Estimating the age of the Balm rock slide at Meiringen, Switzerland - Radioactive carbon dating of wood samples and current sedimentation rates

This paper presents the results of investigations made at the site of the Balm rock slide near Meiringen, Switzerland. Several layers of debris indicate that several land and rock slides have occurred, as indicated by carbon-dating measurements made at the site on wood debris buried in the rubble. Also, average sedimentation rates in the valley were determined. The work was initiated as a result of a project involving the re-routing of a natural gas transit pipeline in the vicinity. The geological history of the area and the results obtained from the radioactive dating of the samples obtained from the boreholes that we drilled are presented and discussed