Late Neogene Mass Transport Deposits of the West Nile Delta, Egypt
Bryn J. Austin and the BP
Geohazard Assessment Team
BP
, Sunbury on Thames, United Kingdom
The West Nile delta is characterised by a recurrent, episodic sedimentary Late Neogene history during which phases of deposition alternate with mass movements and sediment transfers to deep water. The deposition mechanisms exhibit a complex history with the migration of cut and fill sequences, channel-levee units, and avulsions in response to variable slope, tectonic history, faulting and sediment yield. The landslides vary in scale from regional (c. 20km x 100km x 100m) to medium (c. 5-10km x 20-50km x 20-50m) to small (1-2km x 2-5km x 10-20m) as well as numerous local surface failures and debris flows. They are being explored in some detail by detailed geomorphological mapping using a variety of 3D and much higher resolution 2D seismic data sets. Careful attention to the integration of multi-disciplinary methods ensures that the complex geometries are fully understood within a total earth science framework. The resulting seismically driven shallow stratigraphical model is being verified by careful dating and a comprehensive geotechnical sampling and testing framework. The thorough assessment will form the basis for risk assessment, geotechnical slope stability modelling for sub sea development well and facilities planning