1% is better than nothing; gcave maps and the

pr t cti n f th k rst protection of the karst watershedw

joe meimanhydrogeologist,hydrogeologist,

mammoth cave national park

Religious Truthsg h• Cavers are crazed stoners who eat

th i d dtheir dead.• Government Regulators are dull-eyed

losers who could not find a real job.• Farmers are gun-wielding, slack-jawed g g, j

yokels.• Scientists are fools; either too stupid Scientists are fools; either too stupid

to too lazy to be regulators or farmersfarmers.

so how do guys like this...g y

making stuff like this...making stuff like this...

unknown to folks like this...unknown to folks like this...

dealing with folks like thisdealing with folks like this..

doing stuff like this...

on this sort of stuff...on this sort of stuff...

deal with guys like this?deal with guys like this?

and turn out something like this?

the real question might be h l i l f the ultimate value of a cave

mapmap.

consider the previous image...

in south central kentucky in south central kentucky, perhaps the most studied karst

h ld h setting in the world, with about 1,000 km of mapped cave, the 1,000 km of mapped cave, the precise description and location f th c v is s c nd t its of the cave is second to its

role, function, and relationship pwithin the aquifer.

cave maps combined with results of hydrogeologic studies can of hydrogeolog c stud es can provide conceptual models

try this without a map

although watershed d li ti i th t delineation is the most important element in important element in protection and conservation f l h of water quality in the

mammoth cave region cave mammoth cave region, cave maps are key to several aspects of understanding the karst aquiferthe karst aquifer.

h thin s h th • why things are where they are (geomorphology).

ll l h f h k • overall geologic history of the karst aquifer.

• valuable contribution to visialization of the karst aquifer.q

• damn cool wall hangings to amuse your friends.friends.

• provides a “connectivness”, a tangible result to non-caver typesresult to non-caver types.

how it went down at mammoth cave

• internationally “celebrated” since the early 1800’s.y

• strong partnership with cavers.• Cave Research Foundation• Cave Research Foundation

– since 1957 the CRF has held monthly mapping expeditions and have mapped mapping expeditions, and have mapped over 560 km of the mammoth cave system and scores of smaller caves.system and scores of smaller caves.

as crazy as it might sound as crazy as it might sound, the cave mapping efforts h d d f have provided a sense of grandness to mammoth cave grandness to mammoth cave, resulting in public awareness and consequently, funding opportunitiesopportunities.

• strong local advocacy for the “world’s g ylongest known cave”.– citizen groups for clean waterg p

• over $1M spent on agricultural BMP’sBMP s.

• $110M green river CREP.

field day with regulatorsy g• the rules can be changed.

this sort of thing happens all the timethe time

so we did this...

but it all comes down to thisbut it all comes down to this...