Mitigation of coastal slope failures during cyclones

Abstract:
The eastern coast of India is susceptible to erosion due to extreme cyclonic events.
The sudden erosion causes steep slopes on the coastal regions as an aftermath of cyclones.
The precipitation accompanying the cyclones causes saturation of the soil, reducing the shear
strength. This leads to failure of slopes in soil and destruction to the buildings in the coastal
region. A case study has been considered in the Odisha state, where recent cyclones have led
to destruction of beach leaving steep slopes in its wake. The soil profile considered for the
study is dense sand. The stability of the natural slope is compared with the stability of the
slope after cyclone using a finite element package. The ratio of the actual soil strength with
the soil strength at failure is compared. A stabilisation technique has also been studied in this
paper to reduce the failure of the slope and also to prevent further erosion. The stabilisation
technique involves erection of a retaining wall to reduce the amount of soil that get eroded,
thus preventing complete loss of sand. The height of the retaining wall is determined based
on the failure envelope at the given location and the storm surge during cyclones.