Hillslope

Processes

Hillslope: the
elevated land between
valley bottoms.

Hillslope Processes:
movement of rock and
soil by mass wasting,
rain splash, and
overland flow
 2 fundamental kinds of hillslope:

Bedrock
soil production < erosion
little to no soil cover with bedrock at surface
sediment transport is weathering limited
slope form controlled by rock properties

Soil-mantled
soil production ≥ erosion
surfical layer of soil covers bedrock
sediment transport is transport limited
slope form controlled by soil properties,
production, and transport rates
Hillslope Evolution

Weathering-Limited (bedrock)

steep slopes
thin to absent soil mantle
common in arid climates

also occur in humid areas

with rapid uplift and
downcutting low rate of
weathering (i.e., strong rocks)
rockfall and slides parallel
retreat at threshold angles
 Bedrock Hillslopes
Bedrock slopes typical of arid and semi-arid
areas due to slow soil production
Totem Pole formation, Monument Valley, Navajo Tribal Park
Bedrock hillslopes, Brice Canyo, Utah
Hillslope Evolution

Transport-Limited (soil mantled)

gentle slopes
thick soil mantle
common in warm,
humid climates
soil creep and slides
convex profiles
 Soil-Mantled Hillslopes
Soil-mantled slopes typical of humid and tropical
regions due to high pace of soil production
Soil-mantled hillslopes, Bolivia
 Strength of Materials

Some basic concepts:

Stress - force per unit area

recall that force = mass * acceleration
(F = ma)

Normal stresses - forces acting perpendicular to area

Shear stresses - forces acting parallel to area

 Strength of Materials

() angle of internal friction (a.k.a. friction angle)

characterizes the frictional resistance among particles
in a material

(C) cohesion
the inherent strength of a material in the absence of
any load

shear strength
the ability to resist deformation and fracture without
significant failure is a function of both  and C.
 Strength of Materials

Mohr-Coulomb shear strength equation

The total shear strength (s) of a slope material is given by

s = C + ' tan

where ' is effective normal stress

 Soil Strength Properites

Soil Strength:
typical values for sand and clay

Material Friction Angle (°) Cohesion (kPa)

Dense uniform sand 32 - 40 0

Sandy glacial outwash 36 ± 11 12 ± 9
Soft organic clay 22 -27 20 - 50
Stiff glacial clay 30 - 32 70 - 150
 Rock Strength Properties

Rock Strength:
intact versus field strength

Material Friction Angle (°) Cohesion (kPa)

Intact sandstone (lab) 35 - 45 10,000 - 30,000
Intact shale (lab) 25 - 35 1,000 - 20,000
sandstone (field) 17 - 21 120 - 150
shale (field) 20 ± 6 69 ± 3

Rock mass strength = f (scale) due to discontinuities

 Slope Stability

Slopes fail when shear stress > shear strength

Ratio of driving to resisting forces = factor of safety (FS)

FS = shear strength
shear stress

at failure FS = 1.0
slope stable if FS ≥ 1
slope unstable if FS ≤ 1
 Shallow (soil) Landslides

Shallow Landsliding
mobilization of shallow material - primarily regolith
major geomorphological agent in mountain
landcapes

Occur during rainfall due to reduced shear

strength
 Deep-Seated (bedrock) Landslides

Deep-Seated Landsliding
mobilization of deeper material - including bedrock
major geomorphological agent in mountain
landcapes

Occur during rainfall and earthquakes due to

reduced shear strength
 Infinite Slope Model

Maximum stable angle for dry cohesionless material (C = 0;

dry, m=0; FS = 1)

1= g h cos2b tan = cosb tan = tan

g h sinb cosb sinb tanb

Hence, tanb = tan

The maximum stable angle for dry cohesionless material is

equal to the friction angle
 Infinite Slope Model

Maximum stable angle for saturated cohesionless material

(C = 0; m = 1; FS = 1)

1= h cos2b (g-gw) tan = (g-gw) tan

g h sinb cosb g tanb

Hence, tanb = [(g-gw)/ g] tan

Since g ≈ 2 gw , tanb = tan

2

The maximum stable angle for saturated cohesionless

material is equal to half the friction angle.
 Infinite Slope Model

Debris flows typically occur on slopes of 26° to 45°.

For coarse sandy soils  ≤ 45°and so tan ≤ 1.0. The

maximum steepness of most soil-mantled slopes is about
45°.

Half the friction angle (tan/2 = 0.5) equates to a slope of

26°. Debris flows rarely initiate on slopes less than 26°.
 Threshold Slopes

Once slopes reach their upper limiting stable

angle erosion rate becomes dominated by
landslide frequency rather than slope steepness.
 Types of Mass Movement

There are 4 major mechanistic styles of mass movement:

Flow

Slide

Heave

Fall

Rates of mass movement vary substantially among these

types.
Mass Movement

Flow

Shear occurs throughout the

moving mass and there is
no well-defined shear plane

Shear is maximum at base

of flow
Mass Movement

Slide

Failure occurs along a well-

defined shear plane.

Shear uniform through flow.

Resistance to movement
falls after failure; movement
continues until encountering
sufficient resistance, often
due to decreased slope.
Mass Movement

Heave

Downslope movement
arises from cyclic expansion
and contration biased by
gravity.

Typically results in slow

creep.
Mass Movement

Fall

Downward motion of rock or

soil through the air.

Only occurs from very steep

faces or cliffs.
 Erosional Processes

• Rainsplash
• Soil “Creep”
• Overland Flow
• Mass Wasting
Rainsplash The transportation of sediment through the
sudden impact of a water droplets on unconsolidated
sediment.
Overland Flow

Erosion by overland flow is rare

in forested mountain
landscapes because:

Rainfall tends to infiltrate into

the ground

The ground has substantial

erosion resistance due to
vegetation

Erosion by overland flow is

most common in disturbed or
semi-arid landscapes
200 Meters
from Divide

~400 Meters
from Divide
~800 Meters
from Divide

1200 Meters
from Divide
 Soil Creep

Slow -- too slow to perceive without measurement or

other indicator

Soil creep

i) typically associated with tilted fence posts,

concave tree trunks, etc...
typically occurs at rates of mm's /yr or less

ii) Solifluction: slow flow of water-saturated

cohesive material, often aided by frost
(gelifluction)
 Soil Creep

Figure 13.27
Pistol Butt trees, Nevada (soil creep)
“Terracettes”

terracettes
Rock Creep

Rock Creep
Slow gravity-driven
deformation of
mechanically
oversteepened
slopes can lead to
rock creep

Rock creep, Marathon, Texas

Rock Creep
Debris Flows

Debris flows

Slow to very rapid flow of

water-saturated soil and
rock debris down distinct
channels

Typically occur in coarse-

grained soils

Tolt River, Washington

Debris Flows

Lots of internal deformation

Relatively high water

content / fluid-like flow

Failure typically occurs

along well-defined shear
plane at soil-bedrock
interface.

Tolt River, Washington

Debris Flows

Debris flows: rapidly moving slurries of soil, rock, and water

than can travel far.
Source area: controlled by soil moisture and slope
steepness; typically originate on slopes of 26° to 45°.
Scour and Transport zones: some shallow landslides travel
far and scour material from steep valley bottoms - they can
grow to 100 to 1000 times their initial volume.
Deposition zone: debris flows deposit once they reach
slopes low enough so that their shear strength can resist
further motion - typically 3° to 6°.
Debris Flows
Debris Flow Runout

Bouldery debris
flow runout,
eastern Sierra
Nevada south of
Reno, Nevada
Debris flow runout

Venezuela, 1999 after 8

inches of rain followed in two
Venezuela
weeks by 36 inches of rain.
Slides - slumps
Slumps -
slipping of Scarp
coherent rock or
soil units often
with a backward
rotation

Toe
 Slumps

Slumps exhibit:

Headscarp
Toe
Internal rotation of
blocks
Highly variable internal
deformation
Earth Flows

Earth flows - water-logged material moving slowly

typically occur in fine grained soil or rock

Slump / earthflow, central California

 Translational Landslides

Translational, like a board sliding past another board

Landslide Damage

El Salvador
following a
magnitude 7.7
earthquake, 2001
Landslide Damage

La Conchita Landslide,2005
(10 fatalities, 13 homes destroyed)

La Conchita Landslide,1995
(destroyed 9 homes)
La Conchita Slump
La Conchita Slump

Old slumps exhibit easy to

recognize morphology of
bowl shaped depression with
a lump immediately
downslope.
Rotational slump

Rotational slump in
Alaska

Note how slide has

pushed stream to far
side of valley bottom
Complex slump, Central California
Shallow, planar slide in remolded “soil” on glacial till, at a road cut in Vermont
 Rotational
landslide,
Anchorage,
Alaska, 1964

Note older
landslide scarp
along
escarpment
The biggest landslide events are
termed “Rock Avalanches”

Volumes larger than 5 million cubic meters

 Scarp
Rock Avalanche

Bedrock landslides can

limit the relief of
mountain ranges Runout
zone
Mt. Cook, New Zealand:
– top 10 meters of
summit fell away in a
massive debris
avalanche on
December 14, 1991.

Deposit
Debris Avalanche

St. Elias Range, Alaska

Nevado Huascaran
Cordillera Blanca, Peru

1970 Earthquake
Failed near summit

Vertical drop of 4,100 m

Horizontal distance of
16 km

Velocities > 186 mph

Killed > 20,000 people
Rock Avalanches
Rock Avalanches
Avalanches
Mass wasting of snow enhanced
by density differences between
layers from different snowfall
events…
Rock Falls

Falls

common in arid and

semi-arid lands, but
can be triggered by
earthquakes from
steep faces in any
environment

rapid and observable

Pasig-Potrero River, Philippines

 Rock Fall

Rock fall produced by frost

heave, Yosemite NP(1996).

Glacier Point climbing area.

162,000-ton granite slab.

160 mph speed.

Killed several people.

Rockfall, Pasig-Potrero River, Philippines
Rockfall in action
• Tend to be minor events, but collectively can
generate substantial landscape change in some
locations.
 Talus Slopes
Talus accumulates where basal removal < supply rate from face

Judean desert, Israel

 Root Reinforcement

Vegetation TypeC' (kPa) Reference

Coast Douglas fir (stumps) 16.7 ; 2.3 Burroughs & Thomas (1977)
Rocky Mt. Douglas fir (stumps) 8.3 ; 2.9 Burroughs & Thomas (1977)
SE Alaskan forest 3.4 - 5.9 Wu et al. (1979); Swanston (1970)

mixed hardwoods 13.1 Reneau & Dietrich (1987)

alder 2 - 12 Endo & Tsuruta (1969)
birch 1.5 - 9.0 Takahasi (1968)
hardwoods 4.3 Riestenberg & Sovonick-Dunford(1983)

chaparral 0 - 3.0 Terwilliger & Waldron (1991)

burned chaparral 0.4 - 0.8 Terwilliger & Waldron (1991)
grass 0.5 - 0.7 Terwilliger & Waldron (1991)
swordfern 1.7 Burroughs (1984)
Debris flow scars at CB1 and CB2, Coos Bay, Oregon
CB2 debris flow, Coos Bay, Oregon
Headscarp of CB2 debris flow, Coos Bay, Oregon
CB2 debris flow, Coos Bay, Oregon

Debris flow occurred at base of hillslope hollow at transition

from hillslope to channel network
 Hillslope Hollows

Problem: How do you get valleys to persist if they

naturally fill up with stuff?

Solution: you need another process - big rivers

clean out valleys, but what about small headwater
valleys that lack a channel?

Topographic convergence also generates wet

areas and the position of the water table
influences slope stability -- steep, convergent
areas tend to fail.
 Hillslope Hollows

Cross-section of a colluvium-filled hollow, Washington

 Hillslope Hollows
Gullies incised into hollow fills, Pacifica, California
Development downslope of hollows, Pacifica, California
1982 debris flow, Pacifica, California
Hollow drained by
constructed channel,
Northern California
Channel Initiation
Channel head: the upstream
limit of concentrated water
flow between banks
– transition between hillslopes
and channels
– “pivot point” in sediment
transport between diffusive
process and incisive process

Channel initiation requires

runoff

Channel initiation occurs by:

– saturated overland flow
– seepage erosion
– shallow landsliding
Xc is the critical distance from a drainage divide that it takes
to carve a channel.
Xc is the critical distance from a drainage divide that it takes
to carve a channel.

Cinder cone with rills, Kohala, Hawaii

Unchanneled valleys occur where the erosion resistance of
the ground surface is high relative to the amount of
overland flow  Xc is very large.
Unchanneled valleys
upslope of channel heads
are often sites of landslide
initiation due to the
convergence of both
colluvium (soil) due to soil
creep and to flow
convergence that
saturates accumuatled
soil (colluvium).

Convex hillslopes, Marin

County, California
Rills occur on slopes outside of valleys where the erosion
resistance of the ground surface is low relative to the
amount of overland flow  Xc is very small.
Rills, New Mexico
Rills on a roadcut, Brazil
Channels often begin at the base of hollows.
 14 m across

3200 m across

Landscapes consist
of ridge and valley
topography at all
scales, but only finest
scale reveals the
actual valley network
and defines the
transition between
hillslopes and valley.

Montgomery and Dietrich, 1992, Science

 c
a
b
d

Channel networks are

of finite extent.
The spacing of the
finest-scale valleys
depends on the
competition of valley
cutting and hillslope
eroding processes.
Fractal analysis breaks
down at the channel-
hillslope transition.
Channel Head Location
and Topography

Montgomery and Dietrich, 1989

 Channel Initiation

Process model for channel

initiation by shallow landsliding

– convergent topography causes

colluvium eroded from adjacent
hillslopes to accumulate

– at critical threshold, landsliding

occurs exposing underlying
material

– erosion of underlying material by

saturation overland flow initiates
channel
 Low-gradient, seepage controlled channel heads

Gully headcut, Tennessee Valley, California

Low-gradient, overland flow
controlled channel heads

United Kingdom Tennessee Valley, California

Steep, landslide controlled
channel heads
Channels begin when enough runoff accumulated to overcome the
erosion resistance of the ground surface

Oregon Coast Range N. California

channeled

channel head

unchanneled
S. California Summary

Montgomery and Dietrich, 1992, Science

 Application of
slope- area
channel
threshold to a
channeled digital terrain
model

unchanneled
= hillslope

transition
Observed
channel in the
field
Montgomery and Dietrich, 1992, Science
On to rivers…