Contributions of Geological Research to Sustainability

Human civilization across time and geography has used geological bodies, both terrains (at the surface or in cavities) and substances extracted from them (directly or as raw materials) for preparing diverse products. It is essential, hence, to promote suitable management options for the use of ground surfaces and their products, attempting to ensure their persistence for the future and minimizing undesirable impacts on the other components of the environment.

The management of space, both at the surface and underground, contributes to sustaining human civilization through the selection of suitable places for built structures and the preservation of other essential natural resources. Selection of places comprises the study of ground characteristics that ensure the present and future stability of structures and the availability of resources involved in the human use of these structures. Space can be seen as a renewable resource, but some kinds of activities can compromise the reuse of terrains, for example, in the case of contaminated ground. Geological formations can play an important role in the disposal of residues from anthropogenic activities. Terrains are also a potential direct source of geothermal energy based on dry rock and groundwater, with the last case being susceptible to perturbation of flowing paths.

Among the substances that can be obtained from geological formations, water deserves a special highlight, given its crucial role in life, and it is one that might be particularly affected by diverse pollutants (such as seawater and anthropogenic products) or physical destruction (when it affects recharge areas). It is another example of a resource whose renewability might be affected by management options (of the terrain and of the resource) and that needs protection. However, many other geological substances are needed for everyday use, and they can be alternatives with lower impact in relation to other options, considering namely their durability, reusability, and recyclability, as well as their receptivity to the development of life and their integration with the surrounding landscape.

The assessment of the sustainability of choices must also take into consideration the consumption of resources, emission of pollutants, and generation of wastes associated with them, as well as those that result from the degradation with time of terrains and materials. However, creative approaches can turn wastes into resources.

This Special Issue will consider geological research in a very wide sense that includes the study of the performance of geological materials and the undesigned evolution of built structures (considered, under this perspective, as geological objects), especially regarding materials that can be considered analogues of geological objects.

High-quality manuscripts with new results or new game-changing ideas, as well as comprehensive reviews that offer new perspectives are welcome. Some examples of relevant topics include, but are not limited to, the following:

• Ground studies for the planning of terrain use and design of structures;
• Geophysical and non-invasive exploration of geological resources
• Characterization of underground space (including thermal properties);
• Geothermal energy;
• Geological hazards assessments and prediction;
• Impact of anthropogenic activities on ground characteristics and in geological hazards (ground and water contamination, subsidence, induced seismicity);
• Environmental impact assessment of the exploitation of geological resources;
• Waste disposal;
• Carbon dioxide sequestration;
• Release and migration of pollutants from geological bodies and from the wastes of their extraction;
• Reusability and recyclability of waste from mineral exploitation;
• Discovery, assessment, management, and protection of groundwater;
• Mineral and thermal waters’ contributions to human health;
• Impacts of groundwater extraction (terrain subsidence and contamination by seawater);
• Bioreceptivity, reusability, and recyclability of geological materials (earth and stone);
• Geological materials as replacement for cement;
• Impacts of decay and conservation of geological building materials;
• Effects of climate change on the sustainability of geological resources.

However, this list must not be seen as exclusive or limiting, and other subjects showing the importance of geological studies (with the broad sense indicated above) for the sustainability of human civilization will be considered.

Dr. Jorge Sanjurjo-Sánchez
Dr. Carlos Alves
Dr. Carlos Figueiredo
Guest Editors

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