Many Chinese cities are slowly sinking – and intensive urbanisation means it will only get worse, say experts
City governments such as Beijing and Shanghai taking steps to halt subsidence, often caused by excessive extraction of underground water
Many of China’s cities are sinking due to groundwater being overused and experts fear the problem will grow worse as urbanisation intensifies.
In urban areas, subsidence – or the gradual sinking of an area of land – is often caused by excessive extraction of underground water.
In the southwestern city of Chengdu, in Sichuan province, the land above a subway line under construction is sinking more than one cm a year, local newspaper the Huaxi Metropolis Daily reported on Thursday.
The city’s increasing number of skyscrapers is also pushing the ground lower – by as much as 2.8cm a year in the most badly affected areas, according to the report.
However, the problem is not confined to Chengdu alone. More than 50 Chinese cities suffer serious subsidence issues, according to an official report released in 2012.