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This article reports that electrokinetic geosynthetics have the potential to harness the widespread application of electro-osmosis, the movement of water through silts and clays under a direct current voltage. Research at University of Newcastle Upon Tyne, England and elsewhere has shown that in some materials, electrokinetic geosynthetics technology can increase water flow velocities by up to 10 000 times those that are achievable under standard hydraulic flow conditions. The benefits of the new technology apply both to new-build construction of road and rail embankments and to repairs of clay slopes, particularly where access is problematic or where high quality fills are in short supply. A number of organizations both in Great Britain and abroad have shown great interest in the technology.