The Barrier
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The Barrier is a spectacular lava dam retaining the Garibaldi Lake system in southwestern British Columbia, Canada. It is over 300 m (1,000 ft) in thickness and about 2 km (1.2 mi) wide where it impounds the lake.[1]
The area below and adjacent to The Barrier is considered hazardous due to the unstable lava formation.
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[edit] Formation
The Barrier was formed when large lava flows emanated from a vent on the west shoulder of Mount Price about 9,000 years ago called Clinker Peak. The large lava flowed towards the Cheakamus River valley. At the time of eruption, the valley was filled by glacial ice. The lava flow was stopped by the ice and ponded, eventually cooling. When the ice melted away, the ice-cooled lava-flow front formed a precipitous cliff; water ponded behind the lava dam, forming Garibaldi Lake.
[edit] Rubble Creek boulder field
The unstable lava formation of The Barrier has in the past unleashed several debris flows in the area below Garibaldi Lake, most recently in 1855-1856 forming a large boulder field which gives Rubble Creek its name.[2]
[edit] Hazards
Concerns about The Barrier's instability due to volcanic, tectonic, or heavy rainfall activity prompted the provincial government to declare the area immediately below it unsafe for human habitation in 1981.[3] This led to the evacuation of the small resort village of Garibaldi nearby, and the relocation of residents to new recreational subdivisions away from the hazard zone. Should the Barrier completely collapse, Garibaldi Lake would be entirely released and downstream damage in the Cheakamus and Squamish Rivers would be considerable, including major damage to the town of Squamish and possibly an impact-wave on the waters of Howe Sound that would reach Vancouver Island.
[edit] See also
- Garibaldi Lake Volcanic Field
- Garibaldi Volcanic Belt
- Cascade Volcanoes
- Volcanism in Canada
- Garibaldi Provincial Park
