Synsedimentary deformation of Pleistocene glaciolacustrine deposits in the Albese con Cassano Area (Southern Alps, Northern Italy), and possible implications for paleoseismicity.

We describe and interpret the well exposed soft-sediment deformations preserved in a Mid-Pleistocene proglacial sequence outcropping at Albese con Cassano, near Como (Southern Alps, N Italy). The observed deformations affect six distinct stratigraphic intervals within the same depositional sequence. The stratigraphy of this sequence, the geomorphic setting, and the careful geological mapping of the area clearly show that these deformations are not the result of glaciotectonics or cryoturbation, but are due to six separate events of synsedimentary liquefaction. In particular, the 3 basal deformed units include sand and gravel volcanoes that formed at the bottom of a proglacial lake. We examined several hypothesis of possible causative mechanism for the formation of these features. Taking into account all the information available on the local geology and sedimentary environment, it is possible to assess that the liquefaction features at Albese con Cassano had a coseismic origin. To our knowledge, this would be the first report of similar evidence of paleoseismicity in the Lombardia Southern Alps. Also, there is no record of historical liquefaction triggered by seismic events in an area of ca. 70 km of radius near Albese con Cassano, including the town of Como, the large metropolitan area of Milano and most of W Lombardia, that is one of the largest industrial districts in Europe. Therefore, the interpretation of the observed deformations can have critical impact for understanding the current seismicity level in the region, and mitigating the associated risk. In this paper we show that this interpretation is not a simple process. Liquefaction features must be treated with caution in order to derive suitable information for seismic hazard characterization, even if their coseismic origin has been definitely proved. It is necessary to understand the amount of seismic shaking (for instance, in terms of local macroseismic intensity) that can have produced that specific feature at that specific site, the location of the causative seismic event (epicenter and focal depth), and eventually its size (in terms of epicentral intensity and/or earthquake magnitude). In the case of Albese con Cassano, the implications in terms of seismic hazard of the observed possible earthquake paleoliquefactions can only be assessed through the definition of several scenarios, taking into account: a) different thresholds of shaking for triggering the described synsedimentary structures, and b) different seismotectonic frameworks related to the Mid- Pleistocene to Holocene evolution of the S Alps, including seismicity induced by isostatic glacial rebound. We conclude that it is worth checking these scenarios in the field with further paleoseismological research on other possible evidence of past earthquakes.