Chapter 10 Periglacial geohazards in the UK

Almost all areas of the UK have been affected by periglaciation during the Quaternary and, as such, relict periglacial geohazards can provide a significant technical and commercial risk for many civil engineering projects. The processes and products associated with periglaciation in the relict periglacial landscape of the UK are described in terms of their nature and distribution, the hazards they pose to engineering projects, and how they might be monitored and mitigated. A periglacial landsystems classification is applied here to show its application to the assessment of ground engineering hazards within upland and lowland periglacial geomorphological terrains. Techniques for the early identification of the susceptibility of a site to periglacial geohazards are discussed. These include the increased availability of high-resolution aerial imagery such as Google Earth, which has proved to be a valuable tool in periglacial geohazard identification when considered in conjunction with the more usual sources of desk study information such as geological, geomorphological and topographical publications. Descriptions of periglacial geohazards and how they might impact engineering works are presented, along with suggestions for possible monitoring and remediation strategies.