Technical CommunicationEnhancement of slope stability by vegetation considering uncertainties in root distribution

Root length, position and orientation on a soil slope are random but key elements when evaluating the stability of the vegetated slope. The main objectives of this note are to understand the effects of natural characteristics of vegetation on slope stability and to investigate how the variability in root features propagates to the variability in slope stability. A batch of randomly sized roots at given root densities are randomly positioned over a slope, and the stability of the slope for each combination of roots is evaluated. Traditional analysis considering uniform identical roots overestimates the factor of safety of the slope.