgement. This study presents an approach in which sand boils are statistically assessed as point pattern data. Results indicate that density estimates may provide a convenient means to compute initiation probabilities for backward erosion piping, and cluster analysis may provide a means of estimating characteristic levee segment lengths. Further research is needed to explore the generality of these concepts under various geologic conditions.