The rapid growth of world civilization will have a significant impact on the way humans live in the future. As the global population increases and more countries demand a higher standard of living, the difficulty of doing this is compounded by three broad trends: the conversion of agricultural land to development uses; the increasing urbanization of the world`s population; and growing concern for the maintenance and improvement of the environment, especially regarding global warming and the impact of population growth. Underground space utilization, as this chapter describes, offers opportunities for helping address these trends.7509
By moving certain facilities and function underground, surface land in urban areas can be used more effectively , thus freeing space for agricultural and recreational purpose. Similarly, the use of terraced earth sheltered housing. Using underground space also enables humans to live more comfortably in densely populated areas while improving the quality of live.
On an urban or local level, the use of underground facilities is rising to accommodate the complex demands of today`s society while improving the environment . For example, both urban and rural areas are requiring improved transportation, utility, and recreational services. The state of traffic congestion in many urban areas of the world is at a critical level for the support of basic human living, and it is difficult if not impossible to add new infrastructure at ground level without causing an unacceptable deterioration of the surface environment or an unacceptable relocation of existing land uses and neighborhoods.
On a national level in countries around the world, global trends are causing the creation and extension of mining developments and oil or gas recovery at greater depths and in more inaccessible or sensitive locations. Three trends have also led to the developments of improved designs for energy generation and storage systems as well as national facilities for dealing with hazardous waste (including chemical, biological, and radioactive waste ), and improved high-speed national transportation systems .All these developments involve use of the underground .
Land Use Pressures
 Placing facilities underground is a promising method for helping ease land use pressures caused by the growth and urbanization of the world`s population. Although the average population density in the world is not large, the distribution of population is very uneven. A map of population density in the world is not large ,areas of the world are essentially uninhabited . These areas are for the most part deserts ,mountainous regions, or regions of severe cold that do not easily support human habitation.
If one examines China ,for example ,the average population density is approximately 100 persons per square kilometer, but the vat majority of the one billion-plus population lives on less than 20 percent of the land area. this is the fertile land that can support food production. However, due to population growth, urbanization, and economic growth, this same land must now support extensive transportation systems, industrial and commercial development, and increasing demands for housing, As the population and economy grow, the land available for agriculture shrinks, and the problems of transporting food and raw materials to an urban population increase. By the year 2000 it is estimated that 70 percent of the world`s population will inhabit urban areas.
The same trend are evident in Japan, where approximately 80 percent of the land area is mountainous,90 percent of the population lives on the coastal plains, and economic development is concentrated in relatively few economic development is concentrated in relatively few economic centers .The flat-lying land is generally the most fertile and is historically the region of settlement . Other factors adding to population density include the traditional building style , which is low-rise , and Japanese law that contain strong provisions for maintenance of access to sunlight .Also ,to retain domestic food production capability , the Japanese government has protected agricultural land from development. The combination of these historical and political factors together with a strong migration of businesses and inpiduals to the economic centers has created enormous land use pressure. The result is an astronomically high cost of land in city centers (as high as US $500,00 per square meter) and difficulty in an providing housing, transportation, and utility services for the population. Typical business employees cannot afford to live near the city center where they work and may have to commute one to two hours each way from an affordable area. To service the expanding metropolitan area, public agencies must upgrade roads and build new transit lines and utilizes. Land costs for such work are so high that in central Tokyo, the cost of land may represent over 95 percent of the total cost of a project. 土木工程地下空间的利用英文文献和翻译:http://www.751com.cn/fanyi/lunwen_5504.html