Infrastructure Insurance GIS Satellite Remote Sensing

Managing the swelling clay hazard

The susceptibility of buildings and infrastructure to swelling clays has conventionally been mapped only a large scale on the basis of geology and climate.

However, this feasibility study of the expansive clays of Cyprus demonstrated that detailed susceptibility mapping down to individual buildings can be reliably made by adding satellite data of historical displacements and soil moisture data to calibrated algorithms.

Highlight

• Conventional mapping is large scale based on geology and climate alone

• InSAR analysis identified the areas susceptible to swelling clays with detail down to individual buildings 

• Combined satellite image analysis and geotechnical data enabled the development of susceptibility modeling for swelling clays.