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Book review |
University of Leeds, UK
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Geomorphology for Engineers is aimed at Civil and Geotechnical Engineers in practice. The book is divided into three broad sections. The first deals with what the editors refer to as landshaping controls. In effect this is a discussion of climate (and to some degree climatic change), tectonics and sedimentation. There is no section on metamorphic or volcanic materials (although volcanism as a process, and its associated landforms, is picked up later in the book) and this limits the overview of one of the key controls on landform development. This also has a section on the Engineering Properties of Soils and Rocks which, given the target audience is stated as being Civil and Geotechnical Engineers, is somewhat limited. The second section deals with processes such as landslides, active tectonics and rivers and provides a comprehensive overview of the processes thatshape the surface of the earth. The third section of the book discusses geomorphological environments and although it is possible to quibble about what should be in this section as opposed to part 1 (should Loess be with environments or a material upon which processes act? The same can be said for Chalk downlands) it is also comprehensive and rather follows the concept of climatic geomorphology. While it is possible to debate what should be in which section, this does not in any way detract from the undoubted value of the book in providing an oversight of surface processes and their interaction with geology to produce landforms that can be interpreted.
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