Influence of forest stands and root morphologies on hillslope stability

Abstract Forest plantations can help to reinforce soil and improve hillslope’s stability against shallow landslides. Based on 3D finite element method implemented in SIMULIA software, this paper develops a 3D numerical simulation model to assess impact of forest’s stands structure and 3D root system morphologies on hillslope’s stability. A preliminary analysis is performed to assess the impact of different stand parameters and root morphologies on the slope’s safety factor as well as on the volume of soil mobilized by a landslide. Regarding tree’s root morphology, we found that the overall slope’s stability mainly depends on the depth of root’s system and on additional cohesion provided by the roots. Hence, tap-like block morphology provides the best overall stability improvement. Furthermore, among the stand parameters, inter-tree distance in the slope direction has the greatest influence on the slope’s safety factor. The rectangular pattern of stand distribution exhibits the lowest inter-tree distance in the slope direction and significantly improves slope’s stability. Finally, the volume of soil mobilized during a landslide shows noticeable variations through root block morphologies. However, for a given root morphology, the stand distribution does not cause significant differences in the volume of soil mobilized during a landslide.

[1]  E. L. Stone,et al.  On the maximum extent of tree roots , 1991 .

[2]  L. Tham,et al.  Root systems of native shrubs and trees in Hong Kong and their effects on enhancing slope stability , 2015 .

[3]  Alexia Stokes,et al.  The influence of plant diversity on slope stability in a moist evergreen deciduous forest. , 2010 .

[4]  John R. Moore.  Differences in maximum resistive bending moments of Pinus radiata trees grown on a range of soil types. , 2000 .

[5]  L. Band,et al.  Simulating vegetation controls on hurricane‐induced shallow landslides with a distributed ecohydrological model , 2015 .

[6]  Mary M. Riestenberg.  Anchoring of thin colluvium by roots of sugar maple and white ash on hillslopes in Cincinnati , 1994 .

[7]  A. Stokes,et al.  Quantification of mechanical and hydric components of soil reinforcement by plant roots , 2015 .

[8]  David R. Montgomery,et al.  Shallow landsliding, root reinforcement, and the spatial distribution of trees in the Oregon Coast Range , 2003 .

[9]  Alexia Stokes,et al.  Root reinforcement in plantations of Cryptomeria japonica D. Don: effect of tree age and stand structure on slope stability , 2008 .

[10]  A. Stokes,et al.  Is it possible to manipulate root anchorage in young trees? , 2007, Plant and Soil.

[11]  L. J. Waldron,et al.  The shear resistance of root-permeated homogeneous and stratified soil. , 1977 .

[12]  T. Wu,et al.  In situ shear tests of soil blocks with roots , 1998 .

[13]  Alexia Stokes,et al.  Modelling root demography in heterogeneous mountain forests and applications for slope stability analysis , 2012, Plant and Soil.

[14]  J. Krahn.  The 2001 R.M. Hardy Lecture: The limits of limit equilibrium analyses , 2003 .

[15]  H. Pretzsch,et al.  Forest stand growth dynamics in Central Europe have accelerated since 1870 , 2014, Nature Communications.

[16]  D. Greenway,et al.  Vegetation and slope stability , 1987 .

[17]  Natasha Pollen-Bankhead,et al.  Hydrologic and hydraulic effects of riparian root networks on streambank stability: is mechanical root-reinforcement the whole story? , 2010 .

[18]  Alexis Achim,et al.  Slope stability and erosion control : ecotechnological solutions , 2008 .

[19]  Y. Lü,et al.  Effects of precipitation and restoration vegetation on soil erosion in a semi-arid environment in the Loess Plateau, China , 2016 .

[20]  A Stokes,et al.  Eco-engineering for the long-term protection of unstable slopes in Europe: developing management strategies for use in legislati , 2004 .

[21]  Bert Reubens,et al.  Assessing and analyzing 3D architecture of woody root systems, a review of methods and applications in tree and soil stability, resource acquisition and allocation , 2008, Plant and Soil.

[22]  G. B. Bischetti,et al.  The effect of gap openings on soil reinforcement in two conifer stands in northern Italy , 2016 .

[23]  Alastair H. Fitter,et al.  AN ARCHITECTURAL APPROACH TO THE COMPARATIVE ECOLOGY OF PLANT ROOT SYSTEMS , 2008 .

[24]  Alexia Stokes,et al.  A Numerical Investigation into the Influence of Soil Type and Root Architecture on Tree Anchorage , 2005, Plant and Soil.

[25]  Robert E. Thomas,et al.  Modeling root-reinforcement with a fiber-bundle model and Monte Carlo simulation , 2010 .

[26]  Alexia Stokes,et al.  Desirable plant root traits for protecting natural and engineered slopes against landslides , 2009, Plant and Soil.

[27]  D. Or,et al.  Spatial characterization of root reinforcement at stand scale: Theory and case study , 2012 .

[28]  M. Schwarz,et al.  Modeling root reinforcement using a root-failure Weibull survival function , 2013 .

[29]  Shuai Wang,et al.  Temporal stability of surface soil moisture of different vegetation types in the Loess Plateau of China , 2015 .

[30]  G. R. Martin,et al.  Soil–structure interaction for landslide stabilizing piles , 2002 .

[31]  S. Frydman,et al.  The influence of vegetation on soil strength , 2000 .

[32]  Hans Pretzsch,et al.  The single tree-based stand simulator SILVA: construction, application and evaluation , 2002 .

[33]  The role of vegetation clearing in the mass failure of hillslopes: Moresby Ranges, Western Australia , 1992 .

[34]  A. Stokes,et al.  Using three-dimensional plant root architecture in models of shallow-slope stability. , 2007, Annals of botany.

[35]  Peter Lehmann,et al.  Quantifying lateral root reinforcement in steep slopes – from a bundle of roots to tree stands , 2010 .

[36]  D. Or,et al.  Root-soil mechanical interactions during pullout and failure of root bundles , 2010 .

[37]  H WuTien,et al.  Root reinforcement of soil: review of analytical models, test results, and applications to design , 2013 .

[38]  Tien H. Wu,et al.  STUDY OF SOIL-ROOT INTERACTION , 1988 .

[39]  Bor-Shun Huang,et al.  3-D numerical investigations into the shear strength of the soil-root system of Makino bamboo and its effect on slope stability. , 2010 .

[40]  E. Abdi,et al.  Assessing the effect of Alnus roots on hillslope stability in order to use in soil bioengineering , 2018 .

[41]  Hervé Rey,et al.  Modelling and simulation of the architecture and development of the oil-palm (t Elaeis guineensis Jacq.) root system , 1997, Plant and Soil.

[42]  T. Wu,et al.  Strength of tree roots and landslides on Prince of Wales Island, Alaska , 1979 .

[43]  Gian Battista Bischetti,et al.  Root Strength and Root Area Ratio of Forest Species in Lombardy (Northern Italy) , 2005, Plant and Soil.

[44]  R. Sidle,et al.  A spatial and temporal model of root cohesion in forest soils , 2004 .

[45]  G. B. Bischetti,et al.  Root cohesion of forest species in the Italian Alps , 2009, Plant and Soil.

[46]  L. Waldron,et al.  Effects of root reinforcement on soil-slip patterns in the Transverse Ranges of southern California , 1991 .

[47]  Thierry Fourcaud,et al.  Effect of spatial variation of tree root characteristics on slope stability. A case study on Black Locust (Robinia pseudoacacia) and Arborvitae (Platycladus orientalis) stands on the Loess Plateau, China , 2012 .

[48]  Alexia Stokes,et al.  Engineering ecological protection against landslides in diverse mountain forests: Choosing cohesion models , 2012 .

[49]  Maria Charlafti.  Slope Stability and Vegetation , 2014 .

[50]  N. Pollen.  Temporal and spatial variability in root reinforcement of streambanks: Accounting for soil shear strength and moisture , 2007 .

[51]  Natasha Pollen,et al.  Estimating the mechanical effects of riparian vegetation on stream bank stability using a fiber bundle model , 2005 .

[52]  P. Pilesjö,et al.  Incorporating topographic indices into dynamic ecosystem modelling using LPJ‐GUESS , 2013 .

[53]  S. L. Kuriakose,et al.  Pore Water Pressure as a Trigger of Shallow Landslides in the Western Ghats of Kerala, India: Some Preliminary Observations from an Experimental Catchment , 2008 .

[54]  J. Poesen,et al.  Root characteristics of representative Mediterranean plant species and their erosion-reducing potential during concentrated runoff , 2007, Plant and Soil.

[55]  Tien H. Wu,et al.  In‐Situ Shear Test of Soil‐Root Systems , 1988 .

[56]  Nomessi Kokutse,et al.  Slope stability and vegetation: Conceptual and numerical investigation of mechanical effects , 2016 .

[57]  Gérard. Auteur du texte Philipponnat,et al.  FONDATIONS ET OUVRAGES EN TERRE , 1998 .

[58]  Denis Cohen,et al.  Effects of root tensile force and diameter distribution variability on root reinforcement in the Swiss and Italian Alps , 2014 .

[59]  Torsten Schaub,et al.  The variability of root cohesion as an influence on shallow landslide susceptibility in the Oregon Coast Range , 2001 .

[60]  M. Stolz,et al.  Root reinforcement of soils under compression , 2015 .

[61]  L. Waldron,et al.  SOIL REINFORCEMENT BY ROOTS: CALCULATION OF INCREASED SOIL SHEAR RESISTANCE FROM ROOT PROPERTIES , 1981 .

[62]  J. M. Duncan.  State of the Art: Limit Equilibrium and Finite-Element Analysis of Slopes , 1996 .

[63]  S. Olin,et al.  Investigating the influence of two different flow routing algorithms on soil–water–vegetation interactions using the dynamic ecosystem model LPJ‐GUESS , 2015 .

[64]  Hans Pretzsch,et al.  Forest Dynamics, Growth and Yield: From Measurement to Model , 2009 .

[65]  Hisham T. Eid,et al.  PERFORMANCE OF THREE-DIMENSIONAL SLOPE STABILITY METHODS IN PRACTICE , 1998 .

[66]  Jian-Hua Yin,et al.  A three-dimensional slope stability analysis method using the upper bound theorem: Part I: theory and methods , 2001 .

[67]  Murielle Ghestem,et al.  Influence of plant root system morphology and architectural traits on soil shear resistance , 2012, Plant and Soil.

[68]  L. H. Cammeraat,et al.  Observation and Simulation of Root Reinforcement on Abandoned Mediterranean Slopes , 2005, Plant and Soil.

[69]  R. Ziemer,et al.  Effect of tree roots on a shear zone: modeling reinforced shear stress , 1991 .

[70]  Guillaume Cornu,et al.  CAPSIS: Computer-aided projection for strategies in silviculture : Advantages of a shared forest-modelling platform , 2002 .

[71]  Chia-Cheng Fan,et al.  Influence of the spatial layout of vegetation on the stability of slopes , 2012, Plant and Soil.

[72]  N. Coppin,et al.  Use of Vegetation in Civil Engineering , 1990 .

[73]  A. Drescher,et al.  Slope stability analysis by strength reduction , 1999 .