GEOLOGY AND THE PROPOSED KENTUCKY TRIMODAL TRANSPARK

Between Bowling Green, KY, and Mammoth Cave National Park (MCNP) lies the proposed site of a $100 million, 4000-acre industrial park, rail switching yard, and airport known as the Kentucky Trimodal Transpark (KTT). The KTT is being promoted by Warren County, KY, political forces under the aegis of its specially created Inter-modal Transportation Authority (ITA) begun in 1998 with the Governor's approval of $6 million in project start-up funds.

Although there were several locations proposed for the KTT, the site selection process proceeded rapidly, without any substantive geological analysis or input from professional geologists. Unfortunately, the ITA's chosen site lies within one of North America's most classic karst plains and potentially within the headwaters of MCNP, a World Heritage Site, International Biosphere Reserve, and Kentucky's most visited tourist attraction.

At a distance of only eight miles from MCNP, the KTT would be situated upon the Mississippian (Meramec Series) St. Louis and Ste. Genevieve Limestones. This highly karstified location contains literally hundreds of sinkhole basins and several caves that have been little explored. Leading karst experts have stated in writing that MCNP may be imperiled by the KTT and that DNAPLs and LNAPLs leaked into groundwater may spillover from one basin to another, particularly during peak discharge events. Numerous rare and endangered species within MCNP and nearby Barren River and Green River drainage basins are potentially threatened.

The ITA's engineering consultants have not proposed to conduct the detailed studies in hydrogeology, structural geology, and stratigraphy needed to address these stated concerns adequately. Since public funds are being used, such studies are essential to protect the public interest as well as the quality of our natural environment. Professional geologists must become more aggressively involved in public projects such as the KTT which, for better or worse, will have a permanent impact environmentally, socially, and economically on their surroundings.