Glasgow, Scotland's largest city, is built along the upper Clyde estuary and lower River Clyde. In the heart of the city are the Clyde Gateway and Clyde Waterfront areas - the national urban regeneration priority for Scotland over the next 25 years.
This regeneration is intended to stimulate economic growth, drive smaller community regeneration projects, and tackle concentrated deprivation resulting from industrial decline.
To underpin this regeneration we are developing integrated and attributed dynamic shallow-earth 3D models in partnership with Glasgow City Council and other organisations.
Working together, Glasgow City Council and the British Geological Survey are helpingplanners, developers and environmental managers to see the city from beneath through the exchange of 3D subsurface information via the ASK Network (Accessing Subsurface Knowledge).
Read more about Glasgow City in case study report TU1206-WG1-005
The City and its needs
Glasgow, a city of nearly 600,000 people on the River Clyde grew through industrialisation, mining and maritime trade. Though these activites have declined, Glasgow remains Scotland’s main economic centre. The modern City needs to future grow, attract investment, promote health, wellbeing and education, and maintain the City’s built and natural environment in the face of changing climate. These goals are interwoven with the legacy of past heavy industry and mining that have left their mark on Glasgow’s ground. Problems of derelict land, contamination and subsidence are balanced by opportunities for energy generation from surface deposits and deeper mine workings.
Geology and subsurface information
In 2009, the British Geological Survey (BGS) initiated the Clyde Urban Super Project (CUSP), a multi-disciplinary project to develop subsurface information for Glasgow to support regeneration and development, improve understanding of groundwater systems, and assess soil quality in the City and surrounding area. Partnership between BGS and Glasgow City Council (GCC) led to the development of the ASK Network (Accessing Subsurface Knowledge), a partnership of public and private sector organisations focused around the exchange of subsurface data and knowledge. Through the ASK Network, BGS and GCC are pioneering new initiatives for the exchange of 3D geological subsurface models, and site investigation and borehole data between the public and private sectors. The proposed City Development Plan for Glasgow recognises the importance of the subsurface environment in the development of spatial strategy, policies and proposals for the future use of land and infrastructure in Glasgow, reflecting the growing awareness of the importance of subsurface knowledge for the City.
City facts
Glasgow is located in the west of the Central Belt, the most populated area of the Scotland, and approximately 40 miles west of Edinburgh, the capital city. It covers an area of 176 square kilometres and has the highest population density of any Scottish city (3395 people per square kilometre). The Greater Glasgow Area, which includes surrounding metropolitan areas, is approximately 370 square kilometres. Approximately 2.5 million people, half of Scotland’s population, live within an hour’s drive of Glasgow.
Project Partners
Key partners: Glasgow City Council, British Geological Survey.
ASK Network partners: Arup, Atkins, B.A Hydro Solutions Ltd, CH2M Hill (Halcrow), Grontmij UK, Jacobs, Scottish Coal Ltd, URS Infrastructure & Environment UK Ltd, Scottish Power, Scottish Water, Transport Scotland, Glasgow Caledonian University, University of the West of Scotland, Glasgow and the Clyde Valley Strategic Development Planning Authority (East Dunbartonshire Council, East Renfrewshire Council, Inverclyde Council, Renfrewshire Council, South Lanarkshire Council, West Dunbartonshire Council), North Lanarkshire Council.