Rock Slopes from Mechanics to Decision Making

Abstract

Rock slope instabilities are discussed in the context of decision making for risk assessment and management. Hence, the state of the slope and possible failure mechanism need to be defined first. This is done with geometrical and mechanical models for which recent developments are presented. This leads with appropriate consideration of uncertainties to risk determination and to the description of tools for risk management through active and passive countermeasures, including warning systems. The need for sensitivity analysis is then demonstrated, and final comments address updating through information collection.