Western Kentucky University TopSCHOLAR® Masters Theses & Specialist Projects Graduate School 5-2011 National Park Service Cave and Karst Resources Management Case Study: Great Smoky Mountains National Park Daniel C. Nolfi Western Kentucky University, [email protected] Follow this and additional works at: http://digitalcommons.wku.edu/theses Part of the Environmental Indicators and Impact Assessment Commons, Natural Resources and Conservation Commons, and the Natural Resources Management and Policy Commons Recommended Citation Nolfi, Daniel C., "National Park Service Cave and Karst Resources Management Case Study: Great Smoky Mountains National Park" (2011). Masters Theses & Specialist Projects. Paper 1053. http://digitalcommons.wku.edu/theses/1053 This Thesis is brought to you for free and open access by TopSCHOLAR®. It has been accepted for inclusion in Masters Theses & Specialist Projects by an authorized administrator of TopSCHOLAR®. For more information, please contact [email protected]. NATIONAL PARK SERVICE CAVE AND KARST RESOURCES MANAGEMENT CASE STUDY: GREAT SMOKY MOUNTAINS NATIONAL PARK A Thesis Presented to The Faculty of the Department of Geography and Geology Western Kentucky University Bowling Green, Kentucky In Partial Fulfillment Of the Requirements for the Degree Master of Science By Daniel C. Nolfi May 2011 NATIONAL PARK SERVICE CAVE AND KARST RESOURCES MANAGEMENT CASE STUDY: GREAT SMOKY MOUNTAINS NATIONAL PARK Dr. Christoph . Groves, Director of Thesis Dr. Ja~~ olk Dr.£4~P'fZ Jo~me~ espam , I" ';/;/f ( Dean, Graduate Studies and Research ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I would like to extend my thanks and appreciation to the organizations that provided funding and logistical support for this thesis. The US Department of the Interior, National Park Service, provided funding through Western Kentucky University for the study and research of caves and karst on National Park Service lands. Western Kentucky University, Hoffman Environmental Research Institute provided opportunity to collaborate and exchange information with resource and academic professionals. The Great Smoky Mountains National Park; Gatlinburg, Tennessee provided support from within their Resource Management and Science Division and provided information on caves and karst resources. I would like to extend my thanks to my advisor Dr. Chris Groves who managed to find the time, when needed most, to assist in putting much of this together. I’d also like to thank my committee members, Dr. Jason Polk, Dr. Richard Toomey, and Joel Despain for their attention to detail and assistance with my project. Most importantly, I would like to thank Johanna Kovarik who has inspired my interest in caves and karst as well as their management. Her knowledge of cave and karst science and edits to my thesis kept me on track. Her personal support made it possible for me to finish during a period when completion seemed impossible...Thank you! iii PREFACE This thesis is a first step towards understanding the complex nature around development and implementation of a cave and karst program on a National Park Service unit. In reviewing the literature and incorporation of policy and management guidelines specific to the needs of cave and karst resources in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, development of a holistic karst wide management plan is shown to provide the necessary protection for caves and karst areas with caves or no known caves. Chapter 1 provides a basic understanding and information about caves and karst environments. It also takes a look at the importance of this research and the significance to the Great Smoky Mountains National Park Management. It defines the options surrounding the use of a cave or karst focus of management. Chapter 2 takes an in-depth look at the science surrounding the understanding of cave and karst resources. It concludes with a look at management of these resources throughout history, summing up federal management as well as what has taken place within the Great Smoky Mountains National Park to date. Chapter 3 provides the process by which information was obtained from the literature, questionnaires, field investigations and consultation with cave and karst experts. Chapter 4 states the results from the questionnaires, resource inventories, and newly discovered resources. Chapter 5 provides a discussion of the implications of these results and a conclusion. It focuses on needs of the resources and the protection provided by a cave or karst driven management plan. In addition, Chapter 5 concludes with a final look at the Great Smoky Mountains National Park as a case study, and the need to develop a holistic management plan specific to its caves and entire karst landscape. iv TABLE OF CONTENTS ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ...............................................................................................iii PREFACE .......................................................................................................................... iv TABLE OF CONTENTS .................................................................................................... v LIST OF FIGURES...........................................................................................................vii LIST OF TABLES ...........................................................................................................viii ABSTRACT.......................................................................................................................ix CHAPTER I. INTRODUCTION.............................................................................................. 1 Cave and Karst Landscapes.................................................................. 2 Significance and Justification............................................................... 5 Problem Statement and Purpose........................................................... 6 II. BACKGROUND ............................................................................................... 9 Cave and Karst Landscape Science..................................................... 9 History of Cave and Karst Protection and Management................... 14 Federal Cave and Karst Management................................................ 20 Great Smoky Mountains National Park............................................. 28 III. METHODOLOGY .......................................................................................... 38 Federal Policy and Literature Review .............................................. 38 Land Managing Questionnaire ......................................................... 39 Field Visits and Review ................................................................... 41 Consultation ..................................................................................... 42 IV. RESULTS ....................................................................................................... 43 Questionnaire Findings .................................................................... 43 GRSM Karst Biological Data Compilation...................................... 51 GRSM Field Interpretation and Additional Resources .................... 53 v Newly Recognized Karst Areas and Their Resources...................... 76 V. DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS ........................................................... 83 Karst (Landscape) and Cave (Specific) Focused Management......... 83 NPS Management.............................................................................. 86 Case Study: GRSM Management...................................................... 90 Conclusions....................................................................................... 98 VI. REFERENCES............................................................................................... 100 VII. APPENDICES ............................................................................................... 107 A. Federal Management Questionnaires ......................................... 107 B. Additional GRSM Cave and Karst Biology ............................... 127 C. Draft Management Plan and Resource Assessment ................... 136 Table of Contents .........................................................................-3- Introduction and Main Body ........................................................-6- References ..................................................................................-84- Appendices.................................................................................-90- Appendix a (GRSM Cave Maps) ..........................................-90- Appendix b (GRSM Cave/Karst Photos) ............................-101- Appendix c (Responsibility Waiver)...................................-105- Appendix d (Cave Inventory Form) ....................................-107- Glossary....................................................................................-113- vi LIST OF FIGURES Figure 1 – Great Smoky Mountains National Park ........................................................... 30 Figure 2 – Cades Cove fenster with denoted surficial and shallow carbonate.................. 54 Figure 3 – Bull Sink, Rich Mountain – Karst developed uvala just inside boundary....... 60 Figure 4 – Big Spring Cove, early development of a fenster ............................................ 65 Figure 5 – White Oak Sink, portion of Tuckaleechee fenster managed by GRSM .......... 67 vii LIST OF TABLES Table 1 – Summary of successful management actions reported from federal agencies, Questionnaire Results