Urban hydrogeology

Bucharest, like other large cities in the world, is facing urban hydrogeological problems, which require at least as much attention as other problems related to the planning and development of large urban agglomerations. There are numerous initiatives at international level, in the scientific community and in the urban-administrative community, which certify the vital importance of the integrated management and development of the urban environment, the above-ground and underground space. Extensive trans-national research programmes with increased applicability in the management of urban environments, such as the COST SUB-URBAN Action, in which the CCIAS has been involved, identify and highlight the major disadvantages and long-term consequences of omitting studies dedicated to the underground environment prior to the development and modification of urban infrastructure, regardless of location, underground or above ground.

CCIAS’s demonstrated competence in the analysis of groundwater issues and their consequences on the urban infrastructure specific to the Municipality of Bucharest has been strengthened by the results obtained within the research project “SIMPA – Platform for groundwater management in sedimentary environment in urban areas” carried out between August 2010 and August 2013, through scientific collaborations with the municipality’s water operator and with administrations and companies whose activities are directly or indirectly related to groundwater in Bucharest. The urban geological and hydrogeological model of Bucharest, developed within the framework of this research project, is proving its validity in numerous urban infrastructure development and hydrological imbalance remediation projects. The results of the research have been widely presented in scientific conferences and seminars and appreciated by institutions such as the British Geological Survey, the Geological Survey of Norway, the University of Basel, the Geological Survey of Denmark, the International Association of Hydrogeologists, etc.

Currently, Bucharest is facing a considerable number of consequences due to the lack of correct and detailed knowledge of both the urban groundwater environment and the interaction of groundwater with urban infrastructure. Current practice in the development of underground infrastructure, which is extremely widespread in Romania, involves local studies focused only on the objective to be developed. This systematic error is due, on the one hand, to the lack of an overall vision of the underground environment and, on the other hand, to the narrow interest shown by design firms and developers and agreed by the administration.

A study of the urban infrastructure development plans proposed for implementation reveals changes with an immediate impact on the groundwater circuit, the consequences of which have not been sufficiently studied. The impact on the groundwater circuit is described in a generic way, neglecting to frame and identify the effects on the urban environment both within the perimeters of local anthropogenic changes (development of a subway line, underground car parks, extension of the impermeable surface, etc.) and within the specific urban configuration of Bucharest (zonal).

The Groundwater Engineering Research Centre (CCIAS) has systematically proposed to the authorities and institutions that manage the infrastructure of the Bucharest municipality to be involved in the technical assessment activities in order to provide an overview of the consequences of the interaction between anthropogenic interventions on the urban underground environment and groundwater, with direct application to the specificities of the Bucharest municipality.

Professor dr. eng. Constantin Radu GOGU,

Director of the Groundwater Engineering Research Centre,

Technical University of Civil Engineering Bucharest

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