Urban Geoscience: the London Perspective

Urban geoscience encompasses the geological aspects of the built environment in the context of construction materials and, the underlying bedrock that affects the stability of built structures. In London, the relevance of these aspects are evident.

For example, landslips can disrupt rail services and, non-uniform expansion and shrinkage of underlying clay sub-soil results in cracks in buildings. Water resource is another important consideration in the growing urban context. The nature of groundwater contaminants have changed with time with reports of caffeine and nicotine (British Geological Survey, 2007). Fluctuation of groundwater level depends on flow, recharge and discharge and must be closely monitored. Growing urbanisation also implies that the cities are increasingly becoming repositories of valuable materials that should be targets for recovery by urban mining. These critical aspects of urban geology are evident for London and will be explored, but also relevant to other expanding cities in the world.

Course leader

Dr. Sudeshna Basu, Professor A.P. Jones

Target group

This is a level one module (equivalent to first year undergraduate). No prior subject knowledge is required to study this module but students are expected to have a keen interest in the subject area.

Course aim

Upon successful completion of this module, students will:

Be able to identify and know common rock types and their properties used for construction in London
Have knowledge of bedrock and soil cover in relation to suitability for construction sites
Be able to read and understand basic information from geological maps available in the public domain (British Geological Survey)
Understand underlying causes of fluctuating groundwater levels in terms of aquifer rock properties, rainfall and usage.
Be able to apply concepts of urban geoscience and scope of urban mining for London, to other cities.

Credits info

7.5 EC
7.5 ECTS, 4 US, 15 UCL

Fee info

GBP 2350: Students who study in both sessions (6 weeks) will benefit from a built-in tuition fee discount.