With growing populations and ever increasing pressure on resources, the need to live sustainably with our environment has increased in significance. When considering such anthropogenic pressures, karst landscapes are as vulnerable, if not more so, than any other environment. Such vulnerability arises from the rapid transit times of percolating water, the poor filtering ability of carbonate bedr...

The objective of this project was to investigate the current state of the practice with regards to karst detection methods and current karst construction practices and to recommend the best practices for use by the Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT). A comprehensive review of literature available on the subject was conducted. Various karst detection technologies were summarized with r...

Strong karstlize effect forming surface and underground double-space structure in karst area, what resulting groundwater systems are extremely sensitive to outside interference. This article mainly focuses on the vulnerability assessment of karst groundwater, proposing that the vulnerability assessment of karst groundwater should be considered from three perspectives: the inherent vulnerability...

The term “karst” applies to a distinctive type of landscape that develops from the dissolving action of water on soluble bedrock (Figure 11.1)—primarily limestone and marble but also dolostone, gypsum and halite. Karst landscapes are characterized by fluted and pitted rock surfaces, shafts, sinkholes, sinking streams, springs, subsurface drainage systems, and caves. The unique features and thre...

Cave levels, passages found at similar elevations and formed during the same constant stream base level event, reveal information about paleoclimates and karst geomorphology. The investigation presented here examines how Stream Power Index (SPI) relates to cave levels. The study area, Carter Caves State Resort Park (CCSRP), is a fluviokarst system in northeastern Kentucky containing multiple ca...

The karst hydrological processes are the response of karst groundwater system to precipitation. This study provided a concept model of karst hydrological processes. The hydraulic response time of spring discharge to precipitation includes the time that precipitation penetrates through the vadose zone, and the subsequent groundwater pressure wave propagates to a spring outlet. Due to heterogenei...

Exposed limestone karst landscapes, especially in the tropics, are often home to distinctive and specialized biotas. Among vertebrates, a particularly large number of karst-associated lizard taxa have been described, but for the vast majority, evidence of specific adaptions to karst is lacking. A number of studies, however, have provided evidence of consistent morphological trends in lizards th...

Karst regions, occupy approximately 25% of the land surface of the earth. Karst aquifers are often major sources of water supply in these areas. However, karst aquifers are generally considered to be particularly vulnerable to pollution and anthropogenic impacts. Large withdrawals of water in karst areas for municipal, agricultural, and industrial use may competitively affect water supply in su...

Groundwater resources from karst aquifers play a major role in the water supply in karst areas in the world, such as in Switzerland. Defining groundwater protection zones in karst environment is frequently not founded on a solid hydrogeological basis. Protection zones are often inadequate and as a result they may be ineffective. In order to improve this situation, the Federal Office for Environ...

Southeastern Minnesota is part of the Upper Mississippi Valley Karst (Hedges & Alexander 1985) that includes southwestern Wisconsin and northeastern Iowa. Karst lands in Minnesota developed in Paleozoic carbonate and sandstone bedrock. A significant sandstone karst has developed in Pine County (Shade et al. 2000). Most surficial karst features, such as sinkholes, are only in those areas with le...