Federal and State agencies, the
speleological
community, and academia have repeatedly expressed the need for an
accurate
and detailed national karst map to better understand the distribution
of
soluble rocks in the United States. Maps at a variety of scales are
needed
to educate the public and legislators about karst issues, to provide a
basis
for cave and karst research, and to aid Federal, State, and local
land-use management. The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) will produce a
national karst map in digital form, and link that map on a web-based
network to State and local scale maps and related data. The
National Cave and Karst Research Institute (NCKRI) is a partner in
this project. The
national map will consider the distribution of carbonate and evaporite
units, intrastratal karst, karst beneath surficial overburden, and
percentage
of area covered by karst. The USGS is supplying programmatic funding
for the national karst map via the FEDMAP and indirectly, STATEMAP,
components of the ongoing National
Cooperative Geologic
Mapping Program (NCGMP).
l
A preliminary compilation of potentially karstic areas in the Unied
States over ecologic
Domains. Blue, green, and purple areas are carbonate rocks, Orange
areas are underlain
by evaporite rocks.
Products:
NEW!: Preliminary map of potentially karstic carbonate rocks in the
central
and southern Appalachian states
LINKS:
*Any use of trade or product names does not constitute endorsement by
the U.S. Geological Survey
U.S. Department of the Interior | U.S. Geological Survey