The word doline was widely used by European geomorphologists in the past century, whereas sinkhole is the most common term in the recent scientific literature. Sinkholes or dolines are widely regarded as one of the main diagnostic landforms of karst (Ford & Williams, 2007). The main distinctive features of these areas of relevance from the applied perspective include: (a) high permeability aquifers in which groundwater together with pollutants can rapidly flow through conduits and caves generated by dissolution (b) prevalence of underground drainage and a very limited or absent surface drainage network (c) presence of enclosed depressions such as sinkholes and poljes, as well as swallow holes and major springs. Karst terrains are characterized by unique hydrology and geomorphology, both at the surface and in the subsurface these are mainly related to dissolution of carbonate and/or evaporite rocks (Ford & Williams, 2007). This article presents the processes and factors involved in sinkhole development and reviews the main approaches used to assess and manage sinkhole hazards and risks. Although our capabilities to investigate sinkhole hazards and reduce the associated risks will continue to increase in the near future, the damage related to sinkholes will also increase, largely due to the adverse changes caused by human activities on the karst environments and the ineffective knowledge transfer between scientists, technicians, and decision-makers. Three main concepts may be applied to reduce sinkhole risk: (a) avoiding sinkholes and sinkhole-prone areas (preventive planning) (b) diminishing the activity of dissolution and/or subsidence processes (hazard reduction) (c) incorporating special designs in the structures (vulnerability reduction). Sinkhole risk models may be used as the basis to perform cost-benefit analyses that allow the cost-effectiveness of different mitigation strategies to be estimated. The main steps in sinkhole hazard and risk assessment include: (a) construction of comprehensive sinkhole inventories and detailed sinkhole characterization (b) development of independently tested sinkhole susceptibility and hazard models, preferably incorporating magnitude and frequency relationships (c) assessing risk combining hazard and vulnerability data. Recent literature reviews reveal that the vast majority of the damaging sinkholes are induced by human activities (e.g., water table decline, water input to the ground). Dissolution and subsidence processes involved in the development of subsidence sinkholes are controlled by a wide range of natural and anthropogenic factors. Subsidence sinkholes may cause severe damage to human built structures, and the occurrence of catastrophic collapse sinkholes may lead to the loss of human life. Three main subsidence mechanisms may operate individually or in combination: collapse, sagging, and suffosion. They may be related to the differential dissolutional lowering of the ground surface (solution sinkholes) or to subsidence induced by subsurface karstification (subsidence sinkholes). You might need to hire a professional geologist or geotechnical engineer to help you determine exactly what’s happening and how it might be mitigated.Sinkholes or dolines are closed depressions characteristic of terrains underlain by soluble rocks (carbonates and/or evaporites). Some states have extensive online information about sinkholes, including a place to report them. They are the experts on the geology of your area and they might be able to explain why a sinkhole is forming at your location. If you're concerned about damage to gas, electric, water, or sewer lines, contact the appropriate utility company.Ĭontact your State Geological Survey. If you’re confident of a natural cause for your sinkhole, options include:Ĭheck your homeowner's insurance policy to see if you might be covered (depending on which state you live in, most insurance policies don't cover damage due to natural sinkholes). Some sinkholes are caused by leaky underground pipes (talk to your utility company) and some are old construction pits or other buried materials that have settled. While the USGS studies the types of rocks that can potentially form sinkholes, we don’t investigate individual sinkholes on private property.įirst, rule out human causes for your feature.
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