Laserfiche WebLink
7. Other Aspects of Slope Instability <br />Although rotational failure is the only method of failure studied <br />in this report, two other important factors must be considered in <br />completely backfilling the roads to angles of approximately 45 <br />degrees. <br />First, since topsoil is non - existent for the backfilled area, it <br />will likely take a long time for the slopes to vegetate. The <br />unvegetated, steep slopes will be extremely difficult to compact <br />and w i l l be subject to continuous surface creep, which is currently <br />occurring on many natural unvegetated slopes in the area. This is <br />not desirable for permanent reclamation. <br />Second, it is well - established that the steep slopes of Coal Basin <br />contain numerous historic avalanche paths. Currently, the flat road <br />areas act to prevent avalanches and help stop any avalanches that <br />do form above the road. If the roads are reclaimed to original <br />contour, this avalanche protection would be lost, at the cost of <br />substantial forest disturbance with the loss of trees and topsoil. <br />14 <br />