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Earth Sciences

2015

Sinkhole Conference 2015

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Full-Text Articles in Physical Sciences and Mathematics

Evaluation Of First Order Error Induced By Conservative-Tracer Temperature Approximation For Mixing In Karstic Flow, Philippe Machetel, David A. Yuen Oct 2015

Evaluation Of First Order Error Induced By Conservative-Tracer Temperature Approximation For Mixing In Karstic Flow, Philippe Machetel, David A. Yuen

Sinkhole Conference 2015

Fluid dynamics in karst systems is complex due to the heterogeneity of hydraulic networks that combine the Porous Fractured Matrix (PFM) and the interconnected drains (CS). These complex dynamic systems often need to be treated as “black boxes” in which only input and output properties are known. In this work, we propose to assess the first-order error induced by considering the temperature as a conservative tracer for flows mixing in karst (fluvio-karst). The fluvio-karstic system is treated as an open thermodynamic system (OTS), which exchanges water and heat with its surrounding. We propose to use a cylindrical PFM drained by …


Numerical Simulation Of Spring Hydrograph Recession Curves For East Yorkshire Chalk Aquifer, Uk, Nozad Hasan Azeez, Landis Jared West, Simon H. Bottrell Oct 2015

Numerical Simulation Of Spring Hydrograph Recession Curves For East Yorkshire Chalk Aquifer, Uk, Nozad Hasan Azeez, Landis Jared West, Simon H. Bottrell

Sinkhole Conference 2015

The Cretaceous Chalk aquifer is the most important in the UK for the provision of water to public supply and agriculture. The Chalk has both matrix and fracture porosity and is thus best considered as a dual porosity aquifer system. Although the matrix porosity is large, typically around 0.35 in the study area of East Yorkshire, UK (ESI, 2010), pore diameters are typically very small, and the water contained in them is virtually immobile. The high permeability fracture network is responsible for the ability of water to drain; spatial variations in fracture network properties mean conventional approaches to aquifer characterization …


Accounting For Anomalous Hydraulic Responses During Constant-Rate Pumping Tests In The Prairie Du Chien-Jordan Aquifer System – Towards A More Accurate Assessment Of Leakage, Justin Blum Oct 2015

Accounting For Anomalous Hydraulic Responses During Constant-Rate Pumping Tests In The Prairie Du Chien-Jordan Aquifer System – Towards A More Accurate Assessment Of Leakage, Justin Blum

Sinkhole Conference 2015

The Prairie du Chien-Jordan Aquifer system is an important source of drinking water for residents of southeastern Minnesota. Assessment of the hydraulic properties of this aquifer continues to be of interest for wellhead protection and resource evaluation efforts. When performing constant-rate pumping tests on wells constructed in the karsted Prairie du Chien Aquifer, anomalous hydraulic responses resulting from cavernous flow are frequently observed. Hydraulic response in the adjacent Jordan Sandstone Aquifer is also commonly distorted because of bedding-plane fractures and well development techniques such as blasting and bailing. Resolution of these anomalous responses is important for accurate estimates of leakage …


Cars And Karst: Investigating The National Corvette Museum Sinkhole, Jason S. Polk, Leslie North, Ric Federico, Brian Ham, Dan Nedvidek, Kegan Mcclanahan, Pat Kambesis, Mike Marasa Oct 2015

Cars And Karst: Investigating The National Corvette Museum Sinkhole, Jason S. Polk, Leslie North, Ric Federico, Brian Ham, Dan Nedvidek, Kegan Mcclanahan, Pat Kambesis, Mike Marasa

Sinkhole Conference 2015

On February 12th, 2014, a sinkhole occurred at the National Corvette Museum in Bowling Green, Kentucky. The collapse happened inside part of the building known as the Skydome and eight Corvettes on display were lost into the void that opened in the concrete floor. In this region of Kentucky, known as the Pennyroyal sinkhole plain, subsidence and cover collapse sinkholes are commonly found throughout the landscape. This iconic karst region in the United States is also home to Mammoth Cave, the longest cave in the world, and thousands of other caves and karst features. Investigation of the sinkhole collapse began …


Building Codes To Minimize Cover Collapses In Sinkhole-Prone Areas, George Veni, Connie Campbell Brashear, Andrew Glasbrenner Oct 2015

Building Codes To Minimize Cover Collapses In Sinkhole-Prone Areas, George Veni, Connie Campbell Brashear, Andrew Glasbrenner

Sinkhole Conference 2015

Cover- collapse sinkholes are forming with increasing frequency under buildings. Analyses of sinkhole distribution in Beacon Woods, Florida, preliminarily indicate their occurrence is an order of magnitude greater in urban versus undeveloped areas, suggesting the structures themselves are enhancing the collapse process. The most likely causes are induced recharge via at least one of two sources. First, runoff and drainage from roads, structures, and impoundments that is not adequately dispersed will promote sinkhole development. Second, leaking water, sewer, and septic systems beneath or adjacent to a structure will also promote collapse. The process of cover-collapse from induced recharge is well …


Evaporite Geo-Hazard In The Sauris Area (Friuli Venezia Giulia Region - Ne Italy), Chiara Calligaris, Stefano Devoto, Luca Zini, Franco Cucchi Oct 2015

Evaporite Geo-Hazard In The Sauris Area (Friuli Venezia Giulia Region - Ne Italy), Chiara Calligaris, Stefano Devoto, Luca Zini, Franco Cucchi

Sinkhole Conference 2015

Evaporite sinkholes represent a severe threat to many European countries, including Italy. Among the Italian regions, of the area most affected is the northern sector of Friuli Venezia Giulia Region (NE Italy). Here chalks had two main depositional periods first in the Late Permian and then during the Late Carnian (Late Triassic). Evaporites outcrop mainly in the Alpine valleys or are partially mantled by Quaternary deposits, as occur along the Tagliamento River Valley. Furthermore, evaporites make up some portions of mountains and Alpine slopes, generating hundreds of karst depressions. This paper presents the preliminary results of the research activities carried …


The Cost Of Karst Subsidence And Sinkhole Collapse In The United States Compared With Other Natural Hazards, David J. Weary Oct 2015

The Cost Of Karst Subsidence And Sinkhole Collapse In The United States Compared With Other Natural Hazards, David J. Weary

Sinkhole Conference 2015

Rocks with potential for karst formation are found in all 50 states. Damage due to karst subsidence and sinkhole collapse is a natural hazard of national scope. Repair of damage to buildings, highways, and other infrastructure represents a significant national cost. Sparse and incomplete data show that the average cost of karst-related damages in the United States over the last 15 years is estimated to be at least $300,000,000 per year and the actual total is probably much higher. This estimate is lower than the estimated annual costs for other natural hazards; flooding, hurricanes and cyclonic storms, tornadoes, landslides, earthquakes, …


Hydrochemical Characteristics And Formation Mechanism Of Groundwater In The Liulin Karst System, Min Yang, Feng'e Zhang, Sheng Zhang, Miying Yin, Guoqing Wu Oct 2015

Hydrochemical Characteristics And Formation Mechanism Of Groundwater In The Liulin Karst System, Min Yang, Feng'e Zhang, Sheng Zhang, Miying Yin, Guoqing Wu

Sinkhole Conference 2015

The Liulin karst system is typical of hydrogeological systems in northwestern China, with a group of springs as the dominant mechanism for regional groundwater discharge. To reveal the hydrochemical formation mechanism of the Liulin karst groundwater system, we studied the hydrogeochemical processes of karst groundwater in aquifers at the base of the hydrogeological investigation. Then starting from the chemical composition of karst groundwater together with the recharge-runoff - discharge process of groundwater systems, we analyzed the solutes origin and the dissolved mineral facies of the groundwater chemical composition. The results showed that the anionic and cationic compositions of karst water …


Dye Tracing Through The Vadose Zone Above Wind Cave, Custer County, South Dakota, James Nepstad Oct 2015

Dye Tracing Through The Vadose Zone Above Wind Cave, Custer County, South Dakota, James Nepstad

Sinkhole Conference 2015

During the 1990s, in an attempt to better understand threats posed by surface developments overlying the cave, National Park Service staff at Wind Cave National Park in Custer County, South Dakota carried out a series of dye traces through portions of the vadose zone overlying the cave. Wind Cave is located within the 100m-thick Madison formation (limestone and dolomite), which in most locations is capped by varying thicknesses of the basal units of the Minnelusa formation (intermingled beds of sandstone, limestone, and shale). A variety of cave locations with dripping or pooled water were monitored for up to five years …


Finding Springs In The File Cabinet, Mason Johnson, Ashley Ignatius Oct 2015

Finding Springs In The File Cabinet, Mason Johnson, Ashley Ignatius

Sinkhole Conference 2015

The Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA), in partnership with other agencies, is currently undertaking comprehensive sub-basin assessments statewide over a ten-year period. Southeast Minnesota has over 17,500 kilometers of perennial and intermittent streams, making the task of comprehensive sub-basin assessment challenging; the task is further complicated by karst geology. In the summer of 2014, a pilot project began between the MPCA and Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR) to digitally preserve paper documents which capture qualitative and quantitative data about the hydrology, water chemistry, geomorphology, biology, land use and karst features of southeast Minnesota streams. The paper documents in file …


A Method Of Mapping Sinkhole Susceptibility Using A Geographic Information System: A Case Study For Interstates In The Karst Counties Of Virginia, Alexandra L. Todd, Lindsay Ivey-Burden Oct 2015

A Method Of Mapping Sinkhole Susceptibility Using A Geographic Information System: A Case Study For Interstates In The Karst Counties Of Virginia, Alexandra L. Todd, Lindsay Ivey-Burden

Sinkhole Conference 2015

Karst terrain is landscape underlain by limestone that has been chemically dissolved by acidic groundwater, producing subsurface voids that pose risks for sinkholes if the overlaying soils can no longer support their own weight and collapse. The western counties of Virginia are heavy in karst due to their natural, geographic boundary of the western Ridge Province and the eastern Blue Ridge Mountain Range. As a result, the Commonwealth of Virginia Hazard Mitigation Plan recommends that the Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT) develop a method to determine the roadways and regions most susceptible to experiencing sinkholes, in an effort to reduce …


Legacy Data In The Minnesota Spring Inventory, Greg Brick Oct 2015

Legacy Data In The Minnesota Spring Inventory, Greg Brick

Sinkhole Conference 2015

Past spring inventories have covered certain parts of Minnesota reasonably well, notably, the springs of the Minneapolis-St. Paul metropolitan area and the southeastern Minnesota karst. But hitherto, there has not been a systematic effort to create a uniform statewide inventory. The first step, before hunting down new springs, was to compile existing data and the most fruitful source of hydrological legacy data for the Minnesota spring inventory was the DNR Fisheries files. Once entered into a GIS-capable database, these spring locations can help “seed the ground” so that when crews finally do take to the field to map more springs, …


History And Future Of The Minnesota Karst Feature Database, Robert Tipping, Mathew Rantala, E. Calvin Alexander Jr., Yongli Gao, Jeffrey Green Oct 2015

History And Future Of The Minnesota Karst Feature Database, Robert Tipping, Mathew Rantala, E. Calvin Alexander Jr., Yongli Gao, Jeffrey Green

Sinkhole Conference 2015

Since the 1990s, the University of Minnesota and the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources have maintained a karst features database that is used to conduct research on karst processes and inventory karst features. Originally designed as a tabular database only, the karst features database developed into a spatial database in 2002, with tabular data stored in Microsoft Access and a spatial component managed in ESRI ArcView. In 2012, the database was converted to a single, relational database platform, PostgreSQL, with both tabular and spatial components edited in ESRI ArcMap. Custom editing forms are written in Visual Basic and are accessed …


A Semi-Automated Tool For Reducing The Creation Of False Closed Depressions From A Filled Lidar-Derived Digital Elevation Model, John Wall, Daniel H. Doctor, Silvia Terziotti Oct 2015

A Semi-Automated Tool For Reducing The Creation Of False Closed Depressions From A Filled Lidar-Derived Digital Elevation Model, John Wall, Daniel H. Doctor, Silvia Terziotti

Sinkhole Conference 2015

Closed depressions on the land surface can be identified by ‘filling’ a digital elevation model (DEM) and subtracting the filled model from the original DEM. However, automated methods suffer from artificial ‘dams’ where surface streams cross under bridges and through culverts. Removal of these false depressions from an elevation model is difficult due to the lack of bridge and culvert inventories; thus, another method is needed to breach these artificial dams. Here, we present a semi-automated workflow and toolbox to remove falsely detected closed depressions created by artificial dams in a DEM. The approach finds the intersections between transportation routes …


Sinkhole Vulnerability Mapping: Results From A Pilot Study In North Central Florida, Clint Kromhout, Alan E. Baker Oct 2015

Sinkhole Vulnerability Mapping: Results From A Pilot Study In North Central Florida, Clint Kromhout, Alan E. Baker

Sinkhole Conference 2015

At the end of June in 2012, Tropical Storm Debby dropped a record amount of rainfall across Florida which triggered hundreds, if not thousands, of sinkholes to form which resulted in tremendous damage to property. The Florida Division of Emergency Management contracted with the Florida Department of Environmental Protection’s Florida Geological Survey to produce a map depicting the state’s vulnerability to sinkhole formation. The three-year project began with a pilot study in three northern Florida counties: Columbia, Hamilton and Suwannee. Utilizing the statistical modeling method Weights of Evidence, results from the pilot study yielded a 93 percent success rate of …


Shallow Depressions In The Florida Coastal Plain: Karst And Pseudokarst, Sam B. Upchurch, Thomas M. Scott, Michael C. Alfieri, Thomas L. Dobecki Oct 2015

Shallow Depressions In The Florida Coastal Plain: Karst And Pseudokarst, Sam B. Upchurch, Thomas M. Scott, Michael C. Alfieri, Thomas L. Dobecki

Sinkhole Conference 2015

In Florida, shallow depressions (i.e., depressions <1-2 m in depth) on the land surface are often attributed to sinkhole development. However, it has become evident that there are at least six different mechanisms through which these depressions can form in geologically young cover sediments. These mechanisms include: 1. Cover-subsidence sinkholes over shallow limestone; 2. Suffosion sinkholes over shallow limestone; 3. Cover settlement over shallow shell beds; 4. Large, aeolian deflation areas that resemble “Carolina bays;” 5. Depressions that mimic landforms developed on a shallow paleosol; and 6. Depressions created by pedodiagenesis (i.e., conversion of smectite to kaolinite) in a soil-forming environment. Of these, only the first two appear to represent traditional mechanisms for sinkhole development in eogenetic karst. Cover settlement over shell beds is poorly understood and incorrectly attributed to sinkhole development processes. This type of depression has serious limitations in terms of cover thickness and shell content of the substrate. The last three mechanisms are pseudokarst created by aeolian and soil-forming processes. In this paper we present examples of each and discuss their constraints and evidence.


Creation Of A Map Of Paleozoic Bedrock Springsheds In Southeast Minnesota, Jeffrey A. Green, E. Calvin Alexander Jr. Oct 2015

Creation Of A Map Of Paleozoic Bedrock Springsheds In Southeast Minnesota, Jeffrey A. Green, E. Calvin Alexander Jr.

Sinkhole Conference 2015

Springs are groundwater discharge points that serve as vital coldwater sources for streams in southeast Minnesota. The springs generally emanate from Paleozoic carbonate and siliciclastic bedrock aquifers. Use of systematic dye tracing began in the 1970s and continues through the present as a standard method for investigating karst hydrology and to map springsheds,. The work was accelerated in 2007 because of increased funding from the State of Minnesota’s Environment and Natural Resources Trust Fund. A compilation springshed map of dye traces conducted over the last several decades has been assembled for the region. In southeast Minnesota, the springs are the …


Using Electrical Resistivity Imaging To Characterize Karst Hazards In Southeastern Minnesota Agricultural Settings, Toby Dogwiler, Blake Lea Oct 2015

Using Electrical Resistivity Imaging To Characterize Karst Hazards In Southeastern Minnesota Agricultural Settings, Toby Dogwiler, Blake Lea

Sinkhole Conference 2015

Much of the Driftless Area of southeastern Minnesota is underlain by karstified carbonate bedrock. Land use in this karst terrain is dominated by agriculture, including row crop and dairy operations. The karst in this region is often mantled with up to 15 m of soil and unconsolidated sediments. As a result, underlying karst hazards such as incipient sinkholes are often hidden until they are suddenly revealed by the collapse of subsurface voids. Regionally, the economics of the dairy industry is causing a trend toward the consolidation and expansion of existing operations. As concentrated animal feeding operations (CAFO) or feedlots expand, …


Pre-Event And Post-Formation Ground Movement Associated With The Bayou Corne Sinkhole, Cathleen E. Jones, Ronald Blom Oct 2015

Pre-Event And Post-Formation Ground Movement Associated With The Bayou Corne Sinkhole, Cathleen E. Jones, Ronald Blom

Sinkhole Conference 2015

We discuss measurements of the precursory and post-formation ground displacement in the vicinity of the Bayou Corne, Louisiana, sinkhole made using interferometric synthetic aperture radar (InSAR) and data from the L-band UAVSAR instrument. Large precursory movement was observed at the sinkhole site and shown to be predominantly horizontal in direction, in contrast to sinkhole precursors previously detected with InSAR, all of which indicated vertical deformation. Here we discuss how two opposing imaging directions were used to determine the precursory horizontal movement, and use the same technique to look at the progression of post-formation ground displacement around the expanding sinkhole during …


Investigation Of A Sinkhole In Ogle County, Northwestern Illinois, Using Near-Surface Geophysical Techniques, Philip J. Carpenter, Lauren Schroeder Oct 2015

Investigation Of A Sinkhole In Ogle County, Northwestern Illinois, Using Near-Surface Geophysical Techniques, Philip J. Carpenter, Lauren Schroeder

Sinkhole Conference 2015

A sinkhole measuring 40 m in diameter and up to 6.5 m deep occurs within the Nachusa Grasslands, near the town of Franklin Grove, northwestern Illinois. This area, dedicated to prairie conservation and restoration, is owned and operated by The Nature Conservancy. Several meters of unconsolidated sand, gravel, and clay overlie the St. Peter sandstone, beneath which lies karstic Prairie du Chien dolomite. Investigations included EM conductivity profiles, resistivity soundings, 2D resistivity, and ground- penetrating radar (GPR), supplemented by conductivity logs, soil cores, and tree core studies. These data indicate the sandstone averages about 5 m deep near the sinkhole …


Characterization Of Karst Terrain Using Geophysical Methods Based On Sinkhole Analysis: A Case Study Of The Anina Karstic Region (Banat Mountains, Romania), Laurentiu Artugyan, Adrian C. Ardelean, Petru Urdea Oct 2015

Characterization Of Karst Terrain Using Geophysical Methods Based On Sinkhole Analysis: A Case Study Of The Anina Karstic Region (Banat Mountains, Romania), Laurentiu Artugyan, Adrian C. Ardelean, Petru Urdea

Sinkhole Conference 2015

To understand karst topography, we must determine both the nature and the factors that are defining dissolution processes in soluble rocks, as well as the drainage network resulting from these processes. The goal of this paper is to understand the underground drainage direction configuration and, also, the factors that are involved in surface water drainage of the Anina karstic region. In this study we used two complementary geophysical methods, spontaneous potential (SP) and ground penetrating radar (GPR), applied in 5 sinkholes with a funnel shaped aspect. Four of these sinkholes are circular and one of them is elongated NW-SE direction. …


Rollalong Resistivity Surveys Reveal Karstic Paleotopography Developed On Near-Surface Gypsum Bedrock: Lower Pecos Valley, Southeastern New Mexico, Lewis Land Oct 2015

Rollalong Resistivity Surveys Reveal Karstic Paleotopography Developed On Near-Surface Gypsum Bedrock: Lower Pecos Valley, Southeastern New Mexico, Lewis Land

Sinkhole Conference 2015

Following flooding in September 2013, several areas in northern Eddy County, New Mexico were damaged by multiple sinkhole collapses. We conducted rollalong electrical resistivity (ER) surveys for subsurface cavities parallel to roads within and near the community of Lakewood, NM to guide road repairs. The rollalong method allowed us to generate exceptionally long, continuous ER profiles of the survey area. ER surveys attained a maximum exploration depth of 55 to 62 meters over a lateral extent of ~1000 meters, revealing an unconformable surface developed on gypsum bedrock, punctuated by shallow depressions. Subsurface stratigraphy, including clay-rich valley fill sediments, and mudstone …


Goliath’S Cave, Minnesota: Epigenic Modification And Extension Of Pre-Existing Hypogenic Conduits, E. Calvin Alexander Jr., Scott C. Alexander, Kelton Barr, Andrew Luhmann, Cale Anger Oct 2015

Goliath’S Cave, Minnesota: Epigenic Modification And Extension Of Pre-Existing Hypogenic Conduits, E. Calvin Alexander Jr., Scott C. Alexander, Kelton Barr, Andrew Luhmann, Cale Anger

Sinkhole Conference 2015

Goliath’s Cave is developed in the Ordovician Dubuque and Stewartville Formations of the Galena Group in Fillmore County, MN. The cave currently functions as an epigenic karst system with allogenic surface water sinking into the cave and a vadose stream running through the cave and resurging at springs a few kilometers away. Passages in the cave are locally controlled by vertical joints in the nearly flat-lying carbonate bedrock, but the water flow directions often do not correspond to the systematic joint directions. The cave contains straight, joint-controlled passages that appear to pre-date the current epigenic drainage systems. These old passages …


Relay Ramp Structures And Their Influence On Groundwater Flow In The Edwards And Trinity Aquifers, Hays And Travis Counties, Central Texas, Brian B. Hunt, Brian A. Smith, Alan Andrews, Douglas Wierman, Alex S. Broun, Marcus Gary Oct 2015

Relay Ramp Structures And Their Influence On Groundwater Flow In The Edwards And Trinity Aquifers, Hays And Travis Counties, Central Texas, Brian B. Hunt, Brian A. Smith, Alan Andrews, Douglas Wierman, Alex S. Broun, Marcus Gary

Sinkhole Conference 2015

The Cretaceous Edwards and Middle Trinity Aquifers of central Texas are critical groundwater resources for human and ecological needs. These two major karst aquifers are stratigraphically stacked (Edwards over Trinity) and structurally juxtaposed (normal faulting) in the Balcones Fault Zone (BFZ). Studies have long recognized the importance of faulting on the development of the karstic Edwards Aquifer. However, the influence of these structures on groundwater flow is unclear as groundwater flow appears to cross some faults, but not others. This study combines structural and hydrological data to help characterize the potential influence of faults and relay ramps on groundwater flow …


Down The Rabbit Hole: Identifying Physical Controls On Sinkhole Formation In The Uk, Tamsin Green Oct 2015

Down The Rabbit Hole: Identifying Physical Controls On Sinkhole Formation In The Uk, Tamsin Green

Sinkhole Conference 2015

Heavy precipitation in the UK in February 2014 induced ground subsidence and consequently a rapid increase in the frequency of sinkhole occurrences. These new sinkhole collapses emphasise the need to further analyse the causes of the increased occurrence by investigating the relative importance of various surficial factors. Malham and the Mendips are two areas of particular interest, since both are underlain by limestone bedrock and are susceptible to subsidence. This is due to limestone being primarily permeable in joints, and so it dissolves to form an extensive network of karstic caves. It was therefore useful to compare two sites of …


The Sandstone Karst Of Pine County, Minnesota, Beverley Lynn Shade, Emmit Calvin Alexander Jr., Scott C. Alexander Oct 2015

The Sandstone Karst Of Pine County, Minnesota, Beverley Lynn Shade, Emmit Calvin Alexander Jr., Scott C. Alexander

Sinkhole Conference 2015

The glaciated, forested landscape of central Pine County in east-central Minnesota contains a series of sinkholes, stream sinks, springs and caves. The features are formed in Precambrian Hinckley Sandstone and overlying unconsolidated glacial deposits. This is a sandstone karst. The features serve the same function as in carbonate karst terrains: sinkholes and caves focus recharge into a heterogeneous subterranean flow system that discharges into springs. The Hinckley Sandstone is a quartz arenite. No carbonate grains or cements have been found in sandstone samples from the sinkhole area, nor is there evidence that calcite solution controls bedrock permeability. Three parameters appear …


Successful Foundation Preparations In Karst Bedrock Of The Masonry Section Of Wolf Creek Dam, David M. Robison Oct 2015

Successful Foundation Preparations In Karst Bedrock Of The Masonry Section Of Wolf Creek Dam, David M. Robison

Sinkhole Conference 2015

Extensive foundation preparations during construction of the Wolf Creek Dam concrete masonry section precluded the need for additional rehabilitation to mitigate seepage through karstic limestone bedrock. Wolf Creek Dam on the Cumberland River in southern Kentucky has become well known for karst related seepage issues underneath the embankment section, and yet has had little to no seepage issues associated with the concrete masonry portion of the dam. Post-construction efforts to control seepage underneath the embankment began in 1967 and 1968. Emergency grouting commenced and continued through 1970. Between 1975 and 1979 a more permanent solution of a concrete diaphragm cut-off …


Pre-Construction Rock Treatment And Soil Modification Program Using Low Mobility Grout To Mitigate Future Sinkhole Development In A 2,787.1 Square Meter (30,000 Sf) Maintenance Facility, Steven W. Shifflett Oct 2015

Pre-Construction Rock Treatment And Soil Modification Program Using Low Mobility Grout To Mitigate Future Sinkhole Development In A 2,787.1 Square Meter (30,000 Sf) Maintenance Facility, Steven W. Shifflett

Sinkhole Conference 2015

The US Army required construction of a 2,787.1 square meters (30,000 sf) maintenance facility supported on shallow foundations at the Fort Campbell Military Installation. During the subsurface investigation a seven foot air-filled void was encountered in the bedrock within the building footprint. Electrical Resistivity Imaging (ERI) was conducted in an attempt to determine the lateral extent of the encountered void and to establish the general prevalence of karst features at the site. Due to uncertainty in the subsurface conditions, a rock treatment and soil modification program was developed which consisted of a series of targeted exploratory grout holes advanced in …


Monitoring The Threat Of Sinkhole Formation Under A Portion Of Us 18 In Cerro Gordo County, Iowa Using Tdr Measurements, Kevin O'Connor, Matthew Trainum Oct 2015

Monitoring The Threat Of Sinkhole Formation Under A Portion Of Us 18 In Cerro Gordo County, Iowa Using Tdr Measurements, Kevin O'Connor, Matthew Trainum

Sinkhole Conference 2015

Sinkhole formation is a common occurrence in northeast Iowa, and U.S. 18 in Cerro Gordo County was constructed over an area where sinkhole formation had only been locally known. It had not been recorded or identified in the Iowa DNR database at the time. Since 2004, sinkholes have developed along the right of way. Geophysical surveys contributed very little in the identifying the cause. However a Soil Survey (drilling program) identified numerous voids within carbonate bedrock. The soil borings indicated that shale overlying the carbonate rock has been removed/eroded, and resulted in the development of a karst subsurface through the …


Concepts For Geotechnical Investigation In Karst, Joseph A. Fischer, Joseph J. Fischer Oct 2015

Concepts For Geotechnical Investigation In Karst, Joseph A. Fischer, Joseph J. Fischer

Sinkhole Conference 2015

There seems to be a lack of recognition in the literature that addresses the variety of karst in the United States of America and some of its offshore territories. For example, there are the well-known solutioned carbonates of Florida and the Caribbean, but there are also the somewhat older, harder carbonates of St. Croix, U.S.V.I. Even Florida’s recently deposited karst varies from region to region. There are also the ancient, flat-lying carbonates of the interior craton that often have semi-horizontal cavities resulting from variations in ground water levels affecting bedding and the contorted rocks of the Appalachians with its apparently …