A classic advanced undergraduate/graduate level text showing how knowledge of hydrology, fluvial geomorphology, and river quality are used in environmental planning. The focus is on maintenance or reclamation of environmental quality, with the text, examples, and exercises emphasizing early identification of problems and address nonstructural solutions
Environmental Geology: geology and the human environment provides a comprehensive introduction to the subject of environmental geology - the interaction of humans with the geological environment. As a subject, environmental geology has grown in popularity with the rise of interest in environmental issues. Despite this, environmental geology is not a new subject but a meld of three related earth science disciplines: economic geology, engineering geology and applied geomorphology, each of which has been given a new focus through the need for greater environmental management. This book is the first of its kind to recognise that the true challenge of environmental geology does not lie in rural areas or in the green issues, but in the urban environment and its resource hinterland. By the year 2000, over 3.5 billion people, over 50% of the world's population, will live in urban areas covering just 1% of the earth's surface. It is here that human interaction with the geological environment is at its most intense: it is here that the practical challenges in environmental geology lie. Urban growth fuels the demand for mineral and water resources, tests our skills as engineering geologists, produces vast volumes of waste which must be managed, and increases human vulnerability to natural hazards. All of these topics are covered within this book. Environmental geology is a practical subject, and environmental geologists have a crucial role in managing our interaction with the geological environment. This textbook demonstrates how environmental geologists can make a practical contribution to managing this interaction allowing both sustained development and environmental conservation.
This volume in the Encyclopedia of Sustainability Science and Technology, Second Edition, brings together chapters examining water, energy, minerals and the environment in a holistic approach to land use planning and utilization. The work examines some of the problems, techniques, and solutions for managing resources so that a balance can be maintained between development and the environment. As world population increases, greater demand is placed on finite resources that earth can provide. Geographic areas once judged inadequate or inappropriate for construction, water and wastewater management, or transportation routes, among other activities, are being considered for, and being used, for development. Topics covered in this volume include impacts of natural disasters such as earthquakes and sinkholes, water and its use, overuse, and role in energy generation, and carbon sequestration. The topics covered here all play a role in development and the potential to sustain a growing world population. Interactions among system components mean that no single aspect can be addressed without including another. Environmental Geology places these different factors into perspective so that scientists, politicians, economists, planners, and stakeholders can work together to develop solutions that provide an acceptable balance between development and the environmental services on which we all depend.
This illustrated handbook describes a broad spectrum of methods in the fields of remote sensing, geophysics, geology, hydrogeology, geochemistry, and microbiology designed to investigate landfill, mining and industrial sites. The descriptions provide information about the principle of the methods, applications and fundamentals. This handbook also deals with the stepwise procedure for investigating sites and common problems faced in efficient implementation of field operations.
This book was prepared for publication by an International Working Group of experts under the auspices of COGEOENVIRONMENT - the Commission of the International Union of Geological Sciences (lUGS) on Geological Sciences for Environmental Planning and lUGS-GEM (Commission on Geosciences for Environmental Management). The main aim of the Working Group "Geology and Ecosystems" was to develop an interdisciplinary approach to the study of the mechanisms and special features within the "living tissue - inert nature" system under different regional, geological, and anthropogenic conditions. This activity requires international contributions from many scientific fields. It requires efforts from scientists specializing in fields such as: environmental impacts of extractive industries, anthropogenic development and medical problems related to geology and ecosystem interaction, the prediction of the geoenvironmental evolution of ecosystems, etc. The Working Group determined the goal and objectives of the book, developed the main content, discussed the parts and chapters, and formed the team of authors and the Editorial Board. The Meetings of the Working Group (Vilnius, Lithuania, 2002 and Warsaw-Kielniki, Poland, 2003) were dedicated to discussion and approval of the main content of all chapters in the Book.
Environmental geologists use a wide range of geologic data to solve environmental problems and conflicts. Professionals and academics in this field need to know how to gather information on such diverse conditions as soil type, rock structure, and groundwater flow and then utilize it to understand geological site conditions. Field surveys, maps, well logs, bore holes, ground-penetrating radar, aerial photos, geologic literature, and more help to reveal potential natural hazards in an area or how to remediate contaminated sites. This new workbook presents accessible activities designed to highlight key concepts in environmental geology and give students an idea of what they need to know to join the workforce as an environmental geologist, engineering geologist, geological engineer, or geotechnical engineer. Exercises cover: • Preparation, data collection, and data analysis • Descriptive and engineering properties of earth materials • Basic tools used in conjunction with geoenvironmental investigations • Forces operating on earth materials within the earth • Inanimate forces operating on earth materials at the surface of the earth • Human activities operating on earth materials Each activity encourages students to think critically and develop deeper knowledge of environmental geology.
Environmental Geology is aimed primarily at upper-level undergraduate and graduate students in departments of earth and environmental sciences, but will also strongly appeal to the professional geologist, geographer, civil engineer and planner. As human activities continue to degrade the Earth, the crucial importance of environmental geology is fast being recognized, and course structures are beginning to exhibit an environmental bias. As a result, this book is designed to cater to this new audience and direction. It provides an assessment and evaluation of environmental hazards (volcanoes, earthquakes, etc) and problems (mining, waste disposal, etc), and suggests methods of dealing with them. In short, it covers the planning, development and management of those aspects of the environment that relate to geology and those that are fundamental to the future health of our planet. Comprehensive coverage, up-to-date, densely illustrated and fully referenced throughout. Varied environmental concerns of different regions are represented by a broad geographical spread of examples. Author is a distinguished engineering geologist with extensive international experience.
With the continuing increase in population, more people are sharing the finite resources of the urban watershed, resulting in new and increasingly complex interactions between humans and the environment. Environmental contamination is a chronic problem-and an expensive one. In urban areas, water and soil contamination poses a threat to public healt
Developments in Engineering Geology is a showcase of the diversity in the science and practice of engineering geology. All branches of geology are applicable to solving engineering problems and this presents a wide frontier of scientific opportunity to engineering geology. In practice, diversity represents a different set of challenges with the distinctive character of the profession derived from the crossover between the disciplines of geology and engineering. This book emphasizes the importance of understanding the geological science behind the engineering behaviour of a soil or rock. It also highlights a continuing expansion in the practice areas of engineering geology and illustrates how this is opening new frontiers to the profession thereby introducing new knowledge and technology across a range of applications. This is initiating an evolution in the way geology is modelled in engineering, geohazard and environmental studies in modern and traditional areas of engineering geology.
