Progression and mitigation of land subsidence in China

Land subsidence was first observed in Shanghai nearly a century ago, in 1921. Land subsidence attributed to groundwater extraction has been severe in China and is still occurring. Recent subsidence and associated earth fissures occurring since 2000 in three principal regions—the North China Plain, Fenwei Basin and Yangtze Delta—are introduced, and historical subsidence in these areas is briefly summarized. The subsidence-affected area in these regions with cumulative subsidence greater than or equal to 200 mm is more than 90,000 km² and covers 22 provinces (cities), which include intensively developed and densely populated areas. Earth fissures accompanying the subsidence create significant geohazards; more than 1,000 earth fissures have been identified in the North China Plain, Fenwei Basin and Yangtze Delta. Effective land-subsidence-monitoring networks, that include continuous global positioning system (GPS) stations, repeat GPS and leveling surveys of geodetic benchmarks, InSAR, borehole extensometers, and groundwater observation wells, have been established in these three subsidence-affected areas. Mitigation measures and administrative means have been implemented in some areas, with good results in the Yangtze Delta area.     

On causes and impacts of land subsidence in Bandung Basin, Indonesia

The Bandung Basin is a large intra-montane basin surrounded by volcanic highlands, in western Java, Indonesia, inhabited by more than seven million people. The basin, an area of about 2,300 km², is a highland plateau at approximately 650–700 m above sea level and is surrounded by up to 2,400 m high Late Tertiary and Quaternary volcanic terrain. Based on the results of nine GPS surveys conducted since 2000 up to 2011, it was shown that several locations in the Bandung Basin have experienced land subsidence, with an average rate of about ?8 cm/year and can go up to about ?23 cm/year in certain locations. A hypothesis has been proposed by several studies that land subsidence observed in several locations in the Bandung Basin has been caused mainly by excessive groundwater extraction. It is found that there is a strong correlation between the rates of groundwater level lowering with the GPS-derived rates of land subsidence in several locations in Bandung Basin. The GPS results in this study detected significant subsidence in the textile industry area, where very large volumes of groundwater are usually extracted. The impact of land subsidence in Bandung can be seen in several forms, mainly in the cracking and damage of houses, buildings and infrastructure. Land subsidence also aggravates the flooding in Bandung Basin, which has brought huge economic losses and deteriorated the quality of life and environment in the affected areas.     

The development and control of the land subsidence in the Yangtze Delta,China

Land subsidence in China occurs predominantly in 17 provinces (cities) situated in the eastern and middle regions of the country, including Shanghai, Tianjin and Jiangsu, and Hebei provinces. It is primarily caused by groundwater overpumping. One of the areas most severely affected by land subsidence is the Yangtze Delta, most of which consists of Shanghai City, the Su-Xi-Chang area (Suzhou, Wuxi and Changzhou cities) of Jiangsu Province, and the Hang-Jia-Hu area (Hangzhou, Jiaxing and Huzhou cities) of Zhejiang Province. The excessive exploitation of groundwater forms in a large regional cone of depression and, consequently, land subsidence is also regional, currently centered in the Shanghai and Su-Xi-Chang areas. In 2002, the maximum cumulative subsidence of Shanghai, Su-Xi-Chang and Hang-Jia-Hu were 2.63 m, 2.00 and 1.06 m, respectively. The land subsidence area is continuing to expand throughout the Yangtze Delta. To study the characteristics and the pattern of this land subsidence, the government has implemented a monitoring system involving the placement of 37 groups of extensometers (layers marks) and drilling of more than 1000 observation wells. These provide an invaluable historical record of deformation and pore water pressure and facilitate studies on the special features of soil deformation when the groundwater level changes due to pumping. Several measures have been taken in recent years to control the development of the land subsidence in the different areas; these include groundwater injection, prohibition of pumping deep confined groundwater, and an adjustment of the pumping depth and magnitude of the groundwater withdrawn. At present, although the subsidence area is still increasing slowly, the subsidence rate is controlled.     

Earth fissures in Jiangsu Province,China and geological investigation of Hetang earth fissure

Earth fissures are a geohazard in Jiangsu Province, China. They can be caused by earthquakes and active faults, underground mining, groundwater extraction and landslides. In order to establish a provincial rehabilitation plan in Jiangsu, a range of monitoring programs, surveys, geological investigations and modeling have been implemented or planned. One of the focuses of the project is the land subsidence and earth fissures caused by excessive groundwater withdrawal in Suzhou, Wuxi and Changzhou (Su-Xi-Chang) area, southern Jiangsu Province. Hetang earth fissure within the Su-Xi-Chang area was first reported in 1995 and a series of investigation has been conducted since then. The site investigations and geophysical survey in 1997 have recognized the causative factor as the excessive groundwater drawdown coupled by the underlying bedrock ridge. An open trench excavation in 2007 and a plane strain analysis suggest that Hetang earth fissures may have cracked from the bedrock ridge to ground surface. Geological drilling in 2007 has further confirmed the existence and configuration of the ridge and extracted soil samples for laboratory tests to obtain soil parameters for numerical analyses and modeling of land subsidence and earth fissures in the Su-Xi-Chang area, Jiangsu, China. The laboratory tests are currently in progress and the result of numerical analyses and modeling is expected to be presented in the near future.     

广州南沙区地面沉降分布特征及成因

广州南沙区地面沉降已经影响到城市发展和人民生命财产安全,为了制定科学有效的措施防止地面沉降进一步发展,文中基于InSAR监测数据和水准监测数据,总结分析了地面沉降分布特征,地表形变多为小范围的、局部地区的剧烈沉降。在此基础上,针对6个沉降严重区域,采用机理模型定量估算了各因素引起的地面沉降量及所占比重,得可压缩土层引起的沉降量为34.43～96.97 mm/a,所占比重在37.07%～75.67%,地下水水位和地面荷载的最大影响比重分别为26.28%和52.40%。并且通过研究分析地面沉降主要因素及影响程度,为科学防治该地区地面沉降提供科学依据。     

江苏如东北部水产养殖区地面沉降现状分析与防控建议

江苏如东北部水产养殖区自规模化运营以来,长期对区内浅部地下水进行集中式开采,区内地下水水位持续下降形成水位漏斗,继而导致地面沉降的发生,是苏北地区典型水产养殖引起的地面沉降区,为全省地面沉降研究新的拓展区和实践区。根据2017—2020年度高精度InSAR监测数据,圈定研究区地面沉降重点沉降区及影响范围,通过39个开采井水位统测数据对比研究,证实区内地下水水位漏斗与地面沉降展布形态和特征具有较好的一致性,科学佐证了地下水开采是研究区地面沉降形成的主要诱因。     

Monitoring land subsidence in Semarang,Indonesia

Semarang is one of the biggest cities in Indonesia and nowadays suffering from extended land subsidence, which is due to groundwater withdrawal, to natural consolidation of alluvium soil and to the load of constructions. Land subsidence causes damages to infrastructure, buildings, and results in tides moving into low-lying areas. Up to the present, there has been no comprehensive information about the land subsidence and its monitoring in Semarang. This paper examines digital elevation model (DEM) and benchmark data in Geographic Information System (GIS) raster operation for the monitoring of the land subsidence in Semarang. This method will predict and quantify the extent of subsidence in future years. The future land subsidence prediction is generated from the expected future DEM in GIS environment using ILWIS package. The procedure is useful especially in areas with scarce data. The resulting maps designate the area of land subsidence that increases rapidly and it is predicted that in 2020, an area of 27.5 ha will be situated 1.5–2.0 m below sea level. This calculation is based on the assumption that the rate of land subsidence is linear and no action is taken to protect the area from subsidence.     

Review: Safe and sustainable groundwater supply in China

Exploitation of groundwater has greatly increased since the 1970s to meet the increased water demand due to fast economic development in China. Correspondingly, the regional groundwater level has declined substantially in many areas of China. Water sources are scarce in northern and northwestern China, and the anthropogenic pollution of groundwater has worsened the situation. Groundwater containing high concentrations of geogenic arsenic, fluoride, iodine, and salinity is widely distributed across China, which has negatively affected safe supply of water for drinking and other purposes. In addition to anthropogenic contamination, the interactions between surface water and groundwater, including seawater intrusion, have caused deterioration of groundwater quality. The ecosystem and geo-environment have been severely affected by the depletion of groundwater resources. Land subsidence due to excessive groundwater withdrawal has been observed in more than 50 cities in China, with a maximum accumulated subsidence of 2–3 m. Groundwater-dependent ecosystems are being degraded due to changes in the water table or poor groundwater quality. This paper reviews these changes in China, which have occurred under the impact of rapid economic development. The effects of economic growth on groundwater systems should be monitored, understood and predicted to better protect and manage groundwater resources for the future.     

SBAS-InSAR和PS-InSAR技术在鲁西南某线性工程沿线地面沉降成因分析中的应用

地面沉降问题严重影响着鲁西南经济发展区交通工程建设。文中选择某线性工程两侧5 km范围作为研究区,文章收集RadarSAT-2（2017—2020年）、Sentinel-1A（2019—2020年）存档数据和沿线区域地质、水文地质、矿产开发资料,采用时序InSAR分析的方法,对研究区沿线地面沉降分布特征及规律进行综合分析。研究结果表明:研究区主要地面沉降诱因是煤矿采空区塌陷和地下水超量开采,前者以矿区工作面为中心形成沉降漏斗,沉降速率变化和沉降中心移动与煤矿作业工作面挖掘进度和转移密切相关;后者沉降分布规律与地下水开采使用点相关,形成与地下水开采使用范围相近的沉降带。研究区在2017—2020年内持续发生沉降,最大年均沉降速率为136.5 mm/a,单年累计最大沉降量为220 mm。经同期CPI水准点观测结果校核,InSAR数据处理成果平均误差小于1 cm/a,相关系数到达70%以上。本文采用的分析方法能及时准确反映出线路方案穿行研究区内各处地面沉降变化,为线路方案规划和地质灾害整治提供有效合理参考。     

Pumping-induced stress and strain in aquifer systems in Wuxi,China

Excessive groundwater withdrawal from an aquifer system leads to three-dimensional displacement, causing changes in the states of stress and strain. Often, land subsidence and sometimes earth fissures ensue. Field investigation indicates that land subsidence and earth fissures in Wuxi, a city in eastern China, are mainly due to excessive groundwater withdrawal, and that they are temporally and spatially related to groundwater pumping. Groundwater withdrawal may cause tensile strain to develop in aquifer systems, but tensile strain does not definitely mean tensile stress. Where earth fissures are concerned, the stress state should be adopted in numerical simulations instead of the strain state and displacement. The numerical simulation undertaken for the Wuxi area shows that the zone of tensile strain occupies a large area on the ground surface; nevertheless, the zone of tensile stress is very limited. The zone of tensile stress often occurs near the ground surface, beneath which the depth to the bedrock surface is relatively small and has considerable variability. Earth fissures often initiate near the ground surface where tensile stress occurs. Tensile stress and earth fissures rarely develop at the centers of land subsidence bowls, where compressive stress is dominant.     

Water availability and land subsidence in the Central Valley,California, USA

The Central Valley in California (USA) covers about 52,000 km² and is one of the most productive agricultural regions in the world. This agriculture relies heavily on surface-water diversions and groundwater pumpage to meet irrigation water demand. Because the valley is semi-arid and surface-water availability varies substantially, agriculture relies heavily on local groundwater. In the southern two thirds of the valley, the San Joaquin Valley, historic and recent groundwater pumpage has caused significant and extensive drawdowns, aquifer-system compaction and subsidence. During recent drought periods (2007–2009 and 2012-present), groundwater pumping has increased owing to a combination of decreased surface-water availability and land-use changes. Declining groundwater levels, approaching or surpassing historical low levels, have caused accelerated and renewed compaction and subsidence that likely is mostly permanent. The subsidence has caused operational, maintenance, and construction-design problems for water-delivery and flood-control canals in the San Joaquin Valley. Planning for the effects of continued subsidence in the area is important for water agencies. As land use, managed aquifer recharge, and surface-water availability continue to vary, long-term groundwater-level and subsidence monitoring and modelling are critical to understanding the dynamics of historical and continued groundwater use resulting in additional water-level and groundwater storage declines, and associated subsidence. Modeling tools such as the Central Valley Hydrologic Model, can be used in the evaluation of management strategies to mitigate adverse impacts due to subsidence while also optimizing water availability. This knowledge will be critical for successful implementation of recent legislation aimed toward sustainable groundwater use.     

北京市地面沉降监测系统及技术方法

北京市地面沉降监测系统由地面沉降监测网、地面沉降专门监测网、GPS监测网、地下水位动态监测网及InSAR监测网构成.结合北京市近年来地面沉降监测工作,分析总结了标孔监测和质量控制方法,提出了将GPS监测分为控制网和监测网两级监测的方法,提高了监测精度,尝试采用InSAR测方法对部分重要轨道交通进行地面沉降专项监测研究.对地面沉降监测网络建设及优化有一定的指导意义.     

Mechanism of sinkhole formation during groundwater-level recovery in karst mining area,Dachengqiao, Hunan province,China

The Meitanba Coal Mine area in Hunan province, China, had been impacted by severe cover collapse sinkholes since 1982 due to mine dewatering. After the coal mine was closed in February 2015, the groundwater level has increased significantly. A series of sinkholes were recorded in the study area during groundwater-level recovery. Analysis of monitoring results and in-situ investigation indicated that 13 sinkhole collapses were more likely induced by abrupt change of groundwater–air pressure in response to heavy rainfall from March 2015 to July 2016 when the groundwater level increased by as much as 76 m. When the karst conduit was flooded, a relatively sealed environment was formed between saturated sediments and flooded karst conduit. Implosion of entrapped air might have caused the cave roof to collapse followed by surface collapses in a short time. On the other hand, four sinkholes occurred in November 2016 when the groundwater levels were near the soil–bedrock interface at elevations between 52.5 and 58.9 m amsl and the groundwater-level increase was at slower paces. Field measurements indicate that the groundwater-level fluctuation at the soil–bedrock interface could enlarge the soil cavity and accelerate the subsoil erosion process.     

Three-dimensional numerical modeling of land subsidence in Shanghai,China

Shanghai, in China, has experienced two periods of rapid land subsidence mainly caused by groundwater exploitation related to economic and population growth. The first period occurred during 1956–1965 and was characterized by an average land subsidence rate of 83 mm/yr, and the second period occurred during 1990–1998 with an average subsidence rate of 16 mm/yr. Owing to the establishment of monitoring networks for groundwater levels and land subsidence, a valuable dataset has been collected since the 1960s and used to develop regional land subsidence models applied to manage groundwater resources and mitigate land subsidence. The previous geomechanical modeling approaches to simulate land subsidence were based on one-dimensional (1D) vertical stress and deformation. In this study, a numerical model of land subsidence is developed to simulate explicitly coupled three-dimensional (3D) groundwater flow and 3D aquifer-system displacements in downtown Shanghai from 30 December 1979 to 30 December 1995. The model is calibrated using piezometric, geodetic-leveling, and borehole extensometer measurements made during the 16-year simulation period. The 3D model satisfactorily reproduces the measured piezometric and deformation observations. For the first time, the capability exists to provide some preliminary estimations on the horizontal displacement field associated with the well-known land subsidence in Shanghai and for which no measurements are available. The simulated horizontal displacements peak at 11 mm, i.e. less than 10 % of the simulated maximum land subsidence, and seems too small to seriously damage infrastructure such as the subways (metro lines) in the center area of Shanghai.     

Simulation of land subsidence using finite element method: Rafsanjan plain case study

Land subsidence caused by the excessive use of groundwater resources has caused serious damage to Rafsanjan area. In this study, using finite element method, a 2D plain strain simulation of land subsidence has been conducted. A linear elastic constitutive law has been used for the simulation of the soil material skeleton. Actual water level during the analysis period has been modeled via specifying nodal water pressure at piezometer wells situation. The solution procedure consists of two parts. First, an initial static analysis is carried out in order to find initial steady-state solution for the pore pressure and stress distribution. Then, the above solution is used as initial condition for dynamic computation of consolidation equations during pumpage period. Tectonic effect has been considered as a rigid body motion. Numerical results showed that if the rate of pumpage remains constant in the future, settlement due to water withdrawal near Rafsanjan city will reach up to 110 cm by the year 2022.     

Sinkhole formation and subsidence along the Dead Sea coast,Israel

More than 4,000 sinkholes have formed since the 1980s within a 60-km-long and 1-km-wide strip along the western coast of the Dead Sea (DS) in Israel. Their formation rate accelerated in recent years to >400 sinkholes per year. They cluster mostly in specific sites up to 1,000 m long and 200 m wide, which align parallel to the general direction of the fault systems associated with the DS Rift. The abrupt appearance of the sinkholes reflects changes to the groundwater regime around the shrinking DS. The eastward retreat of the shoreline and the lake-level drop (1 m/year in recent years) cause an eastward and downward migration of the fresh/saline groundwater interface. Consequently, a subsurface salt layer, which was previously enveloped by saline groundwater, is gradually being invaded and submerged by relatively fresh groundwater, and cavities form due to the rapid dissolution of the salt. Collapse of the overlying sediments into these cavities results in sinkholes at the surface. An association between sinkhole sites and land subsidence is revealed by interferometric synthetic aperture radar (InSAR) measurements. On a broad scale (hundreds of meters), subsidence occurs due to compaction of fine-grained sediments as groundwater levels decline along the retreating DS shoreline. At smaller scales (tens of meters), subsidence appears above subsurface cavities in association with the sinkholes, serving in many cases as sinkhole precursors, a few weeks to more than a year before their actual appearance at the surface. This paper overviews the processes of sinkhole formation and their relation to land subsidence.     

Large differential land subsidence and earth fissures in Jiangyin,China

Jiangyin County is in the infamous Su–Xi–Chang land subsidence area caused by excessive groundwater withdrawal in Jiangsu province, China. The maximum accumulated land subsidence reached 1,310 mm near the centre of the subsiding trough in 2006 in southern Jiangyin, and earth fissures of significant vertical offsets have been observed at Changjing, Hetang and Wenlin which form an arc towards the subsidence trough. An ancient Yangtze River course is found underlying and passing through the depression in southern Jiangyin, forming a local basin surrounded by outcropped bedrock ridges in the north and south. The Quaternary stratigraphy demonstrates significant heterogeneities in the basin; the second confined aquifer is much thicker and deeper and encapsulated inside the basin and absent above the ridges. The development of earth fissures along the Changjing–Hetang–Wenlin arc might be a combination of an inward rotation of sediments due to a large differential subsidence, an inward movement driven by seepage force and a steeper slope along the south-eastern shoulder of the basin that facilitates the development of horizontal tensile strain and/or shear strain necessary for fissuring. The land subsidence has slowed down and no new earth fissure zone has occurred in the area after the banning of deep groundwater extraction was enacted in 2001.     

天津平原地下水可开采量与确定依据

根据深层地下水开采对地面沉降的影响比较,天津中部平原和滨海平原第二、三含水层组深层地下水开采对地面沉降影响较小,为适宜开采层位。地面沉降控制在10 mm/a,第二、三含水层组深层地下水可开采量为2.68亿m3/a。中部平原浅层地下淡水、微咸水,在技术经济上鼓励开采,可开采量为1.64亿m3/a;山前平原地下水现状开采强度未引起明显的环境地质问题,开采强度适当,可开采量为2.79亿m3/a。天津平原生态环境保持良好,地下水总的可开采量为7.11亿m3/a。     

中国地面沉降地质灾害区划方法与实践

由于地下水资源的不合理开发利用,我国已在众多地区存在地面沉降和地裂缝问题,为统筹全国地面沉降防治工作,开展易发程度区划是其重点工作之一。本文以第四纪地质、地下水及含水层特征、地下水开采情况作为划分依据,结合现状发育特点,拟定地面沉降和地裂缝易发区的划分方法,并提出防治对策建议。     

Land subsidence in China

Land subsidence in China occurs in different regions. It is primarily caused by excessive groundwater withdrawal. Other reasons for the subsidence include the oil, warm groundwater withdrawal and the neotectonic movement. The common characteristics of land subsidence in China are slow, accumulative, irreversible, and other unique properties. The range of subsidence still keeps extending and the accumulative subsidence increasing though some measures taken. Adjustment of the aquifer exploitation practice is a subsidiary way to control land subsidence, but it cannot solve this problem completely. In a specfic way of groundwater changing, the contribution of a certain soil layer to the total subsidence depends on its compressibility and thickness. Besides the elasticity, both cohesive soil layers (aquitards) and sand layers (aquifers) are observed to be plastic and creep when the groundwater level fluctuates in a specific way, which often leads to subsidence delay.