Space–time distribution of ancient and active alluvial karst subsidence: examples from the central Ebro Basin,Spain

Space and time variations of alluvial karst subsidence in the central Ebro Basin are analysed in trenches (paleodolines), aerial photographs (historical dolines) and field surveys (present-day active dolines). The measured subsidence rates, as well as a comparison between densities of paleodolines computed in randomly selected scan-lines and density of active dolines computed in maps, suggest that present-day subsidence in favourable areas is more intense than that of Pleistocene times. According to diachronic maps drawn from (a) different aerial photographs taken after 1946 and (b) field surveys on deformations in urbanized areas, subsidence behaved as a nearly steady process while the whole area was used for agriculture. In contrast, rapid changes (through periods of several tens of years) have occurred in urbanized areas, in which dolines expand their boundaries through small marginal collapses, shifting sharply their sinking centres to neighbouring sites. These rapid changes do not have an equivalent in observed paleodolines.     

The Interface Configuration of the Fresh‐/Dead Sea Water – Theory and Measurements

The high‐density Dead Sea water (1.235 g/cm³) forms a special interface configuration with the fresh groundwater resources of its surrounding aquifers. The fresh groundwater column beneath its surroundings is around one tenth of its length compared to oceanic water. This fact alone indicates the vulnerability of the fresh groundwater resources to the impacts of changes in the Dead Sea level and to saltwater migration. Ghyben‐Herzberg and Glover equations were used to calculate the volumes of water in coastal aquifers which were replaced by freshwater due to the interface seaward migration as a result of the drop in the level of the Dead Sea. For that purpose, the dynamic equation of Glover approach has been integrated to accommodate that type of interface readjustment. The calculated amounts of freshwater which substituted salt Dead Sea water due to the migration of interface are 3.21 · 10¹¹ m³, from a Dead Sea level of –392 m to τ411 m below sea level. The average porosity of coastal aquifers was calculated to range from 2.8 to 2.94%. Geoelectric sounding measurements showed that areas underlying the coastal aquifers formerly occupied by the Dead Sea water are gradually becoming flushed and occupied by freshwater. The latter is becoming salinized due to the residuals of Dead Sea water in the aquifer matrix, the present salinity of which is lower than that of the Dead Sea water. At the same time salt dissolution from the Lisan Marl formation is causing collapses along the shorelines in the form of sinkholes, tens of meters in diameter and depth.     

Hazard and risk assessment for sinkhole formation on dolomite land in South Africa

 A method is proposed to assess the risk for sinkhole formation in dolomitic areas where changes in land use are envisaged. Data from geotechnical site investigations are used for the zoning and characterization of sites in terms of the hazard (maximum size of sinkhole that can form), while the inherent risk for this hazard to occur is assessed by assuming that the site may be developed or treated incorrectly (abused). By considering both the hazard and the inherent risk, it is possible to select appropriate types of development and precautionary measures to reduce the final (development) risk to an acceptable level. Received: 15 September 1996 · Accepted: 12 May 1998     

Collapse dolines in miocene gypsum: an example from SW Sivas (Turkey)

 This study investigated the formation mechanism of dolines. Dolines are caused by dissolution of gypsum in the study area, 50–220 m in diameter. Two systems were applied to determine the support necessary for natural underground opening of given span in a given rock mass. From the characteristics of the rock mass, a 5 m-wide unsupported span in the gypsum can be expected to stand up for over 9 years. The designed span of an artificial opening would normally be considerably less than the span of a collapsed natural opening in the same rock. Dolines in the study area play an important role in the groundwater flow system. Received: 10 November 1995 · Accepted: 4 January 1996     

Mapping subsurface karst features with GPR: results and limitations

Ground penetrating radar (GPR) has been applied, with relative success, to locate paleo-collapses and cavities and to detect and characterise karst. One of its main advantages is that, while the penetration depth is limited to several tens of meters or even just several meters, the obtained resolution can be in the scale of centimeters. In this paper, we illustrate the applicability of GPR prospecting to the study of alluvial karst and the structures associated with subsidence areas. GPR radargrams obtained with two central frequency antennas (50 and 100 MHz) are balanced against direct observation of geological features of collapse structures in vertical exposures of gravel quarries. GPR-surveys offer the possibility of obtaining nearly continuous vertical cross-sections of the subsoil, and integration of data within a 3D frame. However, the study of the internal structure of the subsoil by means of the GPR-profiles has been usually neglected. In this work, we show that some hints about the evolution of individual dolines can be established from the study of the geometry of the sedimentary filling by means of GPR. The obtained results indicate that GPR allows to characterise the structures associated with karst features and can therefore be useful evaluating hazard susceptibility in doline fields, because: (1) when no surface evidences exists, it permits the detection of karst hazards in the subsoil, and (2) when surficial evidences of karst activity are present, it permits the characterisation of processes associated with subsidence.     

Submerged notches and doline sediments as evidence for Holocene subsidence

The possibility of Holocene subsidence along the northern coast of the Corinth Gulf is often mentioned in the literature; however, systematic detailed evidence that submergence (e.g. of archaeological remains) does not simply depend from eustatic sea-level rise is most often missing. In this paper, a new detailed study of submerged tidal-notch profiles along the limestone coast has shown that periods of sea-level stability are intercalated with periods of rapid subsidence or gradual relative sea-level rise. It appears that most of the sites considered, seem to have been affected by a relatively recent co-seismic subsidence of about half a meter, whereas during the longer period, by stages of relative sea-level stability and/or gradual relative sea-level rise. This evidence of subsidence is confirmed by radiocarbon dating in doline sediments, suggesting that during certain periods, a relative sea-level rise was much faster than the raising suggested by glacio-eustatic or hydro-isostatic estimations. Juxtaposing a list of known earthquakes occurred in the area shows that several earthquakes (e.g. the 1981 one for the easternmost sites considered) are potential candidates for the recent co-seismic displacements and thus supporting the geomorphological interpretations.     

Slaking durability and its effect on the doline formation in the gypsum

Texture and grain size is of great importance in understanding the mechanical properties of rocks. The aim of this study was to investigate textural and slaking durability characteristics, and correlate them with the gypsum types where the dolines occurred, with particular reference to the texture and crystal size. The investigation comprised two stages: field work and laboratory testing. Initially, rock samples were obtained from various representative karstified and non-karstified locations. Thereafter, mineralogical, physical and slaking durability characteristics of the gypsum samples were determined by means of laboratory testing. After the field and laboratory works, the geological, mineralogical and slaking durability characteristics of the study area gypsum were reviewed and discussed from the point of view of doline formation. Results showed that fine grain sized alabastrine gypsum tends to be karstified and leads to doline formation. This is closely related to the crystal size, texture and attributable to the slaking durability of the gypsum. Consequently, the results demonstrate that the texture, especially crystal size, and effective porosity are important parameters controlling the slake durability of the gypsum and doline formation.