Which risk increases when a road embankment is constructed on discontinuous permafrost terrain?

💡 Explanation

When a road embankment is built on discontinuous permafrost, increased thermal load from the embankment causes the permafrost to thaw, triggering thermokarst formation because the ice-rich ground collapses as the ice melts. Therefore, accelerated thermokarst depression formation results, rather than seismicity, salinization, or hydrate crystallization, which need different geological conditions.

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