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Hazardous Karst

thumbnail final book cover hazardous karst
Publication year: 2026
Number of pages: 136

ISBN: 978-1-77470-120-1
https://doi.org/10.62592/LSDQ5758

Citation: van Rooy, J Louis, Dippenaar, Matthys A. (2026). Hazardous Karst. The Groundwater Project. https://doi.org/10.62592/LSDQ5758.

Authors:

J. Louis Van Rooy: University of Pretoria, South Africa
Matthys A Dippenaar: University of Pretoria, South Africa

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Updated: 7 April 2026
Released: 25 March 2026

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Hazardous Karst

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Description

Large areas of the Earth’s surface are underlain by soluble rocks such as limestone and dolomite. Most of these areas also have concentrated human development because groundwater availability in the subsurface dissolution cavities. Karst processes may cause unstable surface conditions due to sinkholes and surface subsidences that develop naturally and also through anthropogenic disturbances such as groundwater lowering and disturbance of surface materials by infrastructure development. These features also connect the land surface to the groundwater in the karst aquifers resulting in groundwater recharge, discharge (springs), and also vulnerability of the aquifer that can result in groundwater pollution. These instability features pose a hazard to human lives and infrastructure and careful assessment of these risks followed by appropriate measures to reduce the risk are necessary to safely live on karst. This book aims to provide a background on karst theory with specific application to investigation methodology linked to different karst environments, hazard determination, and how to mitigate and rehabilitate hazard events.

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Contents

1 WELCOME TO THE WORLD OF KARST

1.1 About this Book

1.2 How to use this Book

2 SOLUBLE ROCKS

2.1 Evaporites and Carbonates

2.2 Carbonate Dissolution

2.3 Evaluating Understanding of Evaporites and Carbonates

3 KARST AND KARSTIFICATION

3.1 Karst

3.2 Karstification

3.3 Evaluating Understanding of Karst

4 KARST HYDROLOGY AND HYDROGEOLOGY

4.1 Flow Zones in Karst

4.2 Flow through Karst

4.3 Evaluating Understanding of Karst Hydrogeology

5 SINKHOLE HAZARDS

5.1 Types of Sinkholes

5.2 Development of Sinkholes

5.3 Sinkhole Flooding

5.4 Evaluating Understanding of Sinkhole Hazards

6 SITE INVESTIGATION

6.1 Risk-Based Approaches

6.2 Methods

6.3 Evaluating Understanding of Karst Site Investigation

7 GROUNDWATER ASSESSMENT

7.1 Assessing Hydrological Risks in Karst

7.2 Groundwater Tracing Tests

7.3 Karst Vulnerability

7.4 Karst Vulnerability Assessment Methods

7.4.1 DRASTIC Method
7.4.2 EPIK Method
7.4.3 PI Method
7.4.4 COP, COP+K, and VUKA Method
7.4.5 Groundwater Modeling

7.5 Evaluating Understanding of Karst Vulnerability

8 GEOTECHNICAL ASSESSMENTS FOR SINKHOLES

8.1 Risk Assessment

8.2 Sinkhole Hazard Assessment

8.3 Risk Management

8.4 Rehabilitation

8.5 Evaluating Understanding of Geotechnical Assessment of Sinkholes

9 CASE STUDIES FROM SOUTH AFRICA

9.1 Case Study Far West Rand, South Africa

9.2 Case Study Centurion (Ingress Water in an Urban Setting), South Africa

9.3 Compaction Grouting of a Road Section Between Westonaria and Carletonville (South Africa)

10 LIVING WITH KARST

11 EXERCISES

12 REFERENCES

13 EXERCISE SOLUTIONS

14 GLOSSARY

15 ABOUT THE AUTHORS

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