Karst and the USGS
Welcome to the USGS Karst Website.
This website presents information on USGS research on karst aquifers, which are a vital
groundwater resource in the United States. Here you can learn about past and current
USGS karst research, with information on ongoing studies, publications, and
key contacts for major karst areas.
Click on an aquifer on the map below, or select one from a
list of aquifers.
Main Barton Spring, Austin, Texas. The fourth largest spring in Texas, this is a karst spring that discharges an average of 50 cubic feet per second (about 32 million gallons per day). The spring supplies water to a swimming pool enjoyed by over 300,000 people per year. (Photo by Brad Garner)
Read more about the Edwards Balcones Fault Zone aquifer...
Sinkholes from subsidence event, Florida, February 1998. Over 700 sinkholes formed over a 20-acre area in response to well drilling. A well had been drilled about 20 feet into a cavity,
when air-lift well-development methods began being used. Immediately after, small sinkholes started appearing in the surrounding
area. Subsidence continued for several hours, with sinkholes closest to the well expanding to become the largest in the area. (Photo by Ann Tihansky)
Read more about the Upper Floridan and Biscayne aquifers...
Loss of water from the Peace River through underlying conduit during low-flow period, May 2004. The Peace River in this area is characterized by shallow, sometimes exposed carbonate units, with karst features that vary in type and size and include sinkholes, subsidence depressions, dissolution pipes, and enlarged fractures. (from Spechler and Kroening, 2006)
Read more about the Upper Floridan and Biscayne aquifers...
Endangered Barton Springs Salamander. The Barton Springs Salamander, Eurycea sosorum, is a federally listed endangered species. It has been found only in and around the major springs of the Barton Springs segment of the Edwards aquifer. (Photo courtesy of Lisa O'Donnell, City of Austin)
Read more about the Edwards Balcones Fault Zone aquifer...
This website allows you to
browse for
karst reports and articles authored by USGS researchers, and find links for other karst resources.
There is also
an overview of karst and
its properties.
This website is maintained by members of the USGS
Karst Interest Group, whose
(KIG), who investigate karst across the United States.
Main Barton Spring, Austin, Texas. The fourth largest spring in Texas, this is a karst spring that discharges an average of 50 cubic feet per second (about 32 million gallons per day). The spring supplies water to a swimming pool enjoyed by over 300,000 people per year. (Photo by Brad Garner)
Read more about the Edwards Balcones Fault Zone aquifer...
