Urban Hydrogeology Research

Dear Colleagues,

Urbanization is the predominant global phenomenon of our time, and sustainable urban development is therefore now one of the greatest challenges faced by the contemporary world. The subsurface plays a range of roles in the complex process of urbanization, including buildings' development, constructing roads for transportation, and providing water supply, drainage, sanitation and, in some cases, solid-waste disposal. For most cities, the groundwater system commonly represents a ‘linking component’ between various elements of the urban infrastructure. Since urban processes have an influence on groundwater and groundwater conditions have an impact on the urban infrastructure, groundwater systems exhibit a close relation with the processes of urbanization, and this continuously progresses with the urban development cycle. Consequently, most cities around the world face issues related to urban hydrogeology which require at least as much attention as that given to other planning-related problems in urban areas. Urban groundwater problems are now usually predictable. However, they are often not predicted early enough, as actions usually respond to emergencies rather than planning. Consequences resulting from a lack of accurate and detailed knowledge of the underground environment and the interaction between the urban groundwater and urban infrastructure is faced by cities around the world in economic, environmental, social, legal and political terms. The lack of data and planning, as well as the discrepancies in communication between the scientific community and city managers, increase difficulties in solving urban hydrogeology problems. To supply this understanding, experts have to use robust datasets of urban fabric, infrastructure networks, groundwater and geothermal energy systems at the city scale. Furthermore, relevant knowledge and understanding from these must also be accessible to urban planning processes. Over the last few decades, a progressive advancement in the scientific understanding of urban hydrogeological processes and the groundwater regimes of a substantial number of cities has been documented. This extensive palette of subsurface challenges that cities have to contend with lay at the core of the sustainability of the urban water cycle. This is threatened by the increasing scale and downward extent of urban subsurface construction, including utilities (cables, sewage, drainage), transportation (tunnels, passages), and storage (cellars, parking lots, thermal energy). The cumulative impact of this subsurface congestion on the surrounding geology, and especially the groundwater system, have to be persistently studied. Key connections amongst urban hydrogeology activities will be identified as consistent scientific results and good practice in relation to subsurface data. This Topic will encourage cross- and trans-disciplinary, mutually beneficial dialogues between the providers and consumers of urban groundwater data and knowledge offering new perspectives on the existing research themes.

Prof. Dr. C. Radu Gogu
Prof. Dr. Oana Luca
Topic Editors