<span>The spectral analysis of surface waves (SASW) is an <span><em>in situ </em><span>non-destructive method. It has been <span>developed and used for many years in the fields of geotechnical engineering and site <span>characterization. It is typically used in evaluation of elastic moduli and layer thickness of soils, <span>rocks and pavements.<br /><span>In this study the SASW was used to measure an attenuation coefficient (α) of near surface material <span>at 15 development sites with different material e.i. soils, granite and methamorphics rock.. The <span>attenuation coefficient which is the exponential decay constant of the amplitude of surface wave<br /><span>propagation was approximated by Bornitz equation. The amplitude of vertical ground surface <span>vibration generated by impact tests on the ground surface was measured at various radial <span>distances.<br /><span>A good empirical correlation between the measured attenuation coefficients and the corresponding <span>shear modulus and SPT or RQD data were established. These results suggest that the attenuation <span>coefficient could be used as an alternative parameter for characterization of near surface material. <span>Based on this method, the subsurface material at sites the study can be classified into two groups.<br /><span>The first group represented a low stiffness material with attenuation values of greater than <span>0.00516 s/m and the second group was a high stiffness material with attenuation values of less <span>than 0.00150 s/m.<br /><span>However, this method of evaluation was still in development stage and needs to be substantiated <span>with more results of measurements.</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span><br /></span></span></span>