Skip to main content

Land subsidence in Konya Closed Basin and its spatio-temporal detection by GPS and DInSAR

Environmental Earth Sciences volume 73, pages 6691–6703 (2015)Cite this article

Abstract

Konya Closed Basin that includes two depression blocks, Konya and Tuz Gölü, is the biggest endorheic basin in Turkey. A lowering in the ground levels of the depositional areas has been shown with respect to the surrounding mountains. In the past, this process was controlled by geological and hydrogeological phenomena; nowadays, it has gained a new dimension due to the excessive pumping of groundwater to the Earth’s surface. The geodetic techniques such as Global Positioning System (GPS) and Interferometric Synthetic Aperture Radar (InSAR) reveal a considerable land subsidence resulting in the rate of 1–4 cm/year in Konya sub-basin. It seems that the calculated amounts are responsible for changing environmental conditions like seasonality. Both GPS and differential InSAR techniques verify these relatively small fluctuations in the subsidence development. Target districts that should be observed primarily are agricultural zones where groundwater is overused for irrigation and regions where human population density is high. The geocoded interferogram and vegetation index map verify the spatial relation between the subsidence and green areas. In this study, a project dealing with the investigation of the land subsidence occurrences and of their possible causes and consequences within a specific part of Konya Closed Basin is introduced.

This is a preview of subscription content, access via your institution.

Access options

Buy single article

Instant access to the full article PDF.

USD 39.95

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Fig. 1
Fig. 2
Fig. 3
Fig. 4
Fig. 5
Fig. 6
Fig. 7
Fig. 8
Fig. 9
Fig. 10

References

  • Bayari CS, Ozyurt NN, Kilani S (2009) Radiocarbon age distribution of groundwater in the Konya Closed Basin, central Anatolia, Turkey. Hydrogeol J 17(2):347–365

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bayari CS, Ozyurt NN, Kilani S (2009) Radiocarbon age distribution of groundwater in the Konya Closed Basin, central Anatolia, Turkey. Hydrogeol J 17(2):347–365

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Blewitt G (2009) GPS and space-based geodetic methods. In: Herring T (ed) Geodesy: treatise on geophysics, vol 3. Elsevier, Amsterdam, pp 351–390

  • Chen CT, Hu JC, Lu CY, Lee JC, Chan YC (2007) Thirty-year land elevation change from subsidence to uplift following the termination of groundwater pumping and its geological implications in the Metropolitan Taipei Basin, Northern Taiwan. Eng Geol 95(1–2):30–47. doi:10.1016/j.enggeo.2007.09.001

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Cohen HR (1970) The Palaeoecology of South Central Anatolia at the end of the Pleistocene and the beginning of the Holocene. Anotolian Stud 20:119–137

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Crutzen P, Stoermer E (2000) The ‘anthropocene’. Tech. Rep. 41, Stockholm

  • Doğdu MŞ, Toklu MM, Sağnak C (2007) Investigation of rainfall and groundwater levels in Konya Closed Basin. In: 1st Turkish congress on climate change-TİKDEK’07, pp 394–401 (in Turkish)

  • Eren Y (1996) Structural features of Bozdağlar massif to the Ilgın and Sarayönü (Konya). Türkiye Jeoloji Bülteni 39(2):49–64 (in Turkish)

    Google Scholar 

  • Eren Y (2003a) Neo-tectonic features of the Yazır fault (Konya). Pamukkale Üniversitesi Mühendislik Fakülttesi Dergisi 9(2):237–244 (in Turkish)

  • Eren Y (2003b) Seismic activity of Konya region. Türkiye Petrol Jeologları Derneği (Özel sayı: 5):85–98 (in Turkish)

  • Famiglietti JS, Lo M, Ho SL, Bethune J, Anderson KJ, Syed TH, Swenson SC, de Linage CR, Rodell M (2011) Satellites measure recent rates of groundwater depletion in California’s Central Valley. Geophys Res Lett 38(3). doi:10.1029/2010GL046442

  • Galloway D, Burbey T (2011) Review: regional land subsidence accompanying groundwater extraction. Hydrogeol J 19(8):1459–1486. doi:10.1007/s10040-011-0775-5

  • Herring T (2005) Geodesy: treatise on geophysics, vol 3. Elsevier, Amsterdam

    Google Scholar 

  • İşçioğlu A (2008) An overview of groundwater allocation and use in Konya Closed Basin. In: Konya Kapalı Havzası Yeraltısuyu ve Kuraklık Konferansı, 11–12 Eylül, pp 135–142. İpek Ofset, Konya (in Turkish)

  • Ketelaar VBH (2009) Satellite radar interferometry: subsidence monitoring techniques (remote sensing and digital image processing). Springer, New York

  • Koçyigit A (1984) Intra-plate Neotectonic development in Southwestern Turkey and adjacent areas. Türkiye Jeoloji Kurumu Bülteni 27(1):1–16 (in Turkish)

    Google Scholar 

  • Kueppers LM, Snyder MA, Sloan LC, Cayan D, Jin J, Kanamaru H, Kanamitsu M, Miller NL, Tyree M, Du H, Weare B (2008) Seasonal temperature responses to land-use change in the western United States. Glob Planet Chang 60(3–4):250–264. doi:10.1016/j.gloplacha.2007.03.005

  • Leng MJ, Roberts N, Reed JM, Sloane HJ (1999) Late Quaternary palaeohydrology of the Konya Basin, Turkey, based on isotope studies of modern hydrology and lacustrine carbonates. J Paleolimnol 22(2):187–204

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Leng MJ, Roberts N, Reed JM, Sloane HJ (1999) Late Quaternary palaeohydrology of the Konya Basin, Turkey, based on isotope studies of modern hydrology and lacustrine carbonates. J Paleolimnol 22(2):187–204

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Özcan A, Göncüoğlu MC, Turhan N, Sentürk K, Uysal S, Işık A (1990) Geology of the basement rocks of Konya-Kadınhanı-Ilgın region. Tech. Rep. 9535, Mining Research and Exploration (in Turkish)

  • Pettorelli N (2013) The Normalized Difference Vegetation Index. OUP, Oxford

  • Roberts N (1983) Age, palaeoenvironments, and climatic significance of late Pleistocene Konya lake, Turkey. Quat Res 19(2):154–171

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Roberts N (1990) Human-induced landscape change in South and Southwest Turkey during the later Holocene. In: Bottema S, Nieborg EG, Zeist VW (eds) Proceedings of the INQUA/BAI symposium on the impact of ancient man on the landscape of the eastern mediterranean region and the near east, Groningen, Netherlands, 6–9 March 1989. Balkema, Rotterdam, pp 53–66

  • Ruddiman W (2003) The anthropogenic greenhouse era began thousands of years ago. Clim Chang 61(3):261–293

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Sandwell D, Mellors R, Tong X, Wei M, Wessel P (2011) Open radar interferometry software for mapping surface deformation. Eos Trans AGU 92(28). doi:10.1029/2011EO280002

  • Simons M, Rosen PA (2009) Interferometric synthetic aperture radar geodesy. In: Herring T (ed) Geodesy: treatise on geophysics, vol 3. Elsevier, Amsterdam, pp 391–446

  • Tregoning P, Watson C, Ramillien G, McQueen H, Zhang J (2009) Detecting hydrologic deformation using GRACE and GPS. Geophys Res Lett 36(15). doi:10.1029/2009GL038718

  • Ustun A, Tusat E, Yalvac S (2010) Preliminary results of land subsidence monitoring project in Konya Closed Basin between 2006–2009 by means of GNSS observations. Nat Hazards Earth Syst Sci 10(6):1151–1157. doi:10.5194/nhess-10-1151-2010

  • Üstün A, Abbak RA, Yiğit CÖ, Tuşat E (2007) Trend and correlation analysis of groundwater level in Konya Closed Basin. In: Proceedings of IUGG XXIV general assembly, earth: our changing planet, Perugia

  • Vanicek P, Krakiwsky EJ (1987) Geodesy: the concepts, 2nd edn. Elsevier Science Publishers B.V, Amsterdam

    Google Scholar 

  • Yılmaz M (2010) Environmental problems caused by ground water level changes around Karapınar. Ankara Üniversitesi Çevrebilimleri Dergisi 2(2):145–163 (in Turkish)

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgments

We gratefully acknowledge the financial support of the TUBITAK (The Scientific and Technological Research Council of Turkey) under Grant Number 110Y121. The Envisat radar scenes were provided from the European Space Agency (Category I Project ID: 2853). The authors would like to thank the anonymous reviewers for their valuable comments and suggestions to improve the quality of the paper.

Author information

Author notes

  1. Aydın Üstün

    Present address: Department of Geomatics Engineering, Kocaeli University, Izmit, Turkey

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Geomatics Engineering, Selçuk University, Konya, Turkey

    Aydın Üstün, Sefa Yalvaç, İ. Öztuğ Bildirici, Taner Üstüntaş, Osman S. Kırtıloğlu, Serkan Doğanalp & R. Alpay Abbak

  2. Department of Geomatics Engineering, Kocaeli University, Izmit, Turkey

    Taner Üstüntaş

  3. Çumra Vocational School, Selçuk University, Konya, Turkey

    Ekrem Tuşat

  4. Department of Mining Engineering, Selçuk University, Konya, Turkey

    İhsan Özkan & Mehmet Mesutoğlu

  5. Department of Geology Engineering, Selçuk University, Konya, Turkey

    Yaşar Eren & Adnan Özdemir

  6. Disaster and Emergency Directorate of Denizli, Denizli, Turkey

    Fatma Canaslan

  7. Department of Geomatics Engineering, Bulent Ecevit University, Zonguldak, Turkey

    N. Betül Avşar

  8. General Directorate of Agricultural Reform of Turkey, Ankara, Turkey

    F. Fehmi Şimşek

Authors
  1. Aydın Üstün
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Ekrem Tuşat
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Sefa Yalvaç
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. İhsan Özkan
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  5. Yaşar Eren
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  6. Adnan Özdemir
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  7. İ. Öztuğ Bildirici
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  8. Taner Üstüntaş
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  9. Osman S. Kırtıloğlu
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  10. Mehmet Mesutoğlu
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  11. Serkan Doğanalp
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  12. Fatma Canaslan
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  13. R. Alpay Abbak
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  14. N. Betül Avşar
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  15. F. Fehmi Şimşek
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Aydın Üstün.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and Permissions

About this article

Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Üstün, A., Tuşat, E., Yalvaç, S. et al. Land subsidence in Konya Closed Basin and its spatio-temporal detection by GPS and DInSAR. Environ Earth Sci 73, 6691–6703 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12665-014-3890-5

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12665-014-3890-5

Keywords

  • Land subsidence
  • Konya Closed Basin
  • GPS
  • InSAR
  • Groundwater withdrawal