Policies in Seoul Against Disasters - Coursework Example

Urban Planning Place On the 28th of March, a catastrophe hit the of Seoul, a factor that critically threatened the safety of the public. According to sources, the road had given way below, and, as a result, a 15 ton truck fell sideways, it’s imperative to realize that the sinkholes occur due to the problems encountered in improper construction or aging sewages and water pipelines within a city. Several people lost. According to reports, a local bus sank in the roads of Seoul when the sink roads opened in a pavement in South Korea. A man and a woman were rescued from the bus that sunk as a result of the sink hole. This incident left the nation in a state of confusion since they had never experienced such a trudged. These backgrounds form the main reason for the development of this paper into finding out approaches of solving this catastrophe. Despite The Truth that sinkholes swallow cars, this occurrences have led the nation of Japan to prompt ways through which this issues can be solved (Broughton, 2015). The government of Japan has involved the initiatives of the engineers and other experts to submit their views on the problems. The bodies that have been deployed by the government has therefore launched approaches of discovering the main reasons of this occurrences and the ways of managing them holistically. Sinkholes in this respect are caused by a number of factors. The main factors that cause the malady include rocks that exist under the groundwater surfaces that move in the event that they are washed away. Introduction Seoul is located in South Koreas in the southern Korean Peninsula; the city is surrounded by the yellow sea and Japan to the west and the east. The country is covered by approximately 99,274 kilometers of mountains with the western and the southern parts of the city covered with plains (Broughton, 2015). The city of Seoul was once considered a poor city in South Korea. Today, the city has grown and is bloomed as a cultural capital that is well endowed and integrated with well architectural buildings and top museums that influence so many people to visit these scenarios. The background of Seoul started in the 18BC when the city as chosen to be the capital of the Baekian Kingdom, Seoul, however, had very many rules from which the name was derived. The city gained fame during the dynasty of Joseon, who chose Seoul to be the capital city of his Kingdom. Geologically South Korea did not occur much in this sinkhole and did not pay attention about this. However, recent sinkhole in urban areas is increasing the incidence and trends in the metropolitan area, for instance 7 cases have occurred in 2014 (Kobal, Bertoncelj, Pirotti, Dakskobler, & Kutnar, 2015). More than 95% of survey respondents living in metropolitan areas are feeling the anxiety and his response is also a point indicated by the 80% required a systematic response that can become a victim. After a period of time, Seoul grew into a real city with a population of 100,000 people. The city was ruled under the Japanese colonial rule in which the cultures in the city fade away, and the places within the city were destroyed (Kobal, et.al). Since this period, the city of Seoul has been growing rapidly, a factor that symbolizes the economic progress of South –Korea. Today, the city of Seoul has developed into a modern town with the advancements I technology and infrastructures including buildings and roads. The streets of Seoul are filled with traffic of over 10.3 million people find this city is the centre hub of all business activities. . Several events happen in this city, with many bindings and structures developed in Seoul. Today Seoul is considered the largest town in South-Korea since it has developed into a first world city. The city of Seoul is endowed with a transportation system that comprises of subways in with street trams pass through. The roads are also well structured with many motor vehicles and cubs operating all thorough the day (North, Polk, & Nedvidek, 2014). This paper, therefore, seeks to underline the problems that the city of Seoul is facing in the contemporary times. Causes of the Problems Experienced in Seoul Seoul is situated in a region where sinkholes have the capacity to develop unexpectedly as the roads in the city collapse into underground cavities. According to sources, this cavities occur in the bedrocks that are dominated by limestone’s which are covered by sand clay. It is significant to realize that sinkholes are either man-made or natural. The natural sinkhole occurs as a result of the underground waters that wash surfaces and shake the structures that are built. The natural sinkholes develop far much before they are realized (North, et.al). The ground that is beneath is not as stable as we perceive since it is made from rocks and minerals including dirt. There are underground water tables that from time to time seep in between this rocks and minerals. When this happens, the water slowly carries and waves off the rock surfaces and minerals. In the event that the water flow increases, the underground structures are quickly washed away, and this results in the weakness of this surfaces. When these surfaces turn weak, they are not in a position to hold any pressures that lead from the ground; this, therefore, results in the formation of a sinkhole. On the other hand, human activities are also to blame in the formation of sinkholes. When human beings degrade the environment by engaging in activities such as drilling, construction, deforestation, mining, and piping, the soil is hugely affected since it turns out to be loose rather than compact. When water from the broken pipes penetrate through the soil surfaces, the rocks and mad in turn get eroded, thus leaving the soil surfaces weak to hold anything, This, therefore, results in the formation of a sinkhole (North, et.al). Due to the heavy weights applied n the soft soil as a result of moving vehicles and trucks, the ground collapses, therefore resulting into a sinkhole. Sinkholes can also result from weak land surfaces that have been farmed and cropped for long durations. There are some land surfaces that have bedrocks that are made of limestone’s and salt deposits. These surfaces are more prone to erosions that may lead to the formation of sinkholes. When acidic water penetrates through these surfaces, the structures of the soil are prone to erode, thus leading to erosions that result into the formation of sinkholes. Rain waters are prone of penetrating way through the debris, and since the waters hold some acids, they corrode the soil surfaces to a larger extent (North, et.al).These results in small unnoticeable holes that grows bigger from time to time thus resulting into larger sinkholes. These holes may be fatal since they can cause accidents and loss of lives. There are different kinds of sinkholes that are determined by the geographical processes and the land tenures. Effects of Sinkholes In Seoul, the effects of the sinkholes depend on where the atrocity has occurred. When the natural sinkholes form on the land surfaces, they change the topographic view of the area where they occur. In the event that these sinkholes occur on land, they divert the streams of water and cause extensive damages on the human property and life as well. Holes are therefore formed due to the underground leaks thus causing a collapse and damage in the property. These sinkholes prove to be dangerous to road users and buildings since the toxic elements beneath the earth form and pollute the land. Sinkholes mainly occur in Seoul since the city has several underground d voids and other drainage systems that are curved under the ground with carbonate rocks (Song, Cho, & Chang, 2012). Excessive groundwater use in this sinkhole caused by the human activity is reported to be the primary cause is of the flows and disturbances in the groundwater during the development projects, such as water and sewage pipe leaks. Excessive use of groundwater causes sinkholes because the underground rocks formations cannot escape the underground water space. Leaks in the groundwater to the surface during the development projects change the existing underground water flows. In the event that there are leakages in the water and sewage pipes, sinkhole are likely to occur while water and soil are precipitated because they get weak in the cohesion of the clay. Lipid is relatively stable in the sinkholes. However, they have the capacity to lower the water table levels a factor that proves unstable (Song, et.al). Korea is relatively stable in geological terms since the nation has a few areas covered with limestone’s, which result in sinkholes. In the metropolitan areas, sinkholes occur due to the lack of the management of the construction system, aging water and sewage facilities, including lowering the water table as a result of the complex action. Sinkhole considered for large-scale development projects approved during sinkhole causing holes cause the disturbances of the lack of groundwater flow, underground water leakage. Annually lowering the water has accelerated the caused a sinkhole. Use a management of water resources and floods, droughts, water shortages, medium and long term needs utilizing big data management system for disaster prevention, such as sinkholes Water-rated services. One challenge that the city of Seoul faces is that the natural sinkholes cannot be mitigated in time. Studies have revealed that maintaining the underground subways and systems is the best way of maintaining the underground water systems that corrode the eat surfaces (Song, et.al.) The sinkholes that result from human negligence can be mitigated in due time before they turn out into massacres, Policies in Seoul against Disasters Seoul has reorganized the disasters that occurred in the country that claimed the lives of many people as a result of the sinkholes. Out of this, the city developed a disaster management policy in order to address the challenges it faces as a result of disasters. This policy mainly focuses on disaster management. The government has out of this engaged the efforts of the architectures in order to find a solution into this problem as well (Song, et.al.). Conclusion Sinkholes have become a major problem to the city of Seoul, and the nation has a problem in managing the problems associated with the natural calamities. Sinkholes prove to be dangerous to road users and buildings since the toxic elements beneath the earth form and pollute the land. Many properties and lives have been lost as a result of this malady, thus calling into the government to derive decisive ways of managing the problems. The people of Seoul have faced a number of challenges out of this problem and they today need a long term solution that addresses these issues. It is therefore important to realize that the management of such a disaster calls for the collaboration between the government and the people in order to derive approaches of solving this problem. Through this, the nation has a responsibility to develop a strategy aimed at mitigating the challenges that face the nation Works Cited Broughton, P. L. (2015). Incipient vertical traction carpets within collapsed sinkhole fills. Sedimentlogy, 62(3), 845-866. Kobal, M., Bertoncelj, I., Pirotti, F., Dakskobler, I., & Kutnar, L. (2015). Using Lidar Data to Analyse Sinkhole Characteristics Relevant for Understory Vegetation under Forest Cover—Case Study of a High Karst Area in the Dinaric Mountains. Plos ONE,10(3), 1-19. North, L. A., Polk, J. S., & Nedvidek, D. (2014). Getting Revved Up About Sinkholes!. American Geographical Societys Focus On Geography, 57(2), 97-100. Song, K., Cho, G., & Chang, S. (2012). Identification, remediation, and analysis of karst sinkholes in the longest railroad tunnel in South Korea. Engineering Geology, 135-13692-105. Read More