Grading incivil engineering and landscape architectural construction is the work of ensuring a level base, or one with a specifiedslope,^[1] for a construction work such as afoundation, thebase course for aroad or arailway, orlandscape andgarden improvements, or surface drainage. The earthworks created for such a purpose are often called thesub-grade orfinished contouring (see diagram).

Regrading is the process of grading for raising and/or lowering the levels of land. Such a project can also be referred to as aregrade.

Regrading may be done on a small scale (as in preparation of a house site)^[3] or on quite a large scale (as in major reconfiguration of the terrain of a city, such as theDenny Regrade inSeattle).^[2]

Regrading is typically performed to make land more level (flatter), in which case it is sometimes calledlevelling.^[4]) Levelling can have the consequence of making other nearby slopes steeper, and potentially unstable or prone to erosion.

In the case ofgravel roads andearthworks for certain purposes, grading forms not just the base but the cover and surface of the finished construction, and is often calledfinished grade.^[5]

After the existing conditions of the limit of work has been surveyed,surveyors will set stakes in places that are to be regraded. These stakes have marks on them that either give a finished grade to the design of the project, or have CUT/FILL marks which specify how much dirt is to be added or subtracted. All grade marks are relative to sitebenchmarks that have been established.^[6] The regrading work is then often done using heavy machinery likebulldozers andexcavators to roughly prepare an area, then agrader is used for a finer finish.

In theenvironmental design professions, grading andregrading are a specifications and construction component inlandscape design,landscape architecture, andarchitecture projects. It is used for buildings or outdoor amenities regardingfoundations and footings,slopeterracing and stabilizing, aesthetic contouring, and directingsurface runoff drainage ofstormwater and domestic/irrigation runoff flows.

Reasons for regrading include:

• Enabling construction on lands that were previously too varied and/or steeply sloped.^[3]
• Enabling transportation along routes that were previously too varied and/or steep.^[2]
• Changing drainage patterns and rerouting surface flow.^[3]
• Improving the stability of terrain adjacent to developments.^[7]

Potential problems and consequences from regrading include:

• Soil and/orslope instability
• Terrain prone toerosion
• Ecological impacts,habitat destruction, terrestrial and/or aquatic biological losses.^[3]
• Drainage problems (surface and/or subsurface flow) for areas not considered in the regrading plan.^[8]
• Loss of aestheticnatural landscapetopography and/or historicalcultural landscapes.

• Matusik, John."Grading and Earthworks" inThe Land Development Handbook, 2004.
• Gravel Roads Construction and Maintenance GuideArchived 2018-12-15 at theWayback Machine, Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) and the South Dakota Local Technical Assistance Program (SDLTAP), 2015.
• "How to Grade Gravel Roads" inGravel Roads, Soil Stabilization, Soil-Sement® by Frank Elswick, 2017.
• Recommended Practices Manual: A Guideline for Maintenance and Service of Unpaved Roads, Choctawhatchee, Pea and Yellow Rivers Watershed Management Authority, 2000.