Particle size analysis of ninety-nine samples from the Clyde Estuary : laboratory report

This is a factual laboratory report presenting the results of the particle size analysis carried out on ninety-nine samples from the Estuary in February 2005. The work forms part of an overall study into the Estuary with Glasgow City Council

Subgrade geology beneath railways in Manchester

It is not sufficient to identify fine-grained soils, only, as locations for potential subgrade problems as could be done using a traditional 2D geological map. More information is required about the geological structure, lithological variability, mineralogy, moisture content and geotechnical properties of the soil, much of which can be supplied by modern 3D geospatial databases. These databases can be interrogated at key depths to show the wide variability of geological materials and conditions beneath the ground surface. Geological outcrop and thickness of bedrock an superficial deposits (soils), plus the permeability and water table level are predicted from the Manchester geospatial model that is based on 6500 borehole records. Geological sections along railway routes are modelled and the locations of problem soils such as alluvium, till and glaciolacustrine deposits at outcrop and shallow subcrop are identified. Spatial attribution of geotechnical data and simple methods to recast sections in engineering geological terms are demonstrated

A workshop focussing on communication of hazard assessment information : summary of discussions

The Natural Hazard Partnership, held a workshop on the 29th September 2017, led by the British Geological Survey and the Health and Safety Executive. The workshop was funded by the National Centre for Resilience, Scotland. The day was used as an opportunity for the science researchers, stakeholders and the resilience community to share their views and experiences with a view to improving hazard communication

National underground assets and subsurface data : review of use case applications. Iceberg Industry Group workshop

The Iceberg Industry Group represents over 130 organisations who are committed to the improvement of the capture and sharing of information that relates to the subsurface. The open community was formed following the publication of research (Project Iceberg, 2018) into a framework to address shortfalls in subsurface data. The research also informed subsequent programmes, most notably the National Underground Asset Register (NUAR) pilot projects delivered by the Greater London Authority and the Ordnance Survey, funded by the Geospatial Commission (2019). NUAR currently focuses on the development of an underground utility asset register for strike avoidance, with the benefits aligned to Health and Safety related outcomes and planning efficiencies. Working in partnership with the Geospatial Commission (GC), the Iceberg Industry Group delivered a workshop (Nov 2019) looking at additional applications and benefits, (over-and-above strike avoidance), that may be realised by the creation of an underground asset register and better subsurface data use. The workshop was facilitated by British Geological Survey and Ordnance Survey. This report presents a summary of the workshop and its findings

The Cubic Mile project : recommendations and guidance for implementation

Subsurface space is regarded as both a key potential future resource that could be utilised to support the resilience of society to climate change, and at the same time a blocker to surface climate resilience measures where areas are perceived as ‘congested’. Understanding the current state of play, as well as available data and legislation, formed a key aspect of the UK Climate Resilience placement for both the City of London Corporation (CoLC) and the British Geological Survey (BGS). Discoveries from the Cubic Mile project have enabled a better understanding of the issues surrounding subsurface information and its relation to climate adaptation/resilience planning. Whilst underground space is regulated to a degree through spatial planning policy (e.g., conversion and subterranean expansion of residential property) and environmental licensing (e.g., water abstraction, mineral extraction, discharge and mining) there are no leading subsurface governing polices at the local level that support climate adaptation. Accessing data about the subsurface is often resource heavy, both in terms of cost and time, and limited by licensing and spatial data coverage. The complex history of the City of London has resulted in a very congested subsurface with a history of around two millennia of development. A key part of the embedded researcher placement involved a review of existing data, identification of gaps and discussions with the City and other stakeholders identifying where improvements or changes could be made for future implementation of subsurface data in climate resilience planning. Whilst some suggestions could be realised as a quick win with regards to storage and sharing of internal information, other recommendations would be much more involved and relate to policy or a wider cultural change. These would require a strategic change implemented at higher level and a lead agency to take forward

The Cubic Mile project : workshop overview

The City of London Corporation and the British Geological Survey (BGS) hosted a workshop to conclude the ‘Cubic Mile’ project, an embedded researcher project carried out between November 2021 and October 2022. Focusing on the City of London (Figure 1), the year-long partnership investigated how urban subsurface space could be better utilised to improve the City’s resilience to the impacts of long-term climate change and extreme weather. The workshop event brought together a range of stakeholders to discuss the progress of this project over the past 11 months, and to develop recommendations and next steps in the understanding, and potential development, of the urban subsurface for climate resilience. The project aimed to identify the current gaps and uncertainty in subsurface use and associated data, focussing on five potential subsurface adaptation measures: • Urban greening and tree planting • Sustainable drainage systems (SuDS) • Cool spaces below ground • Ground source energy • Resilience of buried utilities networks This document provides a summary of key findings and recommendations from the workshop, as well as a more detailed insight into issues raised during the discussions. Further background information on the project, as well as more information on climate resilience, is available on the UK Climate Resilience Programme website: https://www.ukclimateresilience.org/projects/climate-action-strategy-for-city-of-london-adaptive-design-pathways-for-londons-cubic-mile

The Cubic Mile project : policy summary and overview

The City of London ‘Square Mile’ (Figure 1) is the historic centre of London and the financial and commercial heart of the UK. It is a very high-density urban environment. Specific modelling carried out by the Met Office (UKCP18) for London indicates that overall, winters will be 20% wetter and summers 30% drier, combined with more extreme weather events and sea level rise. Increased rainfall and surface water run-off present a key issue for the City, where the presence of many hard, impermeable surfaces significantly increases the risk of flooding of high-profile commercial premises. The projected increase in temperatures and heatwaves will also lead to overheating and increased mortality for the City’s people and services, which, given its central urban location, is vulnerable to the urban heat island effect. The future resilience of the City to climate change is high on the City of London Corporation’s agenda. The collaborative ‘Cubic Mile’ project with the British Geological Survey under the UK Climate Resilience Programme Embedded Researcher scheme was designed to support the delivery of the City of London’s Climate Action Strategy, by understanding to what extent subsurface space could support climate resilience and adaptation. This policy review forms part of an exercise to determine policy barriers and enablers to urban subsurface climate resilience

Landslide mapping for susceptibility and hazard assessment: North York Moors, UK

The British Geological Survey (BGS) has developed a multi-stage methodology for landslide mapping by augmenting traditional mapping techniques with new geospatial technologies. This allows better characterisation and understanding of the country’s landslides: an essential requirement for landslide susceptibility modelling, risk assessment and resilient infrastructure planning. The BGS methodology has most recently been applied to the North York Moors National Park in northern England, UK: an area with steep slopes, landslide-prone lithologies and an exposed coastal section but few recorded landslide events. Over 550 landslides have now been identified and data on the characteristics and mechanisms of these have been used to inform hazard assessments and susceptibility modelling research including the National Landslide Database, the National Landslide Domains Map and the National Geohazard Assessment

A national assessment of landslide hazard from Outside Party Slopes to the rail network of Great Britain

In recent years, a number of high profile landslide events have caused disruption, derailments or damage to railway infrastructure in Great Britain. A landslide susceptibility model of the entire railway network was created, designed to give a national overview of potential landslide hazard originating from Outside Party Slopes. The current assessment was compiled using Geographic Information System (GIS) techniques and desktop modelling to apply a structured analysis of each buffered Earthwork Inspection 5 Chain (c. 100 m; EI5C). Data analysed along the network included the BGS GeoSure instability model and newly updated national models for debris flow, earth flow and rock fall, supported by historical landslide data. In order to further focus the Outside Party Slope zone, a buffer of External Natural Geological Influence (BENGI) was created using a 5 m Digital Terrain Model. Landslide susceptibility for each EI5C was categorized using a ‘Classification of Hazards on Outside Party Slopes’ (CHOPS) score; representing the modelled potential for landslide hazard. The outputs were combined as a series of matrices to present the CHOPS and Network Rail Derailment Criticality Band interactions. This research will allow further focused analysis of the network, in order to prioritize and direct future investigation and policy decisions

Frontotemporal dementia with the C9ORF72 hexanucleotide repeat expansion: clinical, neuroanatomical and neuropathological features

An expanded hexanucleotide repeat in the C9ORF72 gene has recently been identified as a major cause of familial frontotemporal lobar degeneration and motor neuron disease, including cases previously identified as linked to chromosome 9. Here we present a detailed retrospective clinical, neuroimaging and histopathological analysis of a C9ORF72 mutation case series in relation to other forms of genetically determined frontotemporal lobar degeneration ascertained at a specialist centre. Eighteen probands (19 cases in total) were identified, representing 35% of frontotemporal lobar degeneration cases with identified mutations, 36% of cases with clinical evidence of motor neuron disease and 7% of the entire cohort. Thirty-three per cent of these C9ORF72 cases had no identified relevant family history. Families showed wide variation in clinical onset (43–68 years) and duration (1.7–22 years). The most common presenting syndrome (comprising a half of cases) was behavioural variant frontotemporal dementia, however, there was substantial clinical heterogeneity across the C9ORF72 mutation cohort. Sixty per cent of cases developed clinical features consistent with motor neuron disease during the period of follow-up. Anxiety and agitation and memory impairment were prominent features (between a half to two-thirds of cases), and dominant parietal dysfunction was also frequent. Affected individuals showed variable magnetic resonance imaging findings; however, relative to healthy controls, the group as a whole showed extensive thinning of frontal, temporal and parietal cortices, subcortical grey matter atrophy including thalamus and cerebellum and involvement of long intrahemispheric, commissural and corticospinal tracts. The neuroimaging profile of the C9ORF72 expansion was significantly more symmetrical than progranulin mutations with significantly less temporal lobe involvement than microtubule-associated protein tau mutations. Neuropathological examination in six cases with C9ORF72 mutation from the frontotemporal lobar degeneration series identified histomorphological features consistent with either type A or B TAR DNA-binding protein-43 deposition; however, p62-positive (in excess of TAR DNA-binding protein-43 positive) neuronal cytoplasmic inclusions in hippocampus and cerebellum were a consistent feature of these cases, in contrast to the similar frequency of p62 and TAR DNA-binding protein-43 deposition in 53 control cases with frontotemporal lobar degeneration–TAR DNA-binding protein. These findings corroborate the clinical importance of the C9ORF72 mutation in frontotemporal lobar degeneration, delineate phenotypic and neuropathological features that could help to guide genetic testing, and suggest hypotheses for elucidating the neurobiology of a culprit subcortical network