Val Ferret Pilot Action Region: Grandes Jorasses Glaciers - An Open-Air Laboratory for the Development of Close-Range Remote Sensing Monitoring Systems

Abstract

The Val Ferret valley (Courmayeur, Aosta Valley, Italy) was included as a Pilot Action Region (PAR) of the GreenRisk4Alps project since it is both a famous tourist location and a high-risk area for all types of mass movement processes. Typical natural hazards that endanger this PAR are debris flows and avalanches, sometimes connected to ice collapses from the glaciers of the Mont Blanc massif. Thanks to the steep sides of the valley and widespread alluvial channels, these events can reach the valley floor, where public roads, villages and touristic attractions are located. This article presents the main challenges of natural hazard management in the Val Ferret PAR, as well as the role of forestry and protective forests in the Aosta Valley Autonomous Region. As an example of good practice, the monitoring systems of the Planpincieux and Grandes Jorasses glaciers are presented. Recently, these glaciers have become an open-air laboratory for glacial monitoring techniques. Many close-range surveys have been conducted here, and a permanent network of monitoring systems that measure the surface deformation of the glaciers is currently active.