What is it about quarry slopes that are basically short term, except in their final restored form that might assist with a study that is essentially dealing with the long term? Clearly there are situations in quarries that are set up inadvertently that may replicate the situation after long-term erosion and especially some spoil slopes. The problem is that the Quarries Regulations 1999 have tended to remove the likelihood of such failures occurring.
Hi Geoffrey, just picked this up from a year ago! There are some interesting comparisons to be made between natural cliffs, both actively undercut or abandoned by the sea, and quarry slopes. In the long-term, they will all degrade to an ultimate angle of stability that reflects the parent rock type and structure, the main variable being time from point of formation and abandonment from active processes, be they natural or human induced. The relaxation time will of course vary depending on the parent materials and rate of weathering. Quarry remediation aims to leave the slopes in a stable form so I would guess there should be little observable change in morphology (assuming the ultimate design slopes are correct) even though the slope will be subject to weathering.
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