A new digital method for analysis of neotectonics applied to the Bonnevaux-Chambaran area, France

A new method of neotectonic analysis is based on two complementary approaches, the one being naturalistic and the other consisting of the computing of a digital terrain model and levelling data. This method was applied to the Bonnevaux-Chambaran area near Lyons in France, which was selected for its geological and geomorphological diversity. This study reveals present-day vertical movements in several places. One of the most interesting of these is located in the Isere Valley; levelling data identify a movement of + 0.74 mm/yr, which is of the same order as that found through morphostructural analysis (+ 1.1 mm/yr). The ratio of positive correlation between the two methods is about 60%, whereas no or only indirect correlation occurs with a ratio of about 40%; no negative correlation was found.