Physical Sciences and Mathematics Commons^™

Studying The Importance Of Hurricanes To The Northern Gulf Of Mexico Coast, Gregory W. Stone, Ping Wang, David A. Pepper, J. M. Grymes Iii, Harry H. Roberts, Xiongping Zhang, S. A. Hsu, Oscar K. Huh

Geology Faculty Publications

A pilot study was recently begun dealing with the impacts and post-storm adjustment of barrier islands to severe storms along the northern Gulf of Mexico. The study, funded by the National Science Foundation, may lead to a more comprehensive understanding of coastal morphodynamics and longer term evolution of the coast in that area. Study of the recent impacts and post-storm adjustment of the area to Hurricane Georges is playing a very important role in enhancing our comprehension of the significance of these high-energy events in coastal dynamics.

A few hours before dawn on September 28, 1998, Hurricane Georges made landfall …

Agriculture And Nature Conservation In The Moravian Karst (Czech Republic), Ivan Balák, Jozef Janèo, Leos Stefka, Pavel Bosák

International Journal of Speleology

Moravian karst is a narrow strip of limestone with long history of settlement, agricultural use and man impact to karst. It is naturally divided into smaller units - karst plateaus - separated by deep valleys (glens). Each plateau has different proportion of land use, i.e. the percentage of agricultural land, forests, etc. The agricultural land constitutes now up to 70% in the north and max. 30% in the centre and south of the total area of plateaus. Intensive agricultural use of the arable land since 60ties of this Century caused great impact to quality of soils and groundwater by overdoses …

Agriculture, Landscape And Human Impact In Some Karst Areas Of Italy, Ezio Burri, Benedetta Castiglioni, Ugo Sauro

International Journal of Speleology

Italy is made up for about 1/5 of its surface by soluble rocks, which represent the arena of karst environments. The karst morpho-units, some hundreds, are mainly distributed inside the alpine structure of the Mediterranean mountains. A very large number of rock formations are present, different in facies, lithology, age, etc. Among these, carbonate rocks prevail, followed by gypsum and salt. Most of the carbonate rocks are limestones sedimented in a platform environment and they show a wide range of porosity, frequency of fractures and bedding planes. The climatic processes, the expression of some different sub-types of Mediterranean climate (from …

Impact Of Agricultural Land Use On Some Hungarian Karst Regions, Ilona Bárány-Kevei

International Journal of Speleology

The karst regions are found in the medium altitude mountains of Hungary. Their land use types are natural and sustainable forestry, grazing and vineyards. In international comparison, Hungary belongs to those countries of Europe where arable land is abundant, therefore, in the future its extension has to be reduced. That means agricultural activity has to be restricted on the sensitive karst surfaces. This paper presents ways of sustainable forestry and other land use types for three karst regions of Hungary.

Agriculture, Grazing And Land Changes At The Serra De Tramuntana Karstic Mountains, Ángel Ginés

International Journal of Speleology

Karst landforms are one of the most outstanding characteristics of the Serra de Tramuntana range on the island of Mallorca, especially regarding traditional farming and the landscape wilderness. Good examples of polje-like depressions, dolines, karstic gorges and karrenfields are widely distributed over the mountain range. Owing to karrenfields occupying a large surface area in the Serra to the exclusion of arable land, the traditional activity based on the repetitive burning of the Ampelodesmos mauritanica brushwoods for cattle-raising promotes hastening deforestation and soil removal.

Impacts Of Agricultural Transformation On The Principal Karstic Regions Of France, Jean Nicod, Jean-Noël Salomon

International Journal of Speleology

The recent extension of intensive agriculture on the karst plateaus has caused different types of impact: soil management, generalised and/or localised pollution. Yet paradoxically rural depopulation can also have negative impacts, which largely depend on the characteristics and the hydrological function of the different karst environments. They are often negative, particularly as far as the water quality is concerned, which is why protection measures are undertaken, either in a defined area for a catchment, or in the framework of regional parks. But this is not always the case, so it is appropriate to analyse the problem of karst pollution as …

Land Use And Human Impact In The Dinaric Karst, Ivan Gams, Matej Gabrovec

International Journal of Speleology

The article presents Dinaric karst, human impacts in the area, and its long history of deforestation, transformation into stony semi-desert, and a century long reforestation, where plans to restore the primary thick soil were just hoping against hope.

Interaction Between Karst, Water And Agriculture Over The Climatic Gradient Of Israel, Amos Frumkin

International Journal of Speleology

The dry climate of Israel and the karstic nature of its rocks have always imposed human innovation for utilisation of water resources and agriculture. Large perennial karst springs are available only in the lowlands, but sophisticated water supply systems were built both in the lowland and highland regions. Marl layers interbedded within carbonates give rise to local perched springs and allow terrace construction. Deforestation has taken place for some 4000 years, causing intense soil erosion, but terraces have reduced this impact.

Land Use In The Karstic Lands In The Mediterranean Region, Ibrahim Atalay

International Journal of Speleology

Karstic lands have special importance in terms of soil formation and land-use. Soil appears only on the flat and slightly undulating karstic lands, while soils are found along the cracks and bedding surfaces between the layers on the hilly karst areas although these lands are rocky in appearance. Karstic lands in the hilly area are not conducive to cultivation. But rocky areas create a favourable habitat for the growth of forests except in an arid climate. Because the tree roots easily follow and develop along the cracks in the limestone. As a general rule soil erosion does not occur on …

Environmental Vulnerability And Agriculture In The Karstic Domain: Landscape Indicators And Cases In The Atlas Highlands, Morocco, Brahim Akdim, Mohammed Amyay

International Journal of Speleology

After the brief presentation of the major karstic areas in Morocco, the article focused essentially on the Atlas mountains to investigate the impact of the agriculture on the natural systems equilibrium. Socio-economic changes (demographic pressure, escalation of the landscape use, utilisation of new techniques in water harvesting, etc...) have sometimes fathered mechanisms of degradation. Many indicators seem to reflect these mechanisms. The pedologic indicators, soil erosion, the hydrologic and geomorphic indicators, are apprehended to demonstrate existent correlation between different variables and the often negative impacts of land over-use in the karstic domain of the Middle Atlas.

Land Use In The Tropical Karst - The Case Of Peruaçu, Januária And Jaiba; Se Brazil, Heinz Charles Kohler, Sergio Dos Anjos Ferreira Pinto, João Francisco De Abreu

International Journal of Speleology

The karstic regions of the municipalities of Peruaçu, Januária and Jaiba present a variety of soil uses which are a function of the organization of the karstic relief. This relief system forms a rift, which received fluvial sediments deposition from the São Francisco River. The horst of the Peruaçu plateau is developed on limestone rocks of Late Proterozoic age with a high concentration of calcium carbonate. The South American Surface was formed on this and is today occupied by cattle ranching. In the graben, due to easy irrigation from underground karst waters and because of the nearby drainage system of …

Karst And Agriculture In Australia, David Gillieson, Mia Thurgate

International Journal of Speleology

Much of the development and degradation of karst lands in Australia has occurred in the last two centuries since European settlement. Recent prolonged El Niño events add further climatic uncertainty and place real constraints on sustainable agriculture. The lower southeast of South Australia is perhaps the one area in Australia where karst, and particularly karst hydrology, impinge on the daily lives of the community in that pollution and overexploitation of the aquifer are readily apparent to the local population. Effluent from intensive dairy farms, piggeries and cheese factories enters the karst and has caused concern over pollution of water supplies. …

Agricultural Use And Water Quality At Karstic Cuban Western Plain, Juan Reynerio Fagundo Castillo, Patricia González Hernandez

International Journal of Speleology

In the paper some results of studies on the karstic aquifers of the western plain of Cuba are presented and discussed. The intensive exploitation of these aquifers for agriculture use and drinking water supply induces an increase of marine water intrusion, water salinisation and a progressive increase of chemical corrosion with a greater dissolution of carbonates. During the period of study (1983-1998) a trend in the deterioration of water quality was observed by means of a chronological series of hydrochloride content.

Sustainable Development Of Agriculture In Karst Areas, South China, Linhua Song

International Journal of Speleology

The exposed carbonate rocks aged from Sinian to Mid-Triassic Periods cover an area of 500,000 km² in south-west China. In karst areas with spectacular landscapes characterized by magnificent tower karst and conical karst, rare surface drainage systems and prevalent subsurface drainage systems, the environment is ecologically very fragile. The rapid increase of population, over deforested and cultivated lands, worsted the ecological system, causing a higher frequency of draught, flood and various disasters, backward economic development, low living standard of the people. In order to improve the sustainability of the agriculture the experience shows that the following operations should be …