The Karst Research
and Technology Center
The mission of the
Karst Research and Technology
Center (KRTC) is to
provide basic research and technical support to caving clubs, nature
conservancies, land owners and other organizations and individuals that need
assistance in evaluating and assessing karst landscapes. The center provides basic geologic,
hydrologic and environmental services on a priority basis, with higher priority
given to karst
systems that are threatened by development or improper land-use. The center believes that with proper
stewardship, karst landscapes can be preserved for future generations and still
be enjoyed by those currently interested in caves, springs, and sinkholes. The center believes in the protection of
karst features and currently maintains the Prairie Hollow Karst Preserve: an
excellent example of an Ozark karst landscape including large sinkholes, a cave
and spring. The preserve is available
for tour by contacting the center. The
center is also involved in ongoing research on caves, springs and
sinkholes. The center believes in
sharing ideas and data, therefore access to most of
the center’s work is provided on this site at no cost. The center also supports other karst
organizations by providing several grants each year in the amounts of $100 to
$1000. If you have a karst project that
suffers from the lack of funds, please contact the center with a request. The center is self-funded and is always in
need of help. If you are a scientist
interested in caves and would like to volunteer your time and skills to
worthwhile karst preservation and protection efforts, please contact the center
at this web address. Monetary and
material gifts of geologic-hydrologic-geophysical equipment are welcome.
The following are
current research topics at the center:
Prairie Hollow
Karst Preserve, Missouri
Carroll
Cave, Missouri
Roubidoux
Spring, Missouri
Detection of Caves
using Geophysical and Subsurface Geologic Methods
Remote Sensing
& Map Data used in Karst Studies
Regional Karst
Hydrogeology Of Raders
Valley, West Virginia
Petroleum
Occurrences in Karsted Reservoirs
The long-range
plans of the center include the building of a karst research facility that
would allow cavers and speleologists a chance to interact and conduct joint
research. The KRTC is currently looking for a significant cave to lease or
purchase to build the facility around.
If you know of a cave that might be of interest to the center, please
contact KRTC.
Also provided on
this site are other resources for your use.
The center would request that any text or figure copied from this site,
either electronically or on paper, be acknowledged when it is used.
Many thanks and
much appreciation to Mark Passerby
of www.caves.com , Marty Griffin with the
Carroll Cave Conservancy (www.carrollcave.org) and Robert Laird of www.cavediver.com and www.texas-flyer.com for their help and assistance in web page
design and implementation. Please check
out their sites and see what other resources are available for cave exploration
and research.
Morris
Hall –
Karst
Research and Technology
Center
17101 Kuykendahl
Suite
100
Houston,
TX 77068
Phone 281-376-3873
E-mail
morrishall@hotmail.com
National Speleological
Society (N.S.S.) Member # 15004