Potential restoration methods for relatively shallow slides include biotechnical slope protection, mixed systems of soil bioengineeing and planting and inert construction including structural or mechanical systems. The combined skills of an interdisciplinary team selects the integrated package of systems which will be most successful for the site. The goal of slope restoration is to balance structural needs for soil retention with the reestablishment of vegetation for surface cover and habitat restoration. This vegetative cover is critical in maintaining the local stability of the slopes. Vegetation can serve several purposes in stabilization projects, both a primary source of stabilization and as native habitat and greenbelts.
Plants can play an important role in dewatering unstable slopes.
Soil moisture is drawn up through roots and into plant leaves where transpiration releases it into the atmosphere. The foundation of successful slope vegetation restoration is identifying the composition of the native plant community and carefully considering the mircoclimate of the slope. Plants selected for the revegetation should mimic the native species composition in both type and strata. Within forested slopes and ravines, the planting design should mend the slide area with vegetation identified in the surrounding slopes to provide continuity in the habitat. The vegetation types and methods of slope plantings should vary according to the location of the slide within the landscape of the bluff, hillside or ravine.