Geology is explained in this book, not only as having important civil engineering applications, but also as coherent geological general knowledge. The authors, who are civil engineering and engineering geologists, explain the processes of how the ground is formed and therefore what it is made of and how it behaves as an engineering material. This enables the civil engineer to work from a few first principles to decide if the ground is an asset or a hazard. 302 pp.

Topics discussed include:

• Ground origins: plate tectonics and the rock cycle
• New ground: Igneous rock
• Deposited ground: Sedimentary rocks
• Changed ground: Metamorphic rock
• Ground clock: Stratigraphy and terminology
• Ground structure: Maps, unconformity, faults, and folds
• Groundwater: Flow, quality and protection
• Ground hazards: Volcanoes, earthquakes and dissolution features
• Ground properties: Rock strength and compressability