Mudflows

The intensive grazing by flocks erodes the ground, removing plant cover and in addition to excessive deforestation for construction purposes, the ground is left bare and vulnerable to the torrential rain which falls in the valley.In 1787, half of all the cultivated land was swept away. The swollen Verdon and Lance swept away their dykes to the point where the outskirts of the town were exposed to flooding from the Lance whenever it was even slightly swollen.There was only one solution: reforestation which the state successfully undertook at the end of the 19th century.