Raise of Slopes – QGIS Plugin

A QGIS plugin for slope stability analysis using limit equilibrium methods (Bishop, Morgenstern-Price, Spencer).

Features

Elevation Profile

• Select two points on a DEM
• Profile sampling with CRS and nodata handling
• Graphical display and export to CSV / image / DXF

Stability Analysis

• Grid search and simplex optimisation
• Geotechnical parameters for 1 or 2 soil layers
• Optional water table (constant depth, raster, or absolute elevation)
• Project save/load (.rslope format)

Hazard Map

• Factor of Safety (FoS) raster accumulation across the slope
• Depth raster styling for visualisation

Profile Report

• Legend and table of geotechnical parameters
• Export-ready graphical output

Architecture

The plugin relies exclusively on the external framework:

external/gwf-le/src/LEM

and the critical surface search modules in:

external/gwf-le/src/searchCriticalF

No local fallbacks or copies of the LE modules are present.

Installation (development)

1. Clone the repository including the external/gwf-le submodule.
2. Copy the plugin folder to the QGIS plugins directory or use the provided install script.

macOS example – manual copy:

cp -r /path/to/RaiseOfSlope ~/Library/Application\ Support/QGIS/QGIS3/profiles/default/python/plugins/RaiseOfSlopes

Or, from the plugin root:

python install_plugin.py            # copy to default directory
python install_plugin.py --dest /path/to/plugins
python install_plugin.py --zip      # generate RaiseOfSlopes.zip

Then enable the plugin in QGIS via Plugins > Manage and Install Plugins.

Quick Start

1. Load a DEM layer.
2. Open the plugin and select two points on the map.
3. The elevation profile is computed automatically.
4. Run the analysis from Grid Analysis or Simplex Analysis.

Dependencies

• QGIS 3.x
• NumPy, SciPy, Matplotlib (QGIS Python environment)
• LE modules in external/gwf-le/src/LEM and external/gwf-le/src/searchCriticalF

Troubleshooting

LE module import error

Verify that the following directories exist and contain the expected modules (lemInterface.py, gleMethods.py, searchInterface.py, circularSlipSurfaces.py):

• external/gwf-le/src/LEM
• external/gwf-le/src/searchCriticalF

Analysis does not start

• Confirm the elevation profile has been computed
• Check bounds and geotechnical parameter values
• Read the QGIS Python console for detailed error output

Key Files

File	Purpose
raise_of_slopes_plugin.py	Main plugin logic
ui/profile_dialog.py	User interface
debug_stability_standalone.py	Standalone debug outside QGIS
INTEGRATION_NOTES.md	Technical integration notes

Citation

If you use this plugin in your research, please cite the following article on which the stability algorithm is based:

Lalicata, L. M., Bressan, A., Pittaluga, S., Tamellini, L., & Gallipoli, D. (2025). An Efficient Slope Stability Algorithm with Physically Consistent Parametrisation of Slip Surfaces. International Journal of Civil Engineering, 23, 671–682. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40999-024-01053-1