Governing equations of slope stability models that consider hydrological and mechanical effect of root reinforcement: A review

The use of vegetation as a nature-based solution for shallow landslide risk reduction is receiving increased attention in the scientific community. Vegetation can contribute to slope stability through both hydrological and mechanical root reinforcement, which improves resilience against shallow landslide triggering. In order to quantify the performance of roots as a slope stabilizing measure, slope stability models are valuable tools. Murgia et al. (2022) conducted a thorough review of the existing physically-based models that consider the mechanical effect of roots in the calculation of factor of safety (FoS), suitable for both regional and slope-scale analysis (physically based probabilistic and deterministic models, respectively). This study will build on to the previous review with an in-depth analysis of the equations governing the individuated models that account for the effect of root reinforcement on slope stability. With emphasis also on hydrological effects of vegetation, the governing equations of the different models are analysed and compared, and FoS of an ideal slope case will be assessed by using a selection of the identified models. Finally, this review will serve as a base to develop a guideline which will serve as a tool to ease the decision-making process when deciding which model to use when mitigation measures for a specific slope is to be designed.

Reference: Murgia, I., Giadrossich, F., Mao, Z., Cohen, D., Capra, G. F., & Schwarz, M. (2022). Modeling shallow landslides and root reinforcement: A review. Ecological Engineering, 181, 106671.