A decade-long silent ground subsidence hazard culminating in a metropolitan disaster in Maceió, Brazil

verfasst von

Magdalena Vassileva, Djamil Al-Halbouni, Mahdi Motagh, Thomas R. Walter, Torsten Dahm, Hans-Ulrich Wetzel

Abstract

Ground subsidence caused by natural or anthropogenic processes affects major urban areas worldwide. Sinkhole formation and infrastructure fractures have intensified in the federal capital of Maceió (Alagoas, Brazil) since early 2018, forcing authorities to relocate affected residents and place buildings under demolition. In this study, we present a 16-year history (2004–2020) of surface displacement, which shows precursory deformations in 2004–2005, reaching a maximum cumulative subsidence of approximately 200 cm near the Mundaú Lagoon coast in November 2020. By integrating the displacement observations with numerical source modelling, we suggest that extensive subsidence can be primarily associated with the removal of localized, deep-seated material at the location and depth where salt is mined. We discuss the accelerating subsidence rates, influence of severe precipitation events on the aforementioned geological instability, and related hazards. This study suggests that feedback destabilization mechanisms may arise in evaporite systems due to anthropogenic activities, fostering enhanced and complex superficial ground deformation.

Organisationseinheit(en)

Institut für Photogrammetrie und Geoinformation

Externe Organisation(en)

Helmholtz-Zentrum Potsdam Deutsches GeoForschungsZentrum (GFZ)
Universität Potsdam

Typ

Artikel

Journal

Scientific Reports

Band

11

ISSN

2045-2322

Publikationsdatum

12.2021

Publikationsstatus

Veröffentlicht

Peer-reviewed

Ja

ASJC Scopus Sachgebiete

Allgemein

Ziele für nachhaltige Entwicklung

SDG 11 – Nachhaltige Städte und Gemeinschaften

Elektronische Version(en)

https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-021-87033-0 (Zugang: Offen)