Warwick Prebble has research interests in Engineering Geology, which include landslides, foundations, tunnels and geotechnical mapping
Of particular interest is the engineering geology of young volcanic deposits and the geotechnical hazards of active volcanic regions, specifically the Taupo Volcanic Zone. Current work in this area is a review of the geothermal and foundation problems at Tokaanu Power Station, between the Tongariro Volcanic centre and the Taupo Caldera. Other interests include block slides on clay seams in weak rock, tunnelling conditions in weak rock, large scale toppling failures, ridge splitting and mountain range collapse in the Southern Alps.

Research Projects

- Block slides on clay seams - Basal ruptures formed by bedding parallel seams of clay-rich gouge of tectonic origin in unweathered very weak muddy sandstones of the Waitemata Group, Auckland. Extremely low angles of residual effective strength are recorded from these seams

- Sensitive rhyolitic silts (slightly weathered accretionary lapilli) in terrace deposits uncovered by a motorway excavation, Auckland. These wet, low plasticity, dilatant soils become fluid upon remoulding.

- A complex failure of a mountain range by ridge splitting, toppling and sliding in a region of active uplift, faulting and recent deglaciation. The Kelly Range near Arthur's Pass, Southern Alps. This area is between the Hope Fault and the Alpine Fault.

 

 

 

 

 

Prebble, Warwick M. 1995. "Landslides in New Zealand." Keynote paper in "Landslides. Glissements de Terrain." Proceedings of the 6th International Symposium on Landslides. D.H.Bell, Editor. Balkema, 1995 Vol. 3, 2101 - 2123.

Prebble, Warwick M. 1995. "Landslides in tabular rock masses of an active convergent margin." In "Landslides. Glissements de Terrain." Proceedings of the 6th International Symposium on landslides. D.H. Bell, Editor. Balkema, 1995 Vol 3, 2145 - 2151.

Williams A. L. and Prebble, W. M. 1998. "Auckland Engineering Lifelines Project: Seismic hazard assessment." In the Proceedings of the Eighth International Congress of the International Association for Engineering Geology and the Environment. D. Moore and O. Hungr Editors. Vol. 2, 809 - 815.

Prebble, Warwick M. 2001. "Hazardous Terrain - An Engineering Geological Perspective." Institution of Professional Engineers New Zealand, Proceedings of Technical Groups Vol. 29 issue 2 (GM). 3 - 31. Proceedings of the New Zealand Geotechnical Society Symposium on Engineering and Development in Hazardous Terrain 2001.

Jerome A. Lecointre, Vincent E. Neall, R. Cleland Wallace, Warwick M. Prebble: 2002 "The 55- to 60- ka Te Whaiau Formation: a catastrophic, avalanche-induced, cohesive debris-flow deposit from Proto-Tongariro Volcano, New Zealand." Bulletin of Volcanology 63, 509 - 525.

Prebble, W. M. 2003. "Ignimbrite, Andesite, Landslides and Dam Sites: Engineering Geological Models for Volcanic Terrain." Institution of Professional Engineers New Zealand, Proceedings of Technical Groups Vol. 30 Issue 1 (GM) 2003. 55 - 64. Proceedings of the NZ Geotechnical Symposium on "Geotechnics on the Volcanic Edge".

Paterson R D and PrebbleW M 2004 Engineering Geology and Coastal Cliff Erosion at Takapuna, Auckland, New Zealand. In: To the Enz of the Earth. Proceedings of the 9th Austarlia New Zealand Conference on Geomechanics 2, 775-781.

Williams A L, Toan, D V, Prebble, W M 2004 Engineering Properties of Clay Seams within the Waitemata Group Rocks of Auckland. In: To the Enz of the Earth. Proceedings of the 9th Australia New Zealand Conference on Geomechanics 2, 840-844.