Landslides have been a problem around Cincinnati for years . Aaron Habig with the Hamilton County Conservation District says heavy rains expected this week could mean trouble for hilltop structures.

The reason dates back tens of thousands of years ago, when the region was covered by glaciers. The Ohio Valley is about as far south as those glaciers stretched.

Habig says local soil is made up of glacial deposits on top of shale. “As shale breaks down, it turns into a product called colluvium, which unfortunately is prone to slippage when it gets saturated,” he says. “Generally, in the Cincinnati area, when we get saturated soils — late winter, early spring — that’s when we tend to see most of the landslides that we have.”

The slipping hillside along Columbia Parkway is a good example. That slide may have been stopped , but other parts of the county are still vulnerable.

He says slides haven't been in the headlines lately because a lot of the problems have been addressed.

“If you’re building a new house, there are regulations in place, both within the county and in the city of Cincinnati, to help mitigate the landslide risk,” he says. “We have rules and regulations on how to build; where you can build; things you have to take into consideration...”

Habig says older structures may still be vulnerable.

What you can do to prevent landslides

He says there are things property owners can do to prevent a hillside from sliding. A slope with vegetation on it will do better than one without. And he says tree roots are better still.

“Remov[e] honeysuckle and replac[e] that with native shrubs — because honeysuckle roots are very, very shallow rooted, whereas your native shrubs are going to have much deeper roots,” he says.

Keeping the soil as dry as possible also will help. Habig advises using downspouts to funnel water away, and keeping water from building up near vulnerable patches of land.

Habig says an engineer can help if the ground does start to slide.

“If you start seeing some movement, and you wait until it really slips, then you go from a small project to a very large project.”

Habig says property insurance does not cover landslide damage. He says the Hamilton County Conservation District can offer technical assistance to property owners who are dealing with issues.