KWI Conduit| Volume VII, Number 1-2 |
Spring/Fall 1999
|
KWI Conduit| Volume VII, Number 1-2 |
Spring/Fall 1999
|
Christopher S. Belson
In 1998, the Karst Waters Institute (KWI) published a list of what KWI determined to be the ten most endangered karst communities; a project that evolved out of the proceedings of a scientific conference held in February 1997 on the conservation and protection of karst biota. Sponsored by KWI, the conference included 100 participants from 10 countries. Conference participants and other karst experts nominated 40 endangered karst communities in 1998 and 19 karst locations were nominated in 1999 as candidates for KWI’s "most endangered" list. Karst ecosystems selected exhibited biological significance including rare, endemic or threatened species, or communities rich in biodiversity; significant threats to the survival of the communities; and individuals or groups interested in protecting the threatened karst. As this project evolves in sophistication and gains publicity, it is the hope of KWI and all of the project’s participants that enhanced protection efforts for these karst communities will grow. Retrospectively, there has been one success and several failures involving those communities included on the 1998 list. The Canarian Government declared the Cueva del Viento System in the Canary Islands a natural protected site in 1998 thus prohibiting the construction of any new houses. This is a definite step in the right direction, but enforcement of the new law may prove difficult due to a lack of funding and an increasing demand for housing. On a darker, less encouraging note, the mining of limestone for a cement plant located on the Ha Tien-Hon Chong karst in Vietnam is continuing and causing significant destruction in the area. Two other sites from the 1998 list, Church and Bitumen Caves in Bermuda and the Koloa Lava Tube System in Hawaii, have been reselected for this year’s list primarily because the threats to these sites have not only persisted but have escalated. The remaining six sites listed in 1998 are still threatened and protection efforts are still necessary.
The Karst Waters Institute actively solicits participation in its "Top Ten" list, both in the management of selected karst ecosystems and in the identification of ecosystems to be included in the next "Top Ten" list. If you are interested in assisting with this project, or would like additional information on any of the above sites, please contact:
Dr. David C. Culver
Department of Biology
American University
4400 Massachusetts Avenue
Washington, D.C. 20016
or
The Ten Most Endangered Karst Communities for 1999
Church & Bitumen Caves are located beneath Ship's Hill on the grounds of the Marriott Castle Harbour Resort in Hamilton Parish, Bermuda. Church Cave contains the largest underground lake in Bermuda with an area of 1500 m2 and a maximum depth of 22.5 m. Bitumen Cave, just north of Church Cave, is the deepest underwater cave in Bermuda containing within its main chamber an 8 m pit that reaches a tidal salt-water pool, which extends down to a depth of 25.5 m. There are at least eleven cave species that are endemic to the lakes of these caves including five species of copepods, two isopods, and one each of ostracod, amphipod, shrimp and polychaete. Nine of these species are listed as critically endangered by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List and many are primitive forms that represent ancient lineage’s. The Castle Harbour Development includes a $60 million housing project, which involves the construction of 37 luxury townhouses on top of Church Cave and a retail center on top of Bitumen Cave. Partially treated wastewater from the development will be used to irrigate golf courses surrounding the caves. Additionally, due to its soft overlying limestone, weak entrance and unstable history, there is a high potential for a significant collapse within Bitumen Cave. The Bermuda Plan of 1992 prohibited any development that is harmful to caves, but development dollars proved to be more persuasive than environmental protection and Castle Harbour was subsequently given the authority by the government to proceed with the project. The Bermuda-based group, Save Open Spaces, hopes to encourage the Marriott Hotel corporation and the Bermuda Government to preserve these caves.
Located in South Central Texas, the Edwards Aquifer can be considered one of the most prolific artesian aquifers in the world. It is the only water source for more than one million people in San Antonio, the eighth largest city in the US, and for farmers and ranchers in Central Texas. It was the first aquifer in the nation to be designated as a sole-source aquifer under the Safe Drinking Act of 1974. The aquifer is divided into three parts: the drainage area which occurs on the Edwards Plateau (11,400 km2), the recharge zone (3,886 km2), and the artesian area (5,440 km2). The aquifer underlies large portions of eight counties with an extent approaching 290 km long and a width ranging from 8 to 48 km. Forty unique aquatic species and eight other species that are listed as endangered reside within the Edwards Aquifer including the endemic Texas Blind Salamander (one of the first species to be placed on the U.S. Federal Endangered Species List). All eight species are threatened by reduced spring flows caused by increased pumping, elimination of habitat, and degradation of water quality caused by urban expansion. During times of drought the amount of water drawn out of the aquifer is extremely high. Levels drawn below historic lows create a potential for saline water encroachment into the aquifer, which threatens the species viability and could cause changes in species diversity. The state of Texas has formed the Edwards Aquifer Authority to manage the unique resource. The Authority could implement contingency plans which would cut local water consumption during a severe drought when aquifer water levels are in danger of breaching historic lows. However, such a decision is unlikely because the majority of the board which oversees the Authority is composed of electors from the heaviest water-use areas. Local groups concerned with the well-being of the aquifer include: Lone Star Chapter of the Sierra Club, Guadalupe-Blanco River Authority, and biologists at Southwest Texas State University and the University of Texas at Austin. Local protectionist groups hope that sufficient publicity will encourage the Authority to implement measures aimed at keeping aquifer levels adequate to assure springflow.
The Koloa Lava Tube System in the southeast corner of Kauai, near the towns of Koloa and Poipu, is one of the most threatened faunal communities in Hawaii. This pseudokarst community contains at least three endemic cave species. Two of these species, the no-eyed, big-eyed wolf spider and a terrestrial amphipod, are currently being considered for listing under the U.S. Endangered Species Act. The third endemic species is a recently described terrestrial isopod. Other species that are found within these caves include cockroaches, termites, earwigs and springtails. The system is threatened by agriculture, urbanization, refuse dumps, deforestation, and mining. These factors alter the surrounding lands and deteriorate the quality of water entering the cave and inevitably harming the local species as well as affecting the drinking water for humans. Another concern is the invasion of alien species, which could potentially extinguish the native species. Local groups interested in the conservation of the Koloa Lava Tube System include the Hawaii Speleological Survey, the Hawaii Conservation Task Force of the National Speleological Society, the Pacific Islands Ecosystem Office of the USFWS, and some local government agencies. Public awareness will encourage both the protection of these caves and the federal listing of the threatened species living within these caves. It will also assist in the establishment of research to monitor the effectiveness of protective management strategies. As in most situations, protection of surface environments is the key to the conservation of this system.
Kosciusko Island is located in Southeast Alaska in the Alexander Archipelago west of Prince of Wales Island in the Ketchikan area of the Tongass National Forest. A team in 1998 documented nearly 50 new caves, many with relatively horizontal passages - an unusual feature among Southeast Alaskan caves. The biology of Kosciusko karst is essentially unknown. Studies throughout the Tongass, however, suggest that Kosciusko Island will be critical for its karst biology and will shelter numerous unique and possibly new species of cave-adapted invertebrates. Neighboring islands have revealed at least seven new species of invertebrates. These karst formations may also contribute to the viability of coho salmon; studies indicate a positive relationship between alkalinity of streams flowing from karst landscapes and the enhanced density of coho salmon parr. Continued logging and road building are the most significant threats to Kosciusko Island. The associated soil loss results in sedimentation that degrades the quality of the ground water. Many of the caves on the island have already been severely damaged from sedimentation and others have been used intentionally as containers for logging and road debris. The Tongass National Forest has established Standards and Guidelines for the management of karstlands, but implementation has been weak. The Glacier Grotto, Tongass Cave Project, Southeast Alaska Conservation Council as well as the National Speleological Society, Forest Service Employees for Environmental Ethics, the Nature Conservancy, and the Earth Justice Legal Defense Fund (formerly the Sierra Club Legal Defense Fund) are interested in preserving the karstlands throughout the Tongass National Forest. These groups have worked to inform the public about the plight of the Tongass forestlands and karstlands, and have endeavored to protect Kosciusko Island from additional logging.
Movile Cave is located 2 km from the Black Sea, near the town of Mangalia, in the province of Dobrogea, Romania. The Movile provides the setting for a unique chemoautotrophically based ecosystem. Chemoautotrophic bacteria use the energy that result from the oxidation of hydrogen sulfide, methane, and ammonia to provide the food base for the entire community of organisms. A rich and abundant community of terrestrial and aquatic invertebrate species flourish within Movile Cave in complete isolation from the surface fauna. To date, thirty-three endemic species have been described. The Movile sinkhole, adjacent to the cave, has been transformed into a dumpsite for the town's garbage causing leaching of pollutants to affect the balance of nutrients and disturb the system as a whole. In spite of tedious efforts to increase public awareness regarding the value of this ecosystem, the local government still faces a lack of funding to make it feasible to transport the town's garbage an extra 5 km to a proper dump site. The Group for Underwater and Speleological Explorations is interested in protecting this cave. It is possible that with proper funding the local government could have the town's garbage transported to a proper dumpsite.
The North-Northwest Karst Province of Puerto Rico stretches from the Aguadilla Municipality to the Loiza Municipality, with the region west of La Plata River being the most endangered area. The North-Northwest Karst Province has the most forest cover and the least fragmented habitat left in Puerto Rico and contains hundreds of caves that are essential for the survival of bats. There are many species endemic to this region along with twenty-two species of plants and fifteen species of animals that are legally designated as threatened or endangered. Excessive pumping of water from the local aquifer, limestone extraction to fulfill a demand of approximately 20 million cubic meters per year, and residential and industrial development are all factors contributing to the decline of this region. A not-for-profit organization, Ciudadanos Del Karso, is attempting to pass a bill aimed at protecting the karst of Puerto Rico. A speleo group, Fundacion de Investigaciones Espeleológicas del Karso Puertorriqueño, is also interested in the protection of this karst region. These groups hope that public awareness will stimulate protection efforts, and intend to conduct a vigorous lobbying effort of government authorities aimed at stimulating an official response to the threats confronting North-Northwest Karst ecosystems.
Organ Cave located in southeast West Virginia, near White Sulfur Springs and Lewisburg, is one of the longest, best-known, and most significant caves in the United States. Its surveyed length of 60.5 km ranks it as the seventh longest cave in the US and the twenty-first longest in the world. At 148 m, it is also the fourth deepest cave in West Virginia. It is listed as a Natural National Landmark with published accounts of tourism dating back to 1837. Organ Cave is rich in biodiversity with twelve different cave-limited species, establishing it as a significant system. Additional species found within the cave include mites, spiders, springtails, beetles, and bats. The seven species of bats residing within Organ Cave include both the Indiana Bat, which has been placed on the U.S. Federally Endangered List, and the extremely rare Small Footed Bat. Threats to Organ Cave include the West Virginia Department of Highways’ plan to upgrade nearby U.S. Route 219 from a two-lane road to a four-lane access highway. Logging and other highway construction preparations will increase runoff and are therefore causes of concern for the overall health of the system.
Snail Shell Cave located just southwest of Murfreesboro, Tennessee, is the longest continuous cave in the central basin of Tennessee with 20 km of passages. It contains two underground streams and a large sinkhole opening with dimensions of 30 by 61 m. There are at least three endemic species to Snail Shell Cave including a cave beetle, cave snail, and an undescribed species of blind aquatic snail. Other significant species that reside within Snail Shell Cave include the Gray Bat (listed on the Federal Endangered List and threatened throughout all of its range); the Southern Cavefish (no more than 100 occurrences within the state of Tennessee); and the extremely rare and critically imperiled Big Mouth Cave Salamander (no more than 5 occurrences within the state of Tennessee). The ever growing population within the area of Murfreesboro greatly threatens the cave. Additional threats come from vandals and the frequent carelessness of recreational cavers who are perhaps unaware of the presence of rare species within the cave. Erosion, primarily from ATV’s and trucks driven through the forest, is also occurring around the sinkhole thereby affecting the quality of water within Snail Shell Cave. Several local groups are interested in the well being of the cave including the Nature Conservancy, Tennessee Chapter; Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation, Division of Natural Heritage, Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency, Murfreesboro Grotto, Lincoln Memorial University, and Southeastern Cave Conservancy, Inc. It is the hope of these groups that education via publicity will make people aware of the impact that their presence has on the cave and its inhabitants.
Zinzulusa Cave located 2 km north of Castro
Marino (Lecce, Italy) exhibits an exceptionally rich biodiversity with
sixty species and subspecies described to date. It is believed that this
listing will increase with further exploration. The first pool inside Zinzulusa
Cave, La Conca, is characterized by brackish waters and contains both marine
and fresh water species. The second pool, Il Cocito, is characterized as
oligohaline and shelters a stygobitic fauna including a new stygobitic
sponge that has been collected in the deep Cocito. Pollution from urban
discharge waters threatens the cave as do tourists who litter and destroy
natural formations near the entrance of the cave. The Commune of Castro
Marina is currently developing a protection program for the cave in response
to the negative impact of tourism. The Department of Environmental
Sciences at the University of L'Aquila (Italy), Gruppo Speleologico Salentino
"P. de Loretiis" Lecce (Italy), the Castro Commune, and the Alderman Nini
Ciccarese have all taken an interest in protecting Zinzulusa Cave.
KWI Conduit
(c) 1999 Karst Waters Institute