About This Project

Cave systems are an important part of the landscape, but are also hidden in the subsurface and therefore are not often the first consideration or concern. However, understanding the subsurface environment is key in protecting water resources and the subterranean ecosystem. This research focuses on the sedimentology, using sediment samples, sediment cores, and morphological characteristics to explore subsurface sediment transport in an active Kentucky cave system with a unique history.

Ask the Scientists

What is the context of this research?

Cave sedimentology studies include exploring sediment transport and deposition within cave systems. It is a currently expanding and dynamic area of research with applications such as paleoclimatic reconstruction, determination of stream incision rates, and environmental applications (White 2007; Springer et al 1997).

The primary study site for this project is Hidden River Cave in Horse Cave, Kentucky, USA. Hydrogeologically related to the nearby Mammoth Cave system, Hidden River Cave has a history of contamination due to improper disposal of domestic and industrial waste and subsequent restoration of the cave. This cave system is a unique, active system that is understudied and provides a good study site to expand research on cave sedimentology.

What is the significance of this project?

Using remnants of contamination in the sediment record, we can further understand how water, sediment and potential contaminants move through the cave system. This includes our findings of microplastic, "plastic particles less than 5mm in diameter" (Baldwin et al 2016), in cave sediment samples.

Karst aquifers are susceptible to pollution due to the soluble nature of the rock and high development of subsurface drainage pathways. Therefore, water and wastewater management on karst terrain is important, directly relating to quality of subsurface water and in turn the quality of cave ecosystems. This research is applicable in communities dependent on karst landscapes for drinking water, such as McMaster's own Hamilton, Ontario!

What are the goals of the project?

I have visited Hidden River Cave a couple times in the past year as part of my work on this project. Much of these visits consisted of qualitative understanding of the physical and spatial relationships between the cave passages, with some sediment sampling completed. Surface sediment and select sediment cores are being analyzed for presence of microplastic, and select sediment cores have been run through an Itrax core scanner to obtain elemental data.

This fundraiser would allow a trip planned to retrieve water depth sensors - placed in August 2016 - to be extended. Another trip to Hidden River Cave will allow us to further qualitatively and quantitatively explore patterns between cave passages and gather sediment cores and surface samples in areas where there are gaps in our data.