Long-term geomorphic evolution of tablelands involves various mechanisms and processes. The retreat of peripheral escarpments is assumed to be of key significance. How soils evolve on escarpments undergoing retreat and what they tell about the pace of this retreat is poorly understood. To address this knowledge gap, the following research questions were set: (a) How do the composition and the properties of soils change with distance from a sandstone caprock escarpment? (b) What is the weathering state of the soil material? (c) How do erosion and deposition rates compare within an escarpment cliff? The Stołowe Mountains in Poland provide a spectacular tableland landscape where a sandstone caprock overlies mudstones and marls, resulting in morphologically bipartite slopes, with a cliff line at the top and planar to concave slopes below. Eight profiles along a toposequence within the escarpment of Urwisko Batorowskie were investigated. By using the fallout radionuclides 239+240 Pu as a tracer, soil erosion and deposition rates along the sequence were assessed. For a comprehensive understanding of soil characteristics in relation to erosion processes, weathering severity was characterised by using weathering indices. Soil dynamics were further investigated using a portable optically stimulated luminescence reader. The soils exhibited complex characteristics and varied from Podzols to Stagnosols, Gleysols and possibly polygenetic soils. Soil erosion and deposition rates showed a high variability along the slope, with erosion rates of 0.5–6.4 t ha −1 yr −1 and deposition rates of 0.2–6.9 t ha −1 yr −1 , and thus an almost equal mass balance. Weathering indices and luminescence measurements revealed the high dynamics of these soils. Some abrupt changes along the profiles and within the sequence indicated (lithological) discontinuities in the soils. Consequently, soils along such slopes often exhibit a polygenetic character. Although the area is forested, soil redistribution rates appeared comparable to agricultural land. The soil dynamics showed that the entire escarpment is an active morphodynamic domain, notwithstanding the paucity of clear landform record of this activity.

To improve fresh water ecological quality, river managers have to assess the geomorphological functioning of the river system and sometimes restore it. Despite noticeable efforts made in recent years by the geomorphological community, hydro-morphological assessment methods and tools are still called for and needed. In France, river managers may rely on the Carhyce catalogue built by the French Biodiversity Agency and its partners over 15 years. This is a unique database allowing the characterization of the hydromorphology of French rivers. It is based on a standardized field protocol that entails a survey of the bankfull geometry of a reach 14 times the length of the river width. To date, >2500 river reaches of all type of rivers present on the French territory have been surveyed and the related data are freely available via a web interface, where they have been formatted and presented in the form of tables, graphs, sketches and indices. In addition, a morphological index has been produced to help identify and measure potential alterations of the physical functioning of the reaches. To do so >500 reaches have been identified as references to build reach average hydraulic geometry relationships. Those reference models allow the morphological deviation from the regional reference situation to be determined. This paper presents the Carhyce catalogue and the Global Morphological Index (GMI), as well as several examples of how it may be used. The limits and benefits of the Carhyce data are discussed and the GMI is compared to a well-use index of morphological quality. • The Carhyce database counts >2500 reaches all surveyed with the same field protocol • Downstream hydraulic geometry relationships are used as reference to assess hydromorphological quality of river reaches • Global Morphological index allows the assessment of the functioning of the river and the need in restoration • Carhyce database and index is part of the tool box that should be use by river managers to improve river quality