PARTIAL LANDSLIDE REPAIR BY BUTTRESS FILL

Two residences in Orinda, California, were threatened by the enlargement of an existing landslide area. Published geologic literature described the characteristics of landsliding in the geologic materials present in the Orinda formation. Site specific studies were performed using aerial photographs, small and large diameter exploratory borings, and laboratory testing. The studies indicated that the previous landslide was massive in character and that complete repair was probably economically impossible. However, buttress-fill grading could be performed at the rear of the two properties to stabilize those areas and leave the remaining portions of the landslide unchanged.