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The State Key Laboratory of Geohazard Prevention and Geo-environment Protection (SKLGP) is located in Chengdu, Sichuan province, West Central China. In 1989, a professional laboratory was initiated by the Ministry of Education, China; in 2007, it was upgraded to a State Key Laboratory by the Ministry of Science and Technology. SKLGP is the only state key laboratory in the field of engineering geology in China; it focuses on providing theoretical, technological, and educational support in reducing the societal impact of geo-hazards in China, particularly in southwest China. The main thrust areas of SKLGP include geohazard assessment and prevention, slope instability and landslide mitigation, regional geo-environmental evaluation and protection, and development/application of geoinformation systems. SKLGP has a young, energetic, innovative and cooperative faculty staff, including: 5 emeritus professors, 52 permanent research fellows and 30 assistant professors and researchers. Among the 52 permanent research fellows, there are 30 professors and researchers (16 of them are PhD supervisors), 15 associate professors and 7 lecturers, with an overall average age of 43. The laboratory offers three Ph.D. Programs: Geological Engineering, Geotechnical Engineering and Environmental Geology. An outstanding professor chair, for Changjiang Scholars of China, is provided. The laboratory consists of four research divisions, five research centers and twelve well equipped testing laboratories. The total value of the equipment in the laboratories is over 7 million dollars. The laboratory occupies 4800m2, whilst a new laboratory building with an area of 6000m2 is presently under construction. The equipments in the laboratory match with high international standards, consisting of three groups according to their functions: 1) insitu geological reconnaissance and monitoring; 2) testing of physical properties, static and dynamic mechanical properties as well as parameters of rock mass and soil; and 3) geo-hazard analysis, evaluation and prediction, for example, the equipments of numerical analysis, physical modeling and Geographic Information System (GIS)-based methods. These equipments, in combination with the relevant software and advanced techniques, provide a strong support not only for scientific, but also for high-level academic education and training. In the last 10 years, the laboratory has conducted more than 500 research projects, including National Key Technology Research Projects, National Science Foundation Projects, National Outstanding Youth Foundation Projects, key research projects granted by the Chinese Ministry of Land and Resources, and large national engineering projects. The laboratory has provided theoretical and technological support for China to solve a number of significant problems concerning geo-hazard prevention and large national key engineering construction projects. The research of the laboratory covers broad fields: geo-hazard prevention, geo-environmental protection, engineering geology in irrigation systems, hydropower stations, highways, subways, railways, civil airport projects, high rise building construction, etc. Through the implementation of the research projects, excellent results have been achieved by the laboratory: two projects were awarded the First Prize of the State Scientific and Technology Achievements by the Chinese State Council; two other projects were awarded the Second Prize of the State Scientific and Technology Achievements. More than 50 projects were awarded prizes at ministerial of provincial level. More than 50 monographs and text books and over1200 papers have been published. The laboratory also focuses on high-level education and training. Until now, over 20 postdoctoral researchers have studied at the laboratory. 120 PhD students and 700 master degree students have graduated from the laboratory. Two national prizes and ten provincial prizes for excellent education were awarded to the laboratory. The laboratory is becoming an international center of excellence for research and education in engineering geology. The present achievements of the laboratory pave the way for its future development.
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