Groundwater plays a key role in addressing global water needs. Around 20% of the world's aquifers are over-exploited, with outputs (withdrawal and natural discharge) exceeding recharge, resulting in resource depletion, storage loss in sandy layers and compaction of confining clay beds. The induced land subsidence causes direct/indirect impacts on urban landscapes (ground depressions, earth fissures, structure damages, increased flood risk, loss of land to water bodies) and economic loss, yet these are often overlooked, and so are considerations on how climate change, population and urban growth may further exacerbate them.
SubRISK+ will innovate in this field by providing new EO-derived products and tools aiming to: 1) enhance our understanding of subsidence and its impact; 2) empower the community to recognize the human-related behavioral, socio-economic and demographic drivers of this geohazard and its cascading effects on urban environments and ecosystems; and 3) strengthen our ability to use consciously natural resources to make a step-change towards sustainable development.