"The 16th ICSMGE responds to the needs of the engineering and construction community, promoting dialog and exchange between academia and practice in various aspects of soil mechanics and geotechnical engineering. This is reflected in the central theme of the conference 'Geotechnology in Harmony with the Global Environment'. The proceedings of the conference are of great interest for geo-engineers and researchers and reflect the present state-of-the-art of soil mechanics and geotechnical engineering. Volume 1 contains 5 Plenary Session lectures, Terzaghi Oration, Heritage Lecture, and 3 papers presented in the Major Project Session, and a CD. Volumes 2, 3, and 4 contain the papers with the following topics: Soil Mechanics in General ; Infrastructure and Mobility ; Environmental Issues of Geotechnical Engineering ; Enhancing Natural Disaster Reduction Systems ; and Professional Practice and Education. Volume 5 contains the report of Practitioner/Academic Forum, 20 General Reports, Summary of the Sessions and Workshops held during the conference and a CD."--Publisher's website.

Amongst the thematic topics discussed are global frequency, impacts on society, analysis of initial rock slope failure, monitoring of rock slope movement, analysis and modeling of post-failure behaviour, volcanic landslides, and influences of massive rock slope failure on the geomorphological evolution of mountain regions. Regional contributions include reports on rockslides and rock avalanches in Norway, western Canada, the Andes of Argentina, the Karakoram Himalaya, the European Alps, the Appennines, and the mountains of Central Asia. Rockslides and rock avalanches in the Central Asian republics of the former Soviet Union are discussed in detail for the first time in an English-language book. These landslides include the 1911 Usoi rockslide, that dammed 75 km-long Lake Sarez, and the 1949 Khait rock avalanche that may have killed up to 28,000 people. Both landslides were earthquake-triggered and both are located in Tajikistan. An additional highlight is a detailed description and analysis of large-scale artificial rock avalanches triggered by underground nuclear explosions during the testing programme of the former Soviet Union.

The purpose of ground support is to safely maintain excavations for their expected lifespan. The effectiveness of ground support can be seen both in terms of personnel and equipment safety, and in terms of allowing the most economic extraction. Scientists, practitioners and technology developers have contributed to this volume, which covers rock ma