Urban subsidence in rapid economic development: the case of Luoyang city, Henan Province

Abstract

ABSTRACTRapid urban development has led to severe land subsidence in Luoyang, Henan Province in the past few years. The current research on subsidence in urban areas of Luoyang is relatively few and early, and cannot reflect the current status of land subsidence in Luoyang. To grasp the current status of land subsidence in Luoyang and prevent the harm caused by subsidence. We used 57 Sentinel-1A Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) images covering Luoyang to obtain the land subsidence from April 2017 to December 2021 by using the small baseline subset interferometric SAR technique. The results show that there are several areas of land subsidence in Luoyang City, and the most serious area of subsidence is located near the highway in Jianxi District, with a cumulative subsidence of 130 mm. Land subsidence exists to varying degrees near transportation facilities (Expressway roads, railway, metro), key urban facilities (airports, high-speed railway stations) and ancient sites in Luoyang. A number of small-scale local subsidence in Luoyang is mainly related to high-intensity urban construction, and urban highway and building construction are the main causes of local land subsidence. Industrial activities are also an important factor in land subsidence in Luoyang. Groundwater and rainfall can impact land subsidence, and large amounts of rainfall during the flood season can replenish groundwater resources and slow down the rate of land subsidence. Loess foundations and large amounts of artificial fill in the city may also induce land subsidence.

Keywords

• SBAS-InSAR
• Luoyang
• land deformation
• ancient sites
• urbanization