MEETING REPORT 2011

Ref. UNESCO Contract No. 4500142744 IGCP/SIDA Project No. 598

______MEETINGS: Date: June 8-10,2011 June 27-30, 2011

Place: Bowling Green, Kentucky, USA Birmingham, UK,

Itinerary (if field excursion)

Excursion at Mammoth Cave National Park, KY, USA, June 9

Excursion in Buxton, Derbyshire, UK, June 30

SCOPE AND RESULTS OF MEETINGS Scope of Meetings: (Program or outline of geological study) 1. Symposia. IGCP/SIDA 598 Symposia were held in Bowling Green, KY, USA, June 8-10, 2011 with a scientific program of “ Hydrogeology and Ecosystem”, and in Birmingham, UK, July 27-30, 2011 with a scientific program of “Climate Change - The Karst Record”. The new development of the Project in all its 4 objectives, including karst carbon sink potential and climate change; karst systems and water resource processes; karst watersheds sustainable protection; and environmental change records were exchanged in oral or poster presentations. The discussions were concentrated mainly on the achievements of previous karst-related project IGCP 513 made by participants from different countries after the last meeting of IGCP 513 in April, 2010, Malaga, Spain. 2. Field Excursions. Two excursions took place in the project’s first year. One is at Mammoth Cave National Park, KY, USA, the other is in Peak District Buxton, Derbyshire, UK. The South-Central Kentucky Karst, also known as the Mammoth Cave Area is a world-class example of a shallow, intensely karsted, carbonate terrain. The area has been the subject of scientific investigations since the early 1800’s and has accumulated a vast literature. This trip focuses on The Turnhole Drainage Basin (Pennyroyal Plateau Surface karst) and The Historic Section of Mammoth Cave. The Peak District is one of the classic karst areas of the UK and this trip focuses on its border with overlying clastic sediments, and the interesting heritage resulting from lime-burning in previous centuries. Poole’s Cavern, being used as a model system to demonstrate colloidal transport processes, is also visited.

1 3. Business Meetings. IGCP/SIDA 598 business meeting was held in Bowling Green, USA(June10,2011). The background, objectives, work schedule of the Project were introduced and the new development of the Project in the first year was reviewed. Its achievements in different countries were exchanged. The second year’s activities were also discussed. The primary meeting for the year two will be in Brisbane, Australia, and at the annual karst commission meeting in Niagara Falls, Canada during the 40th IAH Congress. A symposium (36.4) [IGCP Project 598] in the theme 36 was listed in the second circular of the 34th International Geological Congress (IGC), in Brisbane, Australia, 2-10 August. The meeting in Bowling Green is a joint meeting with the major international karst communities, including the Karst Commision of IAH (International Association of Hydrogeologists); the Commision of Karst Hydrogeology and Speleogenesis of UIS( Union of International Speleology). The new direction and priority for the development of karst sciences in the next five years, and the future cooperation between IGCP and the 2 international academic organizations of karstology were discussed.

Achievements of Meetings 1. The achievements made by IGCP/SIDA 598 members in the first year were reflected in the presentations and discussions at the symposia. Although there was impact of short time between the project’s formal approval from Paris and the conference, remarkable people took part in the meetings, i.e, about 60 people from 12 countries (Canada, USA, China, Jamaica, Slovenia, Brazil, Indonesia, Netherlands, Hungary, Germany, Ukraine and England) took part in the meeting in USA, and 130 people from 28 countries (Australia, Austria, Belgium, China, Croatia, Egypt, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Indonesia, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Russia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, UK and USA) attended the meeting in UK. A total of 70 papers were presented, including 33 in USA, and 37 in UK. 111 poster presentations were exhibited, including 11 in USA, and 100 in UK. The major scientific achievements could be summarized in accordance with the main objectives of IGCP/SIDA598: (1) karst carbon sink potential and climate change. Discussions on this topic were focused on the impact of human activities such as landuse change; especially, the impact of vegetation(including aquatic vegetation) variation on karst carbon sinks. V. de Montety et al. (USA) studied the influence of diel biogeochemical cycles on carbonate equilibrium in a karst river. Diel cycles of water chemistry and δ13C of dissolved inorganic carbon (DIC) were measured to assess how biogeochemical processes affect dissolution and precipitation of calcite and thus channel development in Ichetucknee River, a large spring-fed river (discharge > 6 m3/s) flowing over carbonate karst terrain in north central Florida (USA). It is approved that variations in temperature, photosynthesis, and respiration force diel variations in pH and dissolved CO2 concentrations of surface streams, possibly controlling carbonate equilibrium between river water and carbonate stream beds. Although CO2 outgassing occurs, it is shown to be a minor component of the DIC mass balance while carbonate precipitation represents 88% of DIC loss. The important lost of DIC observed in Ichetucknee River demonstrates that large systems with abundant subaquatic vegetation act as natural sink of carbon. Zhang Cheng(China) reported the landuse change impact on carbon sink caused by karst processes in southwestern china area. Data from monitoring and experimental sites showed that karst processes, as a low-temperature geochemical

2 open system, are very sensitive to environmental change and are a special geological process that is involved in the short-term carbon cycle. Carbon sinks of terrestrial ecosystems increase with vegetation development or reforestation, here it was shown that similar processes caused by karst dissolutional denudation can occur underground as well. Shen Licheng(China) et al reported carbon dioxide degassing flux from two geothermal fields in Tibet, China. Simulations of CO2 partial pressure within the two hydrogeothermal systems showed that CO2 degassing occurs during hot water migration from the aquifer to the surface. Carbon dioxide degassing flux from the Langjiu geothermal field was estimated to be ~3.6×106 kg km–2a–1, and that from Dagejia was ~3.3×106 kg km–2a–1.

(2) karst aquifer systems and water resource processes. Water resources in mountainous karst regions are vital for regional water budgets and freshwater supply. Ute Bellmann et al.(Germany) reported the underground drainage pattern of steep, high-alpine mountain chains (karst systems) and its geological structure characterization in the Wetterstein Mountains, Germany. The area is mainly formed by up to about 1 km thick Triassic limestone. Two different underground karst drainages have been identified: High velocities (ca. 100 m/h) and convergent flow in the Zugspitz Cirque, and lower velocities (ca. 10 m/h) and divergent drainage in the adjacent Alpspitze area. Augusto Auler (Brazil) analyzed the hydrochemistry and sulfur isotope in the semi-arid dolomitic Una Group karst of northeastern Brazil. The results demonstrated that both mechanisms (sulfide oxidation and evaporative concentration) are operative in the area. The absence of sulfate intercalations in the dolomite and the frequent occurrence of sulfide beds suggest that sulfide oxidation may be a major process in the area, contributing sulfate anions to groundwater and increasing the potential for carbonate dissolution and speleogenesis. Chris Groves et al (USA) developed a monitoring strategy and equipment design that allows for quantitative characterization of flow and hydrochemical behavior of autogenic recharge of soil-mantled karst travels through the epikarstic zone before entering the main part of the aquifer, using electronic data logging, weekly site visits for data collection, instrument maintenance, and calibration, and storm monitoring. Work is underway to understand the movement and biogeochemistry of autogenic storage water flowing to a single epikarst drain in Crump’s Cave on Kentucky’s Mississippian Plateau. Moreover, Ben Haaff et al (USA) measured rainfall rates above the cave and discharge of the water flowing from the drain below every ten minutes in winter and spring 2010-11. A nominal recharge area parameter ζ was determined for eleven discrete storms. Values of ζ range from 843 m2 to 11,200 m2. Values of ζ may thus provide way to quantify varying epikarst storage input, and a trend is that values for the epikarst drain are 2-3 orders of magnitude higher than published UBF values for regional springs in the same geological setting. This gives quantitative evidence that storage is more concentrated in the epikarst than in the regional aquifers as a whole. Martin Knez and Tadej Slabe (Slovenia) reported some karst phenomena in breccia and flysch (Mount Nanos, Slovenia). They distinguished characteristic types of caves and initial stages in the development of dolines. The largest and most frequent are caves that developed in breccia above the contact with flysch. Earthworks have revealed the early stages in the formation of unique dolines. The true karst caves are formed in a locally and periodically flooded zone and they are often paragenetically enlarged. Benjamin Tobin(USA) et al. assessed the recharge elevations for karst springs of the Kaweah

3 River basin, California. Karst aquifers in the Kaweah River basin are developed in metamorphosed marbles with very low primary porosity. They used liquid water stable isotopes (δD and δ18O) measured at springs to determine average source water elevations. Precipitation values show an isotopic lapse rate of -0.18 ‰ per 100 m elevation for oxygen, and -1.32‰ for deuterium. Spring data show similar isotopic lapse rates of -0.16‰ and -1.41‰ per 100m. However, spring values were typically lighter in both isotopes, indicating average recharge elevations higher than the spring. Seasonal variations in isotopic values were seen primarily at higher elevation springs (>2000 m), indicating seasonal shifts in the dominant recharge source from higher elevation snowmelt runoff during high flow conditions to more locally derived recharge during baseflow.

(3) karst watersheds sustainable protection. The groundwater in agricultural karst areas is susceptible to contamination from organic soil amendments and pesticides. Sean M. Vanderhoff et al investigated storm event impacts on epikarst storage and transport of organic soil amendments in Kentucky. During major storm events of spring 2011, dye traces were initiated using sulphorhodamine-B and fluorescein in a known groundwater recharge area where manure was applied to the ground. Cave water samples and geochemical data were collected every four hours before, during, and after the storms to track the transport and residence time of the epikarst water and organic soil amendments during high flow conditions. The changes in geochemistry indicate simultaneous storage and transport of meteoric water through epikarst pathways into the cave, with rapid transport of bacteria occurring through the conduits that bypass storage. The results indicate that significant precipitation events affect both the storage properties and rapidly impact the various pathways and timing of contaminant transport through the epikarst zone. Bryan Booth (USA) reported the positive effect of geodiversity on biodiversity in Florida. This study examines how the presence of in various ecosystems relates to the diversity of plants in Florida. The study was conducted in west-central Florida, in Pinellas and Hillsborough counties, along the Gulf of Mexico coast. Plant diversity was measured by transect-line survey within the confines of the sinkholes' influence, and then in the area outside the geomorphic influence of the sinks. Data was collected and analyzed using standard statistical methods. There followed an analysis of the effects of local hydraulic conductivity, urban environmental factors, and geodiverse-feature clustering on the study's results. The final results of the investigation indicate that there is an overall positive effect of 5% on the biodiversity of terrains in Florida in or near sinkholes. Leslie A. North et al. (USA) investigated the role of guided show cave experiences in karst understanding. Anthropogenic karst disturbances partially occur because of the poor dissemination of scientific information to the general populace and policymakers, and budgetary and time constraints of municipalities. The results of this study revealed that although differences exist in the nature of the educational material presented to visitors during tours, the educational quality and quantity of material at both privately- and publically-owned is often significantly lacking and over 90% of visitors to the participating show caves are largely uneducated about karst attractions. Karst landscapes contain fragile and unique environmental resources that are easily impacted by human activities due to the interconnected nature of the surface and subsurface. Due to the diverse nature of karst environments throughout the world, measuring human impact is difficult without having an adaptable methodology that is suitable to this diversity. The Karst Disturbance

4 Index (KDI) is a holistic tool used to measure anthropogenic impacts on karst environments, and has been applied and refined in studies performed in Florida and Italy, yet still remains untested and susceptible to modification for other areas. Jason S. Polk et al reported the application of the KDI in Arecibo, Puerto Rico, which is a geographically isolated island setting, and highly vulnerable due to its sensitive karst resources, provides an opportunity to test the index in a different type of karst terrain.

(4) Environmental change records in karst systems. Sarah A. Truebe(USA) et al develop a process model of cave dripwater δ18Odw values: a test of reconstructing decadal variability in speleothem climate records. They compare to δ18Odw and speleothem calcite δ18Occ measurements from monthly monitoring of Cave of the Bells, Arizona. The model consists of two layers: an upper “soil” layer, and a lower “rock” layer. The synthetic δ18Odw spectra exhibit a high degree of variance at decadal to multidecadal frequencies. This suggests that some background level of variance in speleothem oxygen isotope records could be due to non-climatic processes, such as subsurface water storage and mixing. Interpreting climatic vs. non-climatic signals in δ18Occ records could be achieved by replicating records from different caves and/or by monitoring the influence of local processes on the modern cave system. R Casteel et al.(USA) reported speleothem paleoclimate records from twelve years of cave monitoring studies in Texas, USA. They monitor cave air (including pCO2), drip rates, dripwater geochemistry, and calcite growth rates and geochemistry at multiple drip sites in multiple caves. The results demonstrate that high-frequency speleothem Mg/Ca and Sr/Ca variation may provide insight into the controls of paleo-drip water compositions. Seasonal growth hiatuses yield a recognizable “V-shaped” pattern in trace element time-series. D Mattey et al. (UK) reported the Relationships between seasonal climate and the compositions of air, groundwater and speleothem calcite in caves and karst of Gibraltar. Cave monitoring focuses on two cave systems: St Michaels Cave at 275m asl and Ragged Staff Cave near sea level. Monthly sampling and analysis of air and water combined with continuous logging of temperature, humidity and drip discharge rates reveals the importance of density-driven seasonal ventilation which drives large-scale advection of CO2-rich air though the cave systems. Advective flow is upwards during winter months and the flow reverses in summer. D Domínguez-Villar et al(Spain) reported the temperature transfer rate from the surface to Eagle Cave(central Spain). Cave temperature measurements from mid 1970s were ~2ºC warmer than today. Currently, the mean cave temperature at different sites range from 14.9 to 15.8 ºC, whereas the surface temperature is 14.7 ºC. The evolution of the reforestation was evaluated from aerial pictures from the past 65 years, and these data were implemented in a model. As a result, the cave temperature is expected to drop 1.6 ºC from the1970s due to the reforestation, i.e. reforestation was much more significant than changes in external temperature. F McDermott et al.(Ireland) analyzed the nature and possible causes of changes in speleothem δ18O gradients across Europe during the Holocene. They combined published and new data to produce a dataset of 53 (discontinuous) U-series dated Holocene speleothem records from 37 European (sensu-lato) cave sites. The data were analysed at 1 ka time slices through the Holocene, taking snap-shot averages of 50 year durations at 1,000 year intervals. On the Atlantic western margin of Europe (e.g. Ireland, N. Spain), δ18O values decrease gradually from the early to the mid-Holocene, but further east (e.g. Romania, Turkey), δ18O values increase over the same time interval. Overall, the data

5 indicate that zonal flow and Atlantic moisture sources were dominant throughout the entire Holocene.

2. Field Excursions. 25 people from 7 countries participated in the excursions in the karst of Mammoth Cave region, Kentucky,USA. 50 people from 15 countries took part in the excursions around Derbyshire, UK. (1) Mammoth Cave National Park, USA The excursion in Mammoth Cave National Part included 5 parts: Turnhole Drainage Basin; Historic Section of Mammoth Cave; Crump Spring Cave; Cedar Sink; and Green River and Echo River Spring. The Mammoth Cave system with more than 560 km of surveyed passageway is the longest cave system of the world. It was named as a World Heritage Site in 1981 and became the core area of an International Biosphere Reserve in 1990. The general hydrological system of the region is recharged from the Plain in the South, flowing north through the Mammoth Cave area, and discharging into the Green River in the north. The arrangements of the excursions provided a chance for participants to get a general idea of the whole system of Mammoth Cave. In the Sinkhole Plain, series of shallow dish-shaped dolines with grassland and pastures were visited. The soil erosion brings about by agricultural activities and its impacts on the turbidity of cave stream were discussed. The hydrological connections between dolines, sinkholes, caves, and karst springs as verified by numerous tracing tests were explained on the spots. Although there are no surface streams crossing the Sinkhole Plain, the underground drainage has been mapped into well-defined ground water basins using dye-tracing techniques. Each of the large springs on Green River has a distinct catchment. The Turnhole Spring, the objective of this field trip, is one of the largest. Turnhole Spring is on a prominent meander bend and is also the last major discharge into the Green River in the downstream direction. During the excursion in Crump’s Cave, a monitoring site and equipment used for quantitative characterization of flow and hydrochemical behavior of autogenic recharge of soil-mantled karst aquifers (epikarst zone) were visited, works including electronic data logging, weekly site visits for data collection, instrument maintenance, and calibration, and storm monitoring are underway to understand the movement and biogeochemistry of autogenic storage water. During the excursion in Historical Entrance of the Mammoth Cave System, the speleogenesis, especially its relationship with the changes in geological setting(the removal of the caprock, the Big Cliffty Formation sandstone overlying the limestone of the Mississippian period of Carboniferous, in which the Mommoth Cave developed),and hydrological setting(the incision or accumulation of Green River in the glacial and interglacial cycle) were examined. Some sites of researches,e.g, data-log monitoring site for hydrological and hydrochemical features of cave stream, sampling points for cave chronology, and microbiological study were also visited. The Echo River spring discharge is peculiar. Intense storm activity on the Sinkhole Plain will cause the discharge to suddenly increase. The present-day catchment for Echo River Spring is limited to a few square miles on the Mammoth Cave Plateau. Flow markings in the high level passages in Mammoth Cave indicate a much larger paleocatchment, taking up much of the ancestral Sinkhole Plain. High recharge in this ancestral catchment, now draining to Turnhole Spring, activates abandoned cave passages and causes the water to spill over into the Echo River Basin, increasing its discharge.

6 (2) Buxton, Derbyshire, UK The major purpose of the excursions around Buxton, Derbyshire, UK is to examine the classic karst of the UK in Peak District that focuses on its border with overlying clastic sediments, and the interesting heritage resulting from lime-burning in previous centuries. It included 2 parts: the Poole’s Cavern, and above ground stream-sinks. The showcave of Poole’s Cavern has important archaeological remains and displays spectacular hyperalkaline stalagmites currently growing at up to 1cm per year from dripwaters that have penetrated through lime waste. This site is being used as a model system to demonstrate colloidal transport processes for many trace elements, isotope systematics, and the relationship of speleothem growth to cave air PCO2 levels. Above ground stream-sinks draining to Poole’s Cavern were also visited together with springs and a spectacular hyperalkaline tufa deposit that has filled a small valley with over a metre of tufa in little over a century. There are two types of stalagmites in Pool’s Caven: normal and superakaline. It is told that the hyperalkaline stalagmites grow at about 100 times the rate of those in normal karst caves, and a different growth mechanism was explained: the calcium doesn’t come from limestone but from “lime” (calcium oxide) that is one of the ingredients of cement. The Poole’s Cavern is a normal karst cave in Derbyshire, with the remains of old lime kilns on the hillside above. The land is contaminated with patches of lime waste, which affects the groundwater entering the cave. Some of the drips in the cave are uncontaminated and produce normal stalactites and stalagmites. Others are hyperalkaline and produce the fast-growing stalagmites for which Poole’s Cavern is famous. Many of these stalagmites are of the ‘poached egg’ type, with bright orange tips due to the inclusion of organic matter from the topsoil, carried in the drip water as colloidal-sized particles.

3. Business Meetings The working group meeting of IGCP/SIDA 598 in the first year was held in Bowling Green, USA. It took place in June 10, 2011 morning, and was a joint meeting of IGCP/SIDA 598 (represented by co-leaders Dr. Zhang Cheng, Prof. Chris Groves and Prof. Yuan Daoxian), with the Karst Commision of IAH( represented by its Co-chairmen Dr. Nico Goldscheider, Dr. Neven Kresic and Dr. Jiang Guanghui). 48 people took part in the meeting. The 2011Newsletter of IGCP/SIDA 598, a 59 page book was distributed to everybody to provide basic informations about background, basic ideas, objectives and work schedule of the Project for discussion. The following points are regarded as the modern trend of karst study: understanding karst system, especially water resources and hydrological processes response to climate change; carbonate rock dissolution and contribution potentially to atmospheric CO2 sink; epikarst monitoring; karst environment education and water resource protection. The importance of international karst correlation, and the benefits of international cooperation were emphasized. The way of more intimate and practical international cooperation, such as the use of website, joint symposium and training course were discussed. It was decided that the IGCP/SIDA 598 meetings in 2012 will take place in Brisbane, Australia, and at the annual karst commission meeting in Niagara Falls, Canada during the 40th IAH Congress. A symposium (36.4) [IGCP Project 598] in the theme 36 was listed in the second circular of the 34th International Geological Congress (IGC), in Brisbane, Australia, 2-10 August.

Outcome of Meeting:

7 The abstracts of papers presented in the Bowling Green and Birmingham symposium were published in the Conference Proceedings. The titles of major papers are listed below according to the 4 objectives of IGCP/SIDA 598. (1) karst carbon sink potential and climate change. Zhang Cheng. Carbonate Rock Dissolution Rates in Different Landuses and their Carbon Sink Effect Shen Licheng, et al. Carbon Dioxide Degassing Flux from Two Geothermal Fields in Tibet, China Huang Fen and Tang Wei. The Influence of Allogenic Water on Karst Process - A Case Study in the Maocun Subterranean River in Guilin, China (2) karst aquifer systems and water resource processes. Ute Bellmann and Nico Goldscheider. Geological Structure and Underground Drainage of an High-Alpine Karst Aquifer System, Wetterstein Mountains, German Alps Augusto S. Auler. Sulfide Oxidation and Evaporative Concentration: Competing Mechanisms in the Semi-Arid Karst of Northeastern Brazil Chris Groves et al. Methodology for Evaluating Flow and Hydrochemistry of Autogenic Recharge in Kentucky’s Mississippian Plateau Ben Haaff et al. Localized Hydrology of Autogenic Recharge in Kentucky’s Mississippian Plateau Martin Knez and Tadej Slabe. Karstification in Breccia and Flysch (Mount Nanos, Slovenia) Benjamin Tobin(USA) et al. assessed the recharge elevations for karst springs of the Kaweah River basin, California. (3) karst watersheds sustainable protection. Sean M. Vanderhoff et al. Storm Event Impacts on Epikarst Storage and Transport of Organic Soil Amendments in Kentucky Bryan Booth. A Report on the Positive Effect of Geodiversity on Biodiversity in Florida Leslie A. North et al. Investigating the Role of Guided Show Cave Experiences in Karst Understanding Jason S. Polk et al. Evaluating Karst Disturbance in Puerto Rico: Examining Methodologies and Future Implications (4) Environmental change records in karst systems. Sarah A. Truebe(USA) et al. A Process Model of Cave Dripwater δ18O Values: A Test of Reconstructing Decadal Variability in Speleothem Climate Records Arthur Palmer and Margaret Palmer. Analytical Modeling of Karst Processes on the Basis of Petrographic Mapping R.Casteel et al. Implications for speleothem paleoclimate records from twelve years of cave monitoring studies in Texas, USA D.Domínguez-Villar et al. How fast is the external temperature transferred to caves? Model-data comparison from Eagle Cave (Spain) Y. Dublyansky et al. Isotopic composition of precipitation in the southern Great Basin (USA) from the late Miocene to the present: A fluid-inclusion study of hypogene and common karst speleothems D.Mattey et al. Relationships between seasonal climate and the compositions of air, groundwater and speleothem calcite in caves and karst of Gibraltar

8 F. McDermott et al. The nature and possible causes of changes in speleothem δ18O gradients across Europe during the Holocene P. C. Treble et al. Climatic and hydrological controls on drip water δ18O in caves developed in highly porous limestone: a case study from SW Australia

Signed: Date: 2011. 9. 21

Author’s Name(Print)

Zhang Cheng September 21, 2011

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