Catastrophic sinkhole formation in Kansas; a case study
Catastrophic sinkhole formation in Kansas; a case study (in Geophysics and public safety, Richard D. Miller (prefacer))
Leading Edge (Tulsa, OK) (March 2006) 25 (3): 342-347
- boreholes
- catastrophes
- chemically precipitated rocks
- evaporites
- faults
- geologic hazards
- geophysical methods
- geophysical profiles
- geophysical surveys
- high-resolution methods
- Hutchinson Kansas
- Kansas
- land subsidence
- mechanism
- Paleozoic
- Permian
- prediction
- Reno County Kansas
- salt
- sedimentary rocks
- seismic methods
- seismic profiles
- sinkholes
- solution features
- surveys
- United States
- Hutchinson Formation
- Macksville Sinkhole
Sinkholes represent a hazard to property and human safety in a wide variety of geologic settings across the globe. In most cases, the subsidence rate of a sinkhole represents the most significant potential impact and risk to public safety. Since 1979, the Kansas Geological Survey has studied numerous sinkholes using high-resolution seismic reflection in an attempt to better understand the mechanisms that control their formation. Most sinkholes in central Kansas form as a result of dissolution of the Permian Hutchinson salt (Figure 1). The fluid source and associated pathway responsible for leaching these bedded evaporites have been natural, anthropogenic, and a combination of both. Sinkholes have been a part of the landscape in the North American midcontinent long before modern oil, gas, and mineral exploration, but clearly the activities of man have played a significant role in both increasing the number of sinkholes and affecting their subsidence rates.