South Asian Urban and City Management Course

1
South Asian Urban and City Management Course

• The Urban Environmental Challenge
• ENVIRONMENTAL GEOSCIENCE IN URBAN LAND-USE
  PLANNING ADVICE FOR PLANNERS AND DECISION MAKERS
• Do you know your ground?
• John Powell, British Geological Survey

2
The Relevance of Geology to Environmental
Management

• The environment is not limited to on and above
  the earths surface.

• Geology is not just
• Scientists with hammers and instruments
• Producing pretty, but
• incomprehensible, maps

• Too many decision-makers are unaware of
• critical contribution geology can make

3
What is Environmental Geoscience

• Defined as the interaction between people and
  their physical environment
• geology and geochemistry (rocks and soils)
• hydrogeology (groundwater)
• engineering geology/geotechnical engineering
• geomorphology (slope analysis/landslip)
• geophysics (seismic risk)

4
Man and his environment nothing new!
If a builder builds a house and does not make
its construction firm - and the house
collapses and causes the death of the owner - the
builder shall be put to death..if it
destroys property, he shall restore whatever it
destroyed, and because he did not make the house
which he built firm and it collapsed, he shall
rebuild the house which collapsed at his own
expense. Hammurabi, of Babylon (2067-2025 BC)
Be mindful, when visiting a new city, of the air,
the soils and the water Hippocrates, 500 BC
.and lo there was a great earthquake.and every
mountain and island were moved out of their
place (refers to Jordan Rift Valley) Revelation
VI 12,14
Nature to be commanded must be obeyed Sir Francis
Bacon
No engineering structure is better is better than
the material of which, and on which, it is
built A B Brink, 1979
5
Why is it important to land-use planning?

• to guide planners, developers to recognise
  constraints on development - and opportunities
  for sustainable development
• factors include hazards, resources and
  conservation

6
Major Geo-hazards

• slope instability (landslides, mudflows)
• natural subsidence (caves, dissolution)
• heave and settlement (shrink-swell clays)
• seismic risk (earthquakes)
• flood risk (river and coastal)
• volcanic activity (ash-fall, mudflows, lava)
• rising/falling groundwater
• toxic and explosive gases (radon methane)
• contaminated /polluted land

7
Man-induced Hazards

• Mine spoil
• Mining-induced subsidence
• Slope instability in quarries etc.
• Landfill (gas and leachate)
• Groundwater pollution
• Industrial/mining pollution (soils water)

8
Natural Resources

• Minerals - aggregates building stone
• Water - surface water and groundwater
• Land and soil - agriculture construction
• Conservation - natural and geological sites

9
Coal extraction following removal of contaminated
domestic landfill
Landfill-domestic waste
Landfill-domestic waste
Glacial Till
Fireclay Coal
10
The Relevance of Geology to Environmental
Management
Ignoring geological factors leads to

• Increased financial costs
• eg poor use of natural resources (sterilisation)
  and damage to property

11
The Relevance of Geology to Environmental
Management
Ignoring geological factors leads to

• Loss of life
• eg landslides, earthquakes and volcanic activity

12
Volcanic hazard prediction
Mud flow (lahar) probability (Chile)
View
13
The Relevance of Geology to Environmental
Management
Ignoring geological factors leads to

• Reduction in quality of life
• eg pollution of water supply and soils, and gas
  emission

14
Urban Groundwater
Waste Water
Water Supply
Re-use
Disposal
Surface water
Use
Rainfall
Sewage
- Treatment
Landfill
Urban wells
Waste Industrial Effluent Disposal
Irrigation
Peri-urban wells
Groundwater Abstraction
Aquifer
Interaction of groundwater supply and wastewater
disposal in a city
after Foster et al, 1998
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Urban Groundwater Supply Management

• Potential Problems
• Decline in well yields due to falling water table
• Declining water quality
• Increasing salinity due to sea-water intrusion
• Contaminants mobilized from contaminated land by
  rising water table

• Possible Solutions
• Reduce abstraction mains leakage/increase
  recharge
• Reduce contaminants/ restrict residential
  development of vulnerable areas
• Control of industrial effluents
• Zone land for different use
• Control landfill location and design
• Separate waste disposal from groundwater supply
• Increase abstraction of shallow polluted wells
  for non-potable uses

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Deep Groundwater Quality Degradation Due to
PumpingHAT YAI, THAILAND
HAT YAI CITY
Wastewater leakage from canals
Piezometric surface of semi-confined aquifer
Strongly reducing conditions high Fe and Mn
concentrations
WATERTABLE
Front of leakage produced by pumping
AQUITARD
POLLUTED WATER LEAKAGE
Pumped Region of Aquifer (mixed polluted
fresh water
AQUIFER
AQUIFER
after Foster et al, 1998
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Water Management Solutions

• Encourage use of groundwater within city limits
  for non-potable use
• Line canals and/or install mains sewerage
  system/treatment plants
• Incentives for more efficient water use reduce
  leakage
• Develop peri-urban wells to meet increased
  potable supply

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Landfill site criteria

• Sound site selection is a key factor
• Criteria must include geology, groundwater flow
• Groundwater and surface water protection must be
  considered
• Dispersal or treatment of noxious gases and
  leachate?
• Leachate control - natural retention or limited
  release

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COASTPLAN Environmental geology review and
planning
Tourism
Residential and high rise
20
Jakarta key coastal environmental issues
Coastal pollution and fish stocks
Subsidence
Poor foundation conditions/ illegal building
practice
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COASTAL POLLUTION JAKARTA
Kotok Br
Copper
Java Sea

ppm
49.4
95
99
71.4
P Pari
41.6
90
75
24.0
50
15.6
Rambut
25
9.1
P Ayer Besar
6.2
15
5.8
10
P Bidadari
Jakarta
5
5.2
Copper in sediment core
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Reclamation plan for Jakarta Bay
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High resolution decision-support systems for
geoscience knowledge
Coastal erosion simulation

• Photogrammetric software and GIS
• Calculates cliff erosion and sediment volumes
• Delivers terrain model simulations

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Water Quality and Subsidence Issues in Coastal
Cities

• PROBLEM
• Unrestricted abstraction leads to
• Groundwater salinisation (saline intrusion)
• Land subsidence

• POSSIBLEOLUTIONS
• Control industrial domestic demands
• Disincentives for industrial users to abstract
  quality g.w.
• Reduce pollution of aquifer from city

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SOLUTIONSADVANTAGES OF GIS

• SEPARATE MAP LAYERS
• LINKS MAPS AND DATABASES
• QUERY DATA AND MAPS
• THEMATIC MAPS
• COLOUR PAPER COPIES
• SIMPLE GIS PACKAGE (eg. Map Info)
• LANDSAT IMAGES/PHOTOGRAPHS

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Location of old mine shafts in an urban coalfield
(UK
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Land Use In Wolverhampton City
Key
Industrial Residential Allotments Cemeteries Green
Belt Other Open Space Public Open Space Sports
Grounds Railway Unclassified
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Lead in surface soils (-2mm) Wolverhampton
ppm
percentile
1342 99 637 95 475 90 297 75
181 50 117 25 98 15 87 10
75 5
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Urban Environmental GIS
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GIS LAYERS

• TOPOGRPHICAL LAYER (150K)
• PLANNING MAPS
• LANDSAT IMAGES
• GEOLOGY LAYERS
• BEDROCK
• SUPERFICIAL DEPOSITS
• FAULTS/STRUCTURAL
• GEOHAZARDS

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Screen-based Query Planning Zones and Minerals
Resources
Low Cost Housing
ISRAEL
Aqaba City
Industrial Zone
Tourist Facilities
Port Facilities
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AQABAS COMPETING NEEDS TOURISM PORT
INDUSTRIAL DEVELOPMENT
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Query using satellite imagery
Imran Monzogranite
Gulf of Aqaba

• Imran Monzogranite
• Industrial feldspar prospect
• Exploited for marble
• Non-aquifer

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PLANNING ZONES AND GEOLOGY
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Query using Satellite Image and Geological Map
Yammaniya Clay
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Query - LandslipUsing Satellite Image and Map
with explanatory photograph
LANDSLIP ZONE
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Reporting GIS data to end-users
Superficial deposits at site Taplow
gravels Artificial deposits at site made ground
lt 5m Boreholes at site None Solid
geology London Clay Boreholes within search
radius Reference TQ48SW19 Length - 3.65m Name -
Metropolitan Borough works no 48 E - 542560 N -
0182280
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IT REQUIREMENTS URBAN ENVIRONMENTAL GIS

• Computer hardware
• PC Pentium II/III processor with 64 Mb RAM 4
  Mb video card and 17inch colour monitor.
• Hewlett Packard Ink-jet 450C AO Colour ink-jet
  plotter.
• Epsom GT 12000A3 colour scanner.
• Digitiser (or use bureau facilities)
• Computer software
• GIS software eg MapInfo Professional/ ARCVIEW
• Microsoft Office Pro 98 English Small business
  edition, plus
• Computer Database eg ACCESS or ORACLE
• Landsat TM digital data on CD

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Essentials of Good Practice for Planning
Authorities

• commitment and awareness - earth science data
• increase availability and accessibility
• efficient storage, handling retrieval of earth
  science data
• develop a procedural framework
• make use of expert advice
• allocate resources (data collection/archives)

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Problem solving for planners and developersStep
1Identify constraints and opportunities in area

• discuss with local regional experts (eg. Geol.
  Survey)
• obtain all relevant earth science data
• assess adequacy completeness of information
• specify and obtain new information (where
  necessary)
• identify define extent of hazards, resources
  conservation opportunities
• assess significance of these factors on land-use
  planning
• seek additional expert advice where necessary
  (geotechnical/groundwater/environmental/mining
  consultants)

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Problem solving for planners and
developersStep 2Storage and handling of earth
science data

• Archival records (maps, records, SI)
• Computerised Databases (spreadsheets and
  relational databases)
• Geographical Information Systems (GIS)
• Output in the form of easy to use maps and
  guides designed for the non-specialist

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Problem solving for planners and developersStep
3Regional and National Planning Guidance

• aimed at regulating the development and use of
  land in the public interest to provide
• guidance to public and private sector
• incentive to local authorities to make best use
  of land
• control prevent development against the public
  interest allow consideration of all stakeholders

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Insurance a way of mitigating post-catastrophe
loss in the developing world?

• Efficient means of getting funds on the ground
  quickly after a natural catastrophe
• Funds come directly from international financial
  institutions
• Concept supported by the Development Banks aid
  funds contribute to premiums
• Risk must be interpreted, processed and presented
  in a form useable by the financial industry

44
High resolution decision-support systems for
geoscience knowledge
Assessing geological risk for the Insurance
industry

• Helps companies understand their exposure to
  potential hazards
• A postcode based system
• provides a quantitative assessment
• reduces geology to a number !

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CONCLUSIONS

• The Way Forward Political Realism and Practical
  Steps
• Politically difficult Out of public sight -
  out of political mind
• Regulatory intervention Long term benefits vs.
  Immediate public impact
• BUT To postpone protection/regulation policies
  leads to more costly and intractable problems in
  the long run
• Requires consensus - through public debate with
  stakeholders