- Title
- The BMG ignimbrite quarry: case study of an undergraduate field exercise in engineering geology
- Creator
- Fityus, S. G.; Gibson, J. H.
- Relation
- Shaking the Foundations of Geo-engineering Education (SFGE 2012). Shaking the Foundations of Geo-Engineering Education: Proceedings of the International Conference (Galway, Ireland 4-6 July, 2012) p. 151-156
- Publisher
- CRC Press
- Resource Type
- conference paper
- Date
- 2012
- Description
- Field-based exercises are logistically difficult but essential elements in the teaching of engineering geology at any level. The degree of difficulty has increased in recent times by increasing student numbers, reduced teaching budgets and more stringently defined university policies. This paper presents a case study of a field exercise of a dacitic ignimbrite exposure in the abandoned BMG quarry near Raymond Terrace, Australia, which has been re-commissioned as a landfill. It describes how important phenomena such as columnar jointing can be used to interpret structural orientations of thick volcanic beds, which are subsequently confirmed by wider regional mapping. The interpreted structure is then used as a basis for assessing why the quarrying operations ceased, demonstrating how an understanding of engineering geology is critical for resource management in civil engineering. Discussion is provided on how the field studies have been adapted to cope with growing student cohorts of mixed background and issues that arise from visiting the same location every year. The importance of having a suitable site with cooperative owners/management is recognised.
- Subject
- BMB ignimbrite quarry; Raymond Terrace, (NSW); engineering geology; field-based exercises
- Identifier
- http://hdl.handle.net/1959.13/1340873
- Identifier
- uon:28599
- Identifier
- ISBN:9780415621274
- Language
- eng
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