Diagnostic hydrogeologic characteristics of a karst aquifer (Kentucky, USA)

Worthington, Stephen R. H.

doi:10.1007/s10040-009-0489-0

Cited by 148 publications

(80 citation statements)

References 36 publications

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“…In accordance with observations in the karst aquifer of Mammoth Cave (Kentucky, USA) reported by Worthington (2009), the Gallusquelle spring catchment shows lower hydraulic gradients in the east towards the spring than in the rest of the area. This is probably caused by the higher hydraulic conductivity due to the higher karstification in the vicinity of the karst spring.…”

Section: Hydraulic Head Distributionsupporting

confidence: 91%

“…Even though the Gallusquelle spring area is significantly less karstified than for example the Mammoth Cave (Kentucky, USA) (Worthington, 2009) and does not show significant troughs in the hydraulic head contour lines, it cannot be simulated with a homogeneous hydraulic parameter field. The geometry of the conduits is of major importance for the simulation.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Influence of aquifer heterogeneity on karst hydraulics and catchment delineation employing distributive modeling approaches

Oehlmann¹,

Geyer²,

Licha³

et al. 2013

Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci.

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Abstract. Due to their heterogeneous nature, karst aquifers pose a major challenge for hydrogeological investigations. Important procedures like the delineation of catchment areas for springs are hindered by the unknown locations and hydraulic properties of highly conductive karstic zones.In this work numerical modeling was employed as a tool in delineating catchment areas of several springs within a karst area in southwestern Germany. For this purpose, different distributive modeling approaches were implemented in the finite element simulation software Comsol Multiphysics ® . The investigation focuses on the question to which degree the effect of karstification has to be taken into account for accurately simulating the hydraulic head distribution and the observed spring discharges.The results reveal that the representation of heterogeneities has a large influence on the delineation of the catchment areas. Not only the location of highly conductive elements but also their geometries play a major role for the resulting hydraulic head distribution and thus for catchment area delineation. The size distribution of the karst conduits derived from the numerical models agrees with knowledge from karst genesis. It was thus shown that numerical modeling is a useful tool for catchment delineation in karst aquifers based on results from different field observations.

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Section: Hydraulic Head Distributionsupporting

confidence: 91%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Influence of aquifer heterogeneity on karst hydraulics and catchment delineation employing distributive modeling approaches

Oehlmann¹,

Geyer²,

Licha³

et al. 2013

Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci.

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show abstract

“…If any evaluation of hydroperiod alteration is attempted, that evaluation typically includes the use of borehole (well) data and MODFLOW models that assume porous-media flow to characterize groundwater flow in Florida's karstic carbonate FAS. The inadequacies of this approach, including the extremely low probability (typically 0.01-0.02) that those boreholes will intersect major subsurface channels, are addressed by Quinlan (1991), Worthington (2003;2009) and Worthington, Smart, and Ruland (2002).…”

Section: Evaluation Alternativesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Mitigation Banks and Other Conservation Lands at Risk from Preferential Groundwater Flow and Hydroperiod Alterations by Existing and Proposed Northeast Florida Mines

Bernardes¹,

He²,

Bacchus³

et al. 2014

JSD

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When evaluating applications for proposed projects, agencies in the United States (U.S.) must consider mitigation options for the destruction of the aquatic environment such as wetlands, if no practicable alternative to the proposed action exists. Because attempts to create artificial wetlands as replacements for natural wetlands that were destroyed have had little success, particularly in the case of forested wetlands, mitigation options often include mitigation banks and conservation restrictions as permit requirements. In Florida, agencies issuing permits for projects involving groundwater alterations such as withdrawals from wells and mining, do not require an analysis of how on-site and off-site wetlands designated as mitigation, conservation or preservation for destroyed wetlands would be affected by fractures and other karst features that occur throughout the Floridan aquifer system (FAS). This study analyzed the underlying geological conditions in the FAS using lineaments as surface expressions of those conditions, in addition to indicators of preferential groundwater flow in an environmentally sensitive karst area of northeast Florida, including Baker and Clay Counties, where extensive mining has occurred in the recent past and more extensive mining is proposed in the immediate future. Established methods, such as spatial matching of scanned maps and remotely sensed images and control-point identification, were used for georectification of the analog maps. These techniques were applied to surface expressions of underlying fractures that were mapped in the early 1950s and 1970s, prior to extensive groundwater extractions, urbanization and mining in the region. The vegetation changes and reduced groundwater discharges from those alterations reduce the ability to identify fractures from post-development images. Geospatial analyses of lineament distribution revealed that the study area and surrounding counties included a dense network of lineaments, including through existing and proposed mines, mitigation banks and other conservation lands. Excavation, water use and operation of proposed mines associated with those fractures could result in irreversible adverse environmental impacts to those mitigation banks and other conservation lands linked by the network of fractures. To ensure sustainable developments and compliance with mitigation laws in this highly fractured area, adverse impacts to mitigation banks and other conservation lands from groundwater pumping and mining via fractures must be considered.

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“…Most water in karst aquifers is transported through a network of solution conduits, which evolve as a result of the dissolution of the host rock along discontinuities in primary fissured aquifers (White 1988(White , 2002Worthington 2009;Kaufmann et al 2012;Fig. 6).…”

Section: Karst Hydrogeologymentioning

confidence: 99%

Recent advances in karst research: from theory to fieldwork and applications

Parise

Gabrovšek

Kaufmann

et al. 2018

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Karst landscapes and karst aquifers, which are composed of a variety of soluble rocks such as salt, gypsum, anhydrite, limestone, dolomite and quartzite, are fascinating areas of study. As karst rocks are abundant on the Earth's surface, the fast evolution of karst landscapes and the rapid flow of water through karst aquifers present challenges from a number of different perspectives. This collection of 25 papers deals with different aspects of these challenges, including karst geology, geomorphology and speleogenesis, karst hydrogeology, karst modelling, and karst hazards and management. Together these papers provide a state-of-the-art review of the current challenges and solutions in describing karst from a scientific perspective.

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Diagnostic hydrogeologic characteristics of a karst aquifer (Kentucky, USA)

Cited by 148 publications

References 36 publications

Influence of aquifer heterogeneity on karst hydraulics and catchment delineation employing distributive modeling approaches

Influence of aquifer heterogeneity on karst hydraulics and catchment delineation employing distributive modeling approaches

Mitigation Banks and Other Conservation Lands at Risk from Preferential Groundwater Flow and Hydroperiod Alterations by Existing and Proposed Northeast Florida Mines

Recent advances in karst research: from theory to fieldwork and applications

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