A GIS-based monitoring and early warning system for cover-collapse sinkholes in karst terrane in Wuhan, China

Abstract. To reduce disastrous losses caused by karst collapse especially in urban areas, it is important to establish an early warning system utilizing monitoring data. Three major aspects have been monitored based upon engineering geological conditions and characteristics of karst collapse processes in Wuhan, China: changes in surface soil, soil deformation, and groundwater levels. Measurements have been recorded of: (1) soil pressure, (2) ground-penetrating radar images, (3) underground water levels, (4) ground water levels, (5) rainfall, (6) cracking, (7) ground deformation, and (8) water level in monitored wells. This paper has selected geological radar cross-sectional data and underground water level monitoring data to obtain criteria for hydraulic gradient warning, geological radar warning and plastic zone warning based upon these monitoring data and wider knowledge of karst collapse in Wuhan. A comprehensive warning system has been developed on a MAPGIS platform, employing monitoring data in Microsoft Excel format and Microsoft Visual C++ development tools. Three warning levels are adopted by the system: safe, becoming dangerous, and dangerous; indicated in green, yellow and red respectively on hazard maps. The system automatically undertakes processes of data management and model calculation leading to geo-hazard warning map generation. Using monitoring data collected in the first six months of 2011 at Wuhan, the system has established a hydraulic gradient model, plastic zone warning model, geological radar warning model, and a comprehensive early warning model; and has been shown to be an effective method of providing karst collapse warning.