Part II Editorial

The mineralogical and textural characteristics of geomaterials are determinants of their performance in various structural and environmental applications. Climatic factors and regional geology determine the natural availability of geomaterials in a given environment. The implication of regional variability in the characteristics of rocks and soils is that facilities and processes have to be constructed and/or operated with materials that are different in different regions. This is tantamount to continuous optimization of the three design factors of structural configuration, material mix composition, and component dimensions. Unfortunately, in most developing countries, design optimization is often lacking, leading to unsatisfactory levels of performance of some constructed facilities. In conclusion, cost and performance considerations require that locally available materials are used in the construction of physical facilities. The success of this approach requires that appropriate specifications and design methods are developed for their use.