Water resources from alpine and other mountainous karst aquifers play an important role for water supply in many European countries. As regulated in the WFD (Water Framework Directive), karstic catchments require sustainable protection. The increasing strains to such regions and the different utilization in the watersheds of karst springs are important triggers to establish early warning system...

[1] The responses of karstic aquifers to storms are often used to obtain information about aquifer geometry. In general, spring hydrographs are a function of both system geometry and recharge. However, the majority of prior work on storm pulses through karst has not studied the effect of recharge on spring hydrographs. To examine the relative importance of geometry and recharge, we break karsti...

A quantitative TaqMan minor-groove binder real-time PCR assay was developed for the sensitive detection of a ruminant-specific genetic marker in fecal members of the phylum Bacteroidetes. The qualitative and quantitative detection limits determined were 6 and 20 marker copies per PCR, respectively. Tested ruminant feces contained an average of 4.1 x 10(9) marker equivalents per g, allowing the ...

The environmental conditions which contributed to the formation of the notorious quaternary deposits of freshwater sponge spicules in karstic lentic environments in Brazil have been subject of some speculation. No investigation has yet been conducted to test whether these deposits currently originate in karstic lakes. To provide for such an investigation, Serra Negra Lake, which is formed on an...

We report on a field test of a transportable version of a superconducting gravimeter (SG) intended for groundwater storage monitoring. The test was conducted over a 6-month period at a site adjacent to a well in the recharge zone of the karstic Edwards Aquifer, a major groundwater resource in central Texas. The purpose of the study was to assess requirements for unattended operation of the SG i...

At least potentially karstifiable rocks cover much of the surface of Egypt and northern Libya. Study of caves and other karstic features of this region has been hampered by lack of roads, rapid disintegration of the surface of friable, poorly consolidated limestone, wind-blown sand and other factors. Interbedding with marly aquicludes hampers speleogenesis locally. Calcareous and evaporite kars...

The availability of quality water is a basic condition of socioeconomic development. The agriculture water demand can be damaged by contamination of groundwater resources. This paper proposes a tool to preserve groundwater quality by using groundwater vulnerability assessment methods and a decision support system (DSS). The mapping of intrinsic groundwater vulnerability was based on reliable me...

the study of karst phenomena and its potentials has had always a particular importance in semi-arid zones of iran, specifically due to the lack of water sources. in this paper, we are going to discuss the landscape morphology in karstic areas, and the way we can have an ecological planning approach to it. maharlu karst basin was selected as the case study of karstic area, and kaftarak mount in ...