Abstract The Cam and Ely Ouse Chalk aquifer has been an important source of public water supply for over 100 years. In response to growing demand for water in the area in the 1970s and 1980 s, the National Rivers Authority developed the Lodes–Granta scheme to provide augmentation water to key rivers, subject to low flows. However, during the droughts in the late 1990s, the River Granta, which derives baseflow from the Chalk aquifer, was dry in some locations for several months. In response, the Environment Agency and Cambridge Water carried out investigations into the impacts of abstraction on the flow and ecology of the Granta and agreed to restrict abstraction from two operational groundwater sources during low flow periods. However, these abstraction restrictions could potentially result in a shortfall within the relevant public water supply zone under some climatic conditions and so Cambridge Water was considering increasing abstraction from an alternative source of groundwater within the catchment to retain the level of resilience of its supply. The Environment Agency was concerned that use of this abstraction could pose a risk of deterioration of the ecological status of the water body under the EU Water Framework Directive. This paper describes the investigations undertaken to assess the risk of deterioration and shows how these are being used to manage this risk going forward.

Abstract The management of groundwater resources in England and Wales was initially based only on measures of the renewable resource. This has been extended to include the need to preserve the springs, river flows and surface water levels dependent on groundwater discharges as a key objective of a sustainable management of groundwater resources. The impacts of all new groundwater abstraction proposals on the surface water environment are now evaluated using a number of techniques, some of which are under further development. The sustainable management of groundwater catchments also includes the control of pumping from existing groundwater sources to meet agreed environmental targets. This approach is illustrated by examples of groundwater catchments managed to augment surface flows, to prevent saline intrusion and to preserve the integrity of wetland conservation sites.

Abstract Ordovician strata in Greenland are extensively exposed in North Greenland and northern East Greenland; additional small traces (loose blocks) are recorded from the craton of West Greenland. The western North Greenland succession is nearly identical to that of the Franklinian Basin exposed on Ellesmere Island, Arctic Canada; the eastern North Greenland represents the (present) northeastern corner of Laurentia and provides the connection to the East Greenland Caledonian platform. The northern East Greenland succession is the natural northern extension of the Caledonian platform of northern Europe and the Appalachian platform of eastern North America. During the Ordovician Greenland occupied a palaeogeographical subtropical to tropical position with a faunal assemblage typical of Laurentia. A prominent faunal peak of diversification occurred in the Late Ordovician. The stratigraphical succession of Greenland is summarized and age relationships are discussed with reference to the fossil faunas and breaks in the successions and correlation between the locations and regions are provided.

Abstract We briefly outline the progressive development of approaches to both the characterization and simulation of the hydrogeology of northern European chalk aquifers, which were some of the first in the world to be studied. The volume's scope includes work on water resources and quality, chalk streams and wetland ecosystems, chalks as heat reservoirs for building temperature regulation, sources of groundwater flood risk and impacts of engineering on the subsurface, and diffuse and point-source pollution affecting these aquifers. It excludes hydrocarbon-related studies and those focused on offshore chalk sequences. We briefly outline the current state of knowledge of hydrogeological processes, characterization, assessment and modelling, and the increasingly recognized importance of karst features. The latter were little discussed 20 years ago and are still often neglected. There follows a brief quantitative analysis of publication topics relating to chalk hydrogeology in the scientific literature over the past three decades, which highlights key trends including both the purposes of studies and the methods employed. We present a summary of the topics and contributions within this volume, and conclude by identifying the key issues that need to be addressed in order to ensure the sustainability of our chalk aquifers for the future.

A brief history of the nature, use and technology of binders in ancient constructions and buildings is outlined, including the apparent chronological discontinuities related to technological developments. The skilled and clever use of mineral resources is at the base of the technical achievements related to architectural activities, from simple adobe to high-performance modern concrete. It is argued that among pre-industrial binders the Roman pozzolanic mortars were highly optimized materials, skillfully prepared and very durable. Their innovative use in architecture is one of the keys of the successful expansion of the Roman Empire. The role of mineralogy and mineral reactions is emphasized in terms of: (1) the preparation and manufacturing of the binding materials; (2) the hardening process and the development of the physical properties of the binder; and (3) the archaeometric reconstruction of the ancient materials.