IGCP 299: Geology, Climate, Hydrology and Karst Formation (1990-1994)

Project 299 was first discussed and endorsed by the Karst Commission of the International Association of Hydrogeologists (IAH) at its 18th meeting in Guilin, China in October 1988. Later that year Professor Yuan Daoxian filed a formal IGCP application form for the project. Eighteen geoscientists from 9 countries (China, France, West Germany, Hungary, Ireland, Netherland, Switzerland, USA, Yugoslavia) signed their names on the list of supporters for the project. Suggestions for improvements to the project from several supporters were incorporated into the plan.

The project was accepted by IGCP Board in Paris as Project 299 in February 1990.

The importance and benefit of this project came from the a increased understanding that resulted from Project research and communication about the broad expanse of karst the world, its rich but unevenly distributed natural resources, high populations, and fragile environments. Many informative geological records have accumulated and been interpreted from karst areas, providing a new tool for the study of global environmental change.

Karst areas total about 15% of the terrestrial part of the earth's surface, i.e., about 22 million square kilometers. Because of the resources that are sometimes concentrated onto karst landscapes and the typical difficulties of developing them in a sustainable way, Project 299's primary goal was to increase understanding of a broad range of karst-related processes, along with human/water/landscape interactions. Basic concepts of the work are expressed by the following examples:

• An important proportion of tropical and subtropical cash crops, and about 60% of oil and natural gas production in the world, are from karst regions. Moreover, karst regions are rich in many mineral deposits, such as bauxite, lead, zinc, copper and tin.
  
• In China, most of the coal measures, currently the major energy resource for the country, are related to karst or paleokarst phenomena. Besides, the most favorable region for hydroelectric power construction in China is in its southwest part, which enjoys the broadest continuation of karstland in the world. About a quarter of China's groundwater resources (about 200 billion m³ annually) are from karst aquifers. Unique surface and subsurface karst features, such as tower karst, tufa dams and waterfalls, karst springs, and fantastic cave speleothems, are very often major attractions in many important tourism areas in the world, with related economic development.
  
• The coexistence of surface and subsurface karst features, and the calcium-rich geochemical background, and generally thin soil cover in karstland makes it a very fragile and vulnerable environment. A series of problems frequent karst areas, such as drought, flood, deforestation, and surface collapses. But they are also quite different in different karst regions in the world. To treat all these environmental problems properly, there needs to be a better understanding on karst formation.
  
• World geoscientists have long sought explanations for the origin and distribution regularities of different types of karst features. Previous works have revealed that these differences result from global differences in geological, climatic, and hydrological conditions.
  
• Because the calcium cycle, carbon cycle and water cycle are the main divers of material and energy transfer in karst areas, they are very sensitive to environmental, particularly climatic change. Accordingly, there are many geological records reflecting paleoenvironments. Cave deposits and fossils, surface deposits, and karst features can all tell something about environmental change on different time scales.
  
• In combination with dating techniques or isotopic study on liquid inclusions, speleothems can sometimes tell the alternation of ancient wet or dry, and warm or cold periods. Weathering products in karst areas can tell the paleohydrological and paleoclimatic conditions directly.

Example Project summaries published in Project 299 reports:

1. Distribution of the karst in Perm region, K.A.Gorbunova
2. The South-east karst province of South Australia, K.G.Grimes
3. Analysis of the karst massif structural elements development for engineering karstology, V.N.Kataev
4. Spectra of Luminescence of cave minerals, Y.Y. Shopov
5. Genesis and mineralization of two Himalayan caves, Y.Y. Shopov et al.
6. Speleogenesis in aeolian calcarenite: a case study in Western Victoria, Susan White
7. Radon hazard in caves: a monitoring and management strategy, R.G. Lyons
8. Prediction of hazardous events in karst areas as a result of anthropogenic changes in the hydrogeologic environment, V.M.Kutepov and V.N.Kozhevnikova
9. The influence of karst hydrology on water quality management in the South East of South Australia, A.J.Emmett et al.
10. Groundwater and the rehabilitation of Nauru, G. Jacobson and P.J. Hill
11. Surface hydrology and soil erosion in an arid karst: the Nullarbor Plain, D. Gillieson et al.
12. Modification of preglacial caves by glacial meltwater invasion in East-Central New York, Paul A.Rubin
13. Young age bias of radiocarbon dates in Pre-Holocene marine deposits of Hong Kong and implications for Pleistocene stratigraphy, W.W.S.Yim, et al.
14. Origin of reef lagoon: the drowned karst topography and paleoclimate, N. Hori
15. A high-resolution record of Holocene climate change in speleothem calcite from cold water cave, Northeast Iowa, J.A. Dorale, L.A.Gonzalez et al.

The Final Report for the project was published in 1998: Yuan, D. and Z. Liu (eds.), 1998, Global karst correlation. Beijing: Science Press.

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