scholarly journals Methods for monitoring land subsidence and earth fissures in the Western USA

2015 ◽  
Vol 372 ◽  
pp. 361-366 ◽  
Author(s):  
K. C. Fergason ◽  
M. L. Rucker ◽  
B. B. Panda
Keyword(s):  
Monitoring System ◽  
Land Subsidence ◽  
Ground Deformation ◽  
Groundwater Resources ◽  
Time Domain Reflectometry ◽  
Ground Subsidence ◽  
Synthetic Aperture Radar Data ◽  
Earth Fissure ◽  
Western Usa ◽  
Earth Fissures

Abstract. Depletion of groundwater resources in many deep alluvial basin aquifers in the Western USA is causing land subsidence, as it does in many regions worldwide. Land subsidence can severely and adversely impact infrastructure by changing the ground elevation, ground slope (grade) and through the development of ground cracks known as earth fissures that can erode into large gullies. Earth fissures have the potential to compromise the foundations of dams, levees, and other infrastructure and cause failure. Subsequent to an evaluation of the overall subsidence experienced in the vicinity of subsidence-impacted infrastructure, a detailed investigation to search for earth fissures, and design and/or mitigation of potentially effected infrastructure, a focused monitoring system should be designed and implemented. Its purpose is to provide data, and ultimately knowledge, to reduce the potential adverse impacts of land subsidence and earth fissure development to the pertinent infrastructure. This risk reduction is realized by quantifying the rate and distribution of ground deformation, and to detect ground rupture if it occurs, in the vicinity of the infrastructure. The authors have successfully designed and implemented monitoring systems capable of quantifying rates and distributions of ground subsidence and detection of ground rupture at multiple locations throughout the Western USA for several types of infrastructure including dams, levees, channels, basins, roadways, and mining facilities. Effective subsidence and earth fissure monitoring requires understanding and quantification of historic subsidence, estimation of potential future subsidence, delineation of the risk for earth fissures that could impact infrastructure, and motivation and resources to continue monitoring through time. A successful monitoring system provides the means to measure ground deformation, grade changes, displacement, and anticipate and assess the potential for earth fissuring. Employing multiple methods, a monitoring strategy utilizes an integrated approach, including both regional and local measurements. Various methods implemented include conventional practices and proven, instrumented in-ground sensing systems. The conventional techniques include repeat optical levelling and global positioning system (GPS) surveys, ground reconnaissance, photo-geological analysis, groundwater monitoring, and tape-extensometers. Advanced techniques include the processing and interpretation of differential interferograms of repeat-pass, satellite-based synthetic aperture radar data (InSAR), borehole tiltmeters, microseismic arrays, excavation of monitoring trenches, and time-domain reflectometry (TDR).

scholarly journals Characterization of earth fissures in South Jiangsu, China

2015 ◽  
Vol 372 ◽  
pp. 249-253 ◽  
Author(s):  
S. Ye ◽  
Y. Wang ◽  
J. Wu ◽  
P. Teatini ◽  
J. Yu ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Land Subsidence ◽  
Earth Fissure ◽  
Aquifer System ◽  
Groundwater Levels ◽  
Earth Fissures ◽  
The Earth ◽  
Cumulative Length ◽  
Differential Land Subsidence

Abstract. The Suzhou-Wuxi-Changzhou (known as "Su-Xi-Chang") area, located in the southern part of Jiangsu Province, China, experienced serious land subsidence caused by overly exploitation of groundwater. The largest cumulative land subsidence has reached 3 m. With the rapid progress of land subsidence since the late 1980s, more than 20 earth fissures developed in Su-Xi-Chang area, although no pre-existing faults have been detected in the surroundings. The mechanisms of earth fissure generation associated with excessive groundwater pumping are: (i) differential land subsidence, (ii) differences in the thickness of the aquifer system, and (iii) bedrock ridges and cliffs at relatively shallow depths. In this study, the Guangming Village Earth Fissures in Wuxi area are selected as a case study to discuss in details the mechanisms of fissure generation. Aquifer exploitation resulted in a drop of groundwater head at a rate of 5–6 m yr−1 in the 1990s, with a cumulative drawdown of 40 m. The first earth fissure at Guangming Village was observed in 1998. The earth fissures, which developed in a zone characterized by a cumulative land subsidence of approximately 800 mm, are located at the flank of a main subsidence bowl with differential subsidence ranging from 0 to 1600 mm in 2001. The maximum differential subsidence rate amounts to 5 mm yr−1 between the two sides of the fissures. The fissure openings range from 30 to 80 mm, with a cumulative length of 1000 m. Depth of bed rock changes from 60 to 140 m across the earth fissure. The causes of earth fissure generation at Guangming Village includes a decrease in groundwater levels, differences in the thickness of aquifer system, shallow depths of bedrock ridges and cliffs, and subsequent differential land subsidence.

scholarly journals Optimizing Reduction of Groundwater Discharge to Control Land Subsidence (Case study: Nadjafabad Aquifer)

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
hamid Kardan moghaddam ◽  
Zahra Rahimzadeh kivi ◽  
Fatemeh Javadi ◽  
Mohammad Heydari
Keyword(s):  
Land Subsidence ◽  
Groundwater Resources ◽  
Treatment Strategies ◽  
Flow Simulation ◽  
Maximum Amount ◽  
Water Withdrawal ◽  
Ground Subsidence ◽  
Risk Zoning ◽  
Dry Conditions ◽  
The Impact

Abstract This study evaluates and predicts the ground subsidence that happens due to the haphazard operation of groundwater resources. Also, several strategies have been developed to control this unpleasant phenomenon. For this purpose, groundwater flow simulation has been conducted using MODFLOW numerical model, and subsidence simulation in Najafabad plain has been done using SUB package under three climatic scenarios for future periods. Examination of the simulation results shows that the amount of land subsidence will increase with the aquifer operation's continuation. The maximum amount of subsidence for 6 years in drought conditions will be 23 cm at the aquifer's outlet. According to the land subsidence results at the aquifer, risk zoning of the aquifer operation was done to develop a solution to reduce the withdrawal of groundwater resources to control subsidence. Therefore, risk zoning was performed using land use and the extent of operation of groundwater resources. The results showed that the north-eastern part of the aquifer has the maximum risk of subsidence. According to the obtained results from subsidence risk zoning, scenarios of reduced water withdrawal from the aquifer in its outlet were developed. The treatment strategies results showed that the maximum amount of subsidence in wet, normal and dry conditions will be 10, 14 and 18 cm, respectively. These results indicate a 14% improvement in the quantitative condition of the aquifer in wet conditions, 10% in normal conditions and 7% in dry conditions in the total aquifer of Najafabad. Improvement of conditions by simulation shows the impact of the importance of optimal utilization of groundwater resources.

Monitoring groundwater depletion in Iran from space: results from gravity and InSAR observations

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mahmud Haghshenas Haghighi ◽  
Mahdi Motagh
Keyword(s):  
Spatial Resolution ◽  
Land Subsidence ◽  
Management Practices ◽  
Average Rate ◽  
Groundwater Resources ◽  
Arid Environment ◽  
Ground Subsidence ◽  
Groundwater Depletion ◽  
Industrial Sectors ◽  
Groundwater Consumption

<p>Iran is located in a semi-arid to arid environment and is highly dependent on its groundwater resources for development in its agricultural and industrial sectors. In many aquifers across the country, unsustainable groundwater extraction in the past few decades caused severe groundwater level decline, at locations exceeding 20 m. The country is divided into six major basins. However, neither the water consumption nor renewable water resources are distributed evenly. Quantitative assessment of the groundwater situation in different basins is a piece of crucial information for improving management practices. In this study, we use satellite observations to assess the groundwater situation across Iran.</p><p>We observe the terrestrial water storage (TWS) from Satellite gravimetry measurements of Gravity Recovery And Climate Experiment (GRACE). These observations provide a country-scale picture of groundwater variations at a coarse spatial resolution of 500 km. In all six basins, TWS declines during the 15 year lifetime of GRACE from 2002 until 2017. In total, the Equivalent Water Height (EWH) declines as much as approximately 10 cm during this period. Although part of this decline is caused by other components such as surface water or soil moisture, groundwater decline is responsible for the major part.</p><p>The compaction of aquifers resulted from the over-extraction of groundwater can be observed as land subsidence on the surface. We analyze ground subsidence for the whole Iran using Interferometric Synthetic Aperture Radar (InSAR) observations of the Copernicus Sentinel-1 satellite and present the first detailed map of compacting aquifers across the country at a high spatial resolution of 100 m. The average rate of displacement, exceeding 30 cm/yr in some areas, reveals hundreds of aquifers across the country are suffering unsustainable groundwater consumption. The distribution of subsidence basins is significantly correlated with the distribution of agricultural regions.</p><p>To obtain information on the sustainability of groundwater consumption, we separate the time series of land subsidence into two parts: the short term part as elastic/recoverable component and the long-term part as inelastic/irrecoverable. The ratio between elastic and inelastic elements provides quantitative measurements of aquifer health. Combining the Sentinel-1 subsidence measurements with GRACE observations of groundwater variations gives us new details on how the groundwater is consumed across different basins in the country. The results can have essential implications on the more sustainable management of groundwater resources.</p>

scholarly journals Assessments of land subsidence along Rizhao-Lankao High-speed Railway at Heze, China between 2015 and 2019 with Sentinel-1 data

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chuanguang Zhu ◽  
Wenhao Wu ◽  
Mahdi Motagh ◽  
Liya Zhang ◽  
Zongli Jiang ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Land Subsidence ◽  
High Speed ◽  
Underground Mining ◽  
Ground Deformation ◽  
Ground Subsidence ◽  
Normal Operation ◽  
Monthly Precipitation ◽  
High Speed Railway ◽  
Subsidence Area ◽  
Under Construction

Abstract. The Heze section of Rizhao-Lankao High-speed Railway (RLHR-HZ) has been under construction since 2018 and will be operative by the end of 2021. However, there is a concern that land subsidence in Heze region may affect the normal operation of RLHR-HZ. In this study, we investigate the contemporary ground deformation in the region between 2015 and 2019 by using more than 350 C-band interferograms constructed from two tracks of Sentine-1 data over the region. The Small Baselines Subset (SBAS) technique is adopted to compile the time series displacement. We find that the RLHR-HZ runs through two main subsidence areas: One is located east of Heze region with rates ranging from −4 cm/yr to −1 cm/yr, and another one is located in the coal field with rates ranging from −8 cm/yr to −2 cm/yr. A total length of 35 km of RLSR-HZ are affected by the two subsidence basins. Considering the previous investigation and the monthly precipitation, we infer that the subsidence bowl east of Heze region is due to massive extraction of deep groundwater. Close inspections of the relative locations between the second subsidence area and the underground mining reveals that the subsidence there is probably caused by the groundwater outflow and fault instability due to mining, rather than being directly caused by mining. The InSAR-derived ground subsidence implies that it's necessary to continue monitoring the ground deformation along RLSR-HZ.

scholarly journals Land Subsidence risk maps and InSAR based angular distortion structural vulnerability assessment: an example in Mexico City

2020 ◽  
Vol 382 ◽  
pp. 583-587 ◽  
Author(s):  
Enrique Fernández-Torres ◽  
Enrique Cabral-Cano ◽  
Dario Solano-Rojas ◽  
Emre Havazli ◽  
Luis Salazar-Tlaczani
Keyword(s):  
Mexico City ◽  
Land Subsidence ◽  
Time Window ◽  
Groundwater Resources ◽  
Economic Cost ◽  
Ground Subsidence ◽  
Angular Distortion ◽  
Structural Vulnerability ◽  
Civil Structures ◽  
The City

Abstract. Land subsidence is a phenomenon present in several cities in central Mexico, and results from a combination of groundwater resources' overexploitation and the local stratigraphic nature. Furthermore, subsidence occurs inhomogeneously in space, producing differential vertical displacements, which affect both the natural media, as well as human-built structures. Subsidence associated structural-vulnerability assessments usually rely on direct field measurements to determine parameters such as angular distortion. However, the large areas in which land subsidence occurs (city-scale) in Mexico City hinders a direct quantification of differential displacements for all buildings and structures present in it. A Sentinel-1 based subsidence analysis shows that the highest velocities are located on the eastern sector of the city. This velocity map was used as the basis for a population density weighted land subsidence correlation analysis. Our Land Subsidence Risk assessment indicates that 15.43 % of the population of Mexico City live in intermediate, high and very-high risk zones which corresponds to 1 358 873 inhabitants. Therefore, a significant percentage of Mexico City's population is vulnerable to suffering damage in their housing structures due to land subsidence. Furthermore, the lower income inhabitants share a proportionally greater economic cost due to land subsidence and associated shallow faulting. The structural vulnerability analysis of the civil structures in the city was performed using angular distortion maps derived from the subsidence velocity gradient between October 2014–October 2017 period. These maps indicate that within this time window, ∼12 % of the total urbanized area in Mexico City had already exceeded a 0.002 radian angular distortion threshold; above which damage in civil structures is more likely to occur. In fact, more than 1 million people have already suffered damages in their houses due to the differential ground subsidence and the resulting structural angular distortion. With these results, we can evaluate correspondence between angular distortion map and critical infrastructure of the city, as a result, we found that between 0 % and 12.84 % of these buildings have undergone over 0.002 radian angular distortion.

scholarly journals Estimation of Deformation Intensity above a Flooded Potash Mine Near Berezniki (Perm Krai, Russia) with SAR Interferometry

2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (19) ◽  
pp. 3215
Author(s):  
Sergey Samsonov ◽  
Alexandr Baryakh
Keyword(s):  
Synthetic Aperture Radar ◽  
Ground Deformation ◽  
Measurement Techniques ◽  
Sar Interferometry ◽  
Synthetic Aperture ◽  
Ground Subsidence ◽  
Synthetic Aperture Radar Data ◽  
Perm Krai ◽  
Potash Mine ◽  
Aperture Radar

In this study we used RADARSAT-2 and Sentinel-1 Synthetic Aperture Radar data for measuring subsidence above a flooded potash mine, which is almost entirely located within the city of Berezniki (Perm Krai, Russia), population 150,000. This area has experienced very fast subsidence since October 2006 when the integrity of the Berezniki-1 mine was compromised, resulting in water intrusion, subsequent flooding and closure of the mine. Due to the ongoing dissolution of carnallite, subsidence in this region is expected to continue in the foreseeable future. In addition to rapid subsidence, at least five sinkholes have formed in the region, with the largest being 440 × 320 m. We observed ground subsidence during the period October 2011–April 2014 (RADARSAT-2) with a vertical rate up to 14 cm/year and horizontal rate up to 10 cm/year; during the period July 2016–June 2020 (Sentinel-1) with a vertical rate up to 17 cm/year. Our results were validated by precise leveling, with a coefficient of correlation of 0.75. Subsidence faster than 17 cm/year observed by precise leveling was not resolvable with Differential Interferometric Synthetic Aperture Radar (DInSAR). Our results show the complementary nature of ground-based and space-borne measurement techniques. The precise leveling captures subsidence along profile lines with high precision but lower temporal resolution, while DInSAR captures subsidence with high spatial and temporal resolutions but with lower precision. DInSAR is also significantly affected by decorrelation outside of urban areas. An important advantage of our methodology is the ability to measure the horizontal east component of the ground deformation when both, ascending and descending, data are available. This measurement directly characterizes the level of anthropogenic load on buildings and infrastructure. We recommend continuing monitoring subsidence using both measurement techniques, which can also be complemented by continuous Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS).

scholarly journals Assessments of land subsidence along the Rizhao–Lankao high-speed railway at Heze, China, between 2015 and 2019 with Sentinel-1 data

2020 ◽  
Vol 20 (12) ◽  
pp. 3399-3411
Author(s):  
Chuanguang Zhu ◽  
Wenhao Wu ◽  
Mahdi Motagh ◽  
Liya Zhang ◽  
Zongli Jiang ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Land Subsidence ◽  
High Speed ◽  
Underground Mining ◽  
Ground Deformation ◽  
Ground Subsidence ◽  
Monthly Precipitation ◽  
High Speed Railway ◽  
Small Baseline Subset ◽  
Small Baseline ◽  
Under Construction

Abstract. The Heze section of Rizhao–Lankao high-speed railway (RLHR-HZ) has been under construction since 2018 and will be in operation by the end of 2021. However, there is a concern that land subsidence in the Heze region may affect the regular operation of RLHR-HZ. In this study, we investigate the contemporary ground deformation in the region between 2015 and 2019 by using more than 350 C-band interferograms constructed from two tracks of Sentinel-1 data over the region. The small baseline subset (SBAS) technique is adopted to compile the time-series displacement. We find that the RLHR-HZ runs through two main subsidence areas: one is located east of the Heze region with rates ranging from −4 to −1 cm yr−1, and another one is located in the coalfield with rates ranging from −8 to −2 cm yr−1. A total length of 35 km of RLHR-HZ is affected by the two subsidence basins. Considering the previous investigation and the monthly precipitation, we infer that the subsidence bowl east of the Heze region is due to massive extraction of deep groundwater. Close inspections of the relative locations between the second subsidence area and the underground mining reveals that the subsidence there is probably caused by the groundwater outflow and fault instability due to mining, rather than being directly caused by mining. The InSAR-derived ground subsidence implies that it is necessary to continue monitoring the ground deformation along RLHR-HZ.

scholarly journals GROUND SUBSIDENCE MONITORING WITH MT-InSAR AND MECHANISM INVERSION OVER XI’AN, CHINA

2018 ◽  
Vol XLII-3 ◽  
pp. 1375-1380
Author(s):  
M. M. Peng ◽  
C. Y. Zhao ◽  
Q. Zhang ◽  
J. Zhang ◽  
Y. Y. Liu
Keyword(s):  
Land Subsidence ◽  
Ground Deformation ◽  
Ground Subsidence ◽  
Spatiotemporal Evolution ◽  
Ground Fissure ◽  
Ground Fissures ◽  
The 1960S ◽  
Subsidence Monitoring ◽  
Xi’An City ◽  
Deformation Section

The ancient Xi’an, China, has been suffering severe land subsidence and ground fissure hazards since the 1960s, which has affected the safety of Subways. Multi-sensor SAR data are conducted to monitor the latest complex ground deformation and its influence on subway line No.3 over Xi’an. Annual deformation rates have been retrieved to reveal the spatiotemporal evolution of ground subsidence in Xi’an city from 2013 to 2017. Meanwhile, the correlation between land subsidence and ground fissures are analyzed by retrieving the deformation differences in both sides of the fissures. Besides, the deformation along subway line No. 3 is analyzed, and the fast deformation section is quantitatively studied. Finally, a flat lying sill model with distributed contractions is implemented to model the InSAR deformation over YHZ subsidence center, which manifests that the ground deformation is mainly caused by groundwater withdrawal.

scholarly journals Land subsidence inversion method application for salt mining-induced rock mass movement

2017 ◽  
Vol 33 (3) ◽  
pp. 179-200 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ryszard Hejmanowski ◽  
Agnieszka A. Malinowska
Keyword(s):  
Land Subsidence ◽  
Least Squares Method ◽  
Underground Mining ◽  
Ground Deformation ◽  
Mass Movement ◽  
Ground Movement ◽  
Ground Subsidence ◽  
Inversion Method ◽  
Salt Mines ◽  
Geological Conditions

AbstractThe modeling of strains and deformations in salt mine areas encounters considerable difficulties because of the varying strength properties of salt, the complex morphological build of dome deposits and the rheological properties of salt. These properties have impacted the development of salt extraction for hundreds of years and the fact that the accurate determining of strains in a given specified moment and place are burdened with high uncertainty. Numerical modeling is useful when the model is reduced to one or several salt chambers. A broader range of underground post mining void considerably lowers the accuracy and efficiency of the calculations of such models. Stochastic models allow for a 3D modeling of the entire mining complex deposit, provided the model has been parametrized in detail. The methods of strains and deformations modeling were presented on the example of one of the biggest salt mines in Europe, where a volume of over 21 million m3 of salt was extracted. The stochastic model could be parametrized thanks to the documented results of measurements of convergence of the underground mining panels and leveling on the surface. The use of land subsidence inversion in the least squares method allowed for estimating the optimum values of parameters of the model. Ground deformation modeling was performed using the two-parameter time function, which allows for a simulation to be carried out in time. In the simulation, the convergence of underground excavations and the transition in time the effects of convergence into ground subsidence was taken into account. The detailed analysis of the geological conditions lead to modeling deviation of the subsidence trough. The accuracy of the modeling results was qualitatively and quantitatively confirmed by a comparison of the modeled to measured values of the vertical ground movement. The scaled model can be applied in future mining extraction projects in order to predict the strains and deformations for an arbitrary moment in time.

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